IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR PRE SESSIONAL STUDENTS ABOUT EXTENDING YOUR TIER 4
STUDENT VISA IN THE UK
Please read the following information carefully. Remember that the process of extending your visa
in the UK is different from applying for a visa (Entry Clearance) in your home country. The rules are
extremely strict and your visa will definitely be refused if you do not bring all the correct
documents in English with you to the UK.
When I finish my pre sessional course, how do I extend my visa in the UK?
You will probably be coming to the UK with a student visa that expires on either 29th September
2014 or 5th October 2014, so you will need to extend your visa in order to be able to continue to
study at Cardiff University on your degree course.
You will already have a student visa with Cardiff University named as your Tier 4 sponsor, and if you
are staying with us for your degree, you will be able to send your visa application through the post
and enrol on your new course without having to wait until you have received your new visa. This is
very important as the application process can take around 2 months.
Can I get help to extend my student visa?
Yes, you can submit your application through the University’s International Student Support service.
We will help you prepare your application during your pre sessional course and we will submit it for
you when it is ready. When you arrive at Cardiff University our International Student Advisers will
come to your classes to help you with your application.
What documents do I need to bring with me from home?
You must bring your ORIGINAL degree certificate or your ORIGINAL transcript of results that you had
to show in order to receive a conditional offer onto a degree course at Cardiff University.
If you have both a degree certificate and a graduation certificate then you will only need to provide
the degree certificate.
If these certificates are not in English, you MUST have them officially translated.
This must be a fully certified translation by a professionally qualified translator or translation
company and must include:
 The full name of the translator
 Details of the translator/translation company’s credentials
 Confirmation that it is an accurate translation of the original document
 The translator/translation company’s contact details
 The date of the translation
 The original signature of the translator or an authorised official of the translation company
If your University or College has given you a copy of your degree in English, then this must be on
their official letter-headed paper. This is very important because if it only has the University stamp
and no other identifying details of your University, this will not be sufficient
So make sure that you bring all your certificates including any English language qualifications that
you obtained in your home country plus the translations, to the UK with you.
Remember, in order to get a visa for your degree course here at Cardiff you are going to have to
provide ORIGINAL certificates as proof of your previous qualifications to the UK Home Office, even
though you may already have provided copies of them for the University.
How much money will I need to show?
You will need to show either that you have already paid the first years’ tuition fees for your degree
course, or that you have this money available in a bank account.
If you have paid all or some of your tuition fees to the University, we will provide proof that we have
received the money.
You will also have to show that you have 9 months maintenance (living costs) of
£7,380.
How do I show that I have this money?
This money can either be in your own bank account or your parent’s bank account and you will have
to provide a bank statement covering a 28 day period to prove this.
Money for your tuition fees and maintenance (living costs) must have been in the account for a
minimum period of 28 days and during this time your balance must not have dropped below the
minimum amount. If it has dropped below the minimum amount even for just 1 day, you do not
meet the financial requirements and your student visa will be refused.
The bank statement must not be more than 31 days old at the time you submit it with your student
visa application, and must show:
Your name, or your parents/legal guardians name
The account number
The date of the statement
The financial institution’s name and logo
The amount of money available to cover your course fees and living costs.
If you are sponsored by an official sponsor e.g. your government or University, you will need to
provide an original sponsor letter showing all the details of your sponsorship.
If I am using my parents’ account what else do I need?
We strongly recommend that you use a bank statement from your own UK account but if your
parents are providing your tuition fees and living costs and have the money in their account, you
must prove that they are your parents or legal guardians.
You do this by providing your original birth certificate, showing your name and the name of your
parents. If you do not have an official birth certificate, we recommend that you transfer the money
into an account in your own name because your visa will be refused without this evidence
Remember the birth certificate will have to be officially translated into English if necessary.
Your parents will also have to provide a letter confirming their relationship to you and that they give
their consent to you using their funds to study in the UK
So if you are using money that is in your parents account, please make sure that you bring a signed
letter of consent from your parents and your birth certificate to the UK with you. We have prepared
a template letter which your parents could use. This can be found at the bottom of the page on the
following website:
http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/studentsupport/international/visaandimmigration/extendingyourstudentv
isa/index.html
Nearer the time that you will be applying for your visa your parents will need to send you their bank
statements that must be in English and show that they have had the money for at least 28 days.
Remember these statements cannot be more than 31 days old at the time you are submitting your
visa application.
Overseas bank statements and Certificates of Deposit from China
We strongly advise you NOT to use overseas bank statements or Certificates of Deposit from a
Chinese bank as these have not been accepted by the UK Border Agency in some cases.
I intend to open a bank account in the UK; can I use this to show my funds?
Yes you can, and we strongly recommend this as it is the simplest way of proving you have the funds.
However remember that you will have to show that the funds have been there for 28 days. You will
therefore need to open a bank account as soon as possible after you arrive in the UK if this is how
you intend to show that you have the required funds
What happens if I decide to study my degree somewhere else in the UK?
It is very important to realise that if you wish to go to study at another University after your presessional course then you will need to get a new visa to study at that University. You may be able to
apply for a new visa and start your course before your application has been approved, but this will
depend on the rating of your new University. If you are planning to study somewhere else in the UK
then you should discuss this with an international student adviser when you arrive at Cardiff
University.
Further information
More information about the Tier 4 student visa extension process can be found on the following
website:
http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/studentsupport/international/visaandimmigration/extendingyourstudentv
isa/index.html