Information for international students who require a visa to travel to the UK


Short Term study in the UK 

You must apply for a Visitor (Child) Visa if you are from outside the UK.   
 
If you are a national of one of the countries listed in Appendix 2 , you must apply for and receive your visa before you fly to the UK. If you are a national of a country not on this list, you can fly to the UK and be granted this leave on arrival. Please note that you will still need to bring the required documents (visa support letter from academic summer, financial evidence, etc.) to show to the border officer.  
  
You can apply for a visa up to three months before your travel date to the UK. You should get a decision on your visa within three weeks. You can also check the guide processing times to determine how long getting a visa might take in the country you are applying from.  
  
Academic Summer is accredited by the British Accreditation Council (BAC) , so we can support your visa. We provide a visa support letter to international students, and you should use this letter to apply for your visa at a Visa Application Centre in your country. In case an original visa support letter sent by a courier is needed, you will be charged £75.  If an electronic visa support letter is sufficient, there are no charges. 
  

How the admissions and visa process works: 

Long Term study in the UK 

  
If you are between ages 4 and 17 and will study at an independent school in the UK from September, you can apply for a  Child Student Visa.  
  
If you have a place on a course at an independent school in the UK from September and plan to attend the Academic Summer course before the beginning of a school term, please get in touch with us. If we have a partnership with your school, Academic Summer can be included in the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) as a Pre-Sessional course. Then your Student  (child) visa will be valid both for Academic Summer course and your studies in the independent boarding school in the UK. Alternatively, you must first apply for a Visitor Visa (Child) to attend the Academic Summer programme. You must also apply for a Child Student Visa for your full-time studies. 
  
You can find out more information about Child Student Visa here. 
  
If you are starting a course with a boarding school in September and are joining Academic Summer for August only, you can study with us on your Child Student visa. You will be granted your visa for one month extra before your main course starts in September, and your study with Academic Summer will be considered supplementary study. Therefore, no additional visa will be required for your course with us. 
  
Similarly, suppose you have a current Child Student visa and want to study with Academic Summer during your summer break. This will be considered a supplementary study, and you can join us without needing an additional visa. 
  

Police Registration and BRP Collection on arrival in the UK 

  
If you join us on a Child Student visa, you may be required to register with the police. This will be written in your entry clearance vignette if this is a condition of your visa. The staff at Academic Summer will assist you with your registration. The registration fee is £34. 
  
Anyone coming to the UK for more than six months will be granted a 30-day entry clearance vignette visa and be required to collect their BRP (Biometric Residence Permit) when they arrive in the UK. Depending on which boarding school has sponsored your visa, there are different systems for doing this. The staff at Academic Summer will liaise with your boarding school to help you with this when you arrive to receive your BRP for your full-length visa.