You must enter the UK with your valid Student Route visa to complete your enrolment at UAL.
To activate your visa, you must enter the UK after your visa starts, not before.
If you receive an entry clearance vignette (visa sticker) in your passport, you must travel to the UK between the start and end dates of your vignette, no earlier or later.
If you enter the UK before your visa or vignette starts, you may be asked to leave the UK (and anywhere in the Common Travel Area) and re-enter.
Only once you have returned to the UK with an activated visa, you will be able to participate in your studies.
Get your eVisa
An eVisa is an online record of your immigration status and the conditions of your permission to enter or stay in the UK. You need to create a UKVI account to access your eVisa.
You can use an eVisa to travel to the UK together with your current passport or travel document, which must be linked to your UKVI account before you travel.
Check your visa for errors
You must check that your expiry date is correct as soon as your visa is granted.
Your visa should cover the full duration of your studies, plus some extra time at the end of your course. This is known as the ‘wrap-up period’.
Check whether your expiry date is correct:
- For a course of less than 6 months: course end date plus 7 days.
- For a course between 6 and 12 months in length: course end date plus 2 months.
- For a course of more than 12 months: course end date plus 4 months.
The end date of your course is stated on your Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) statement. UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) will use this date to calculate the wrap-up period.
Who to contact
If you identify that your Student Route eVisa has been issued with an error, you must immediately report the error to UKVI.
If you receive an entry clearance vignette and you identify that your vignette has been issued with an error, you must immediately contact the UAL Student Advice Service.
View and prove your immigration status using a share code
Once you've got your eVisa, you can get a share code to prove your immigration status.
Upload the PDF of your share code to the ‘my Online Registration’ section of your UAL Portal. You can upload your share code before you arrive in the UK.
Download an example of a share code (JPG 775KB).
Proving your date of entry to the UK
You'll need to evidence your date of entry to the UK.
It’s possible to enter the UK by air, rail, by road via the Eurotunnel or by ferry.
Keep your ticket and/or boarding pass and any other evidence of your date of entry. You must upload this to your UAL Portal. We need to see proof you entered the UK during the validity of your visa.
If you receive an entry clearance vignette, you must upload your date stamped vignette to your UAL Portal as evidence of your date of entry to the UK. Download an example of a vignette (JPG 284KB).
You can only upload your ticket, boarding pass or stamped vignette to your UAL Portal after you arrive in the UK. You must upload them before your enrolment deadline to complete your enrolment.
UAL Portal upload checklist
Upload the following documents to the ‘my Online Registration’ section of your UAL Portal.
Before you come to the UK:
- your passport photo ID page
- a PDF of your share code so we can verify your eVisa status.
Upload your passport and share code as soon as possible so that you can submit your online registration.
After you arrive in the UK:
- your date-stamped entry clearance vignette (if you receive one)
- your travel ticket and/or boarding pass if you did not receive an entry clearance vignette, a date of entry stamp or you arrived via the Republic of Ireland.
- This should show the date of your arrival in the UK and your full name.
You can only upload your ticket, boarding pass or stamped vignette to your UAL Portal after you arrive in the UK. You must upload them before your enrolment deadline to complete your enrolment.
Upload good quality photos or electronic copies of all documents.