Any money that you have already paid to the university towards your course fees will be listed on your CAS. This amount of money can be deducted from the total amount that you need to show.
Any money that you have already paid towards university accommodation (Horton Halls) will be listed on the CAS. This can also be deducted from the total amount but only up to a maximum of £1,334. You cannot deduct money paid towards any other type of housing (for example, private accommodation) nor can you adjust the amount you must show because you will be living with a relative.
Please contact us if any advance payments are not included on your CAS. You must not submit your visa application until these details have been amended.
Types of funds you can rely on
- Bank statement or bank letter - cash funds in a bank account that allows you immediate access in
- your name
- a joint account you hold with someone else
- your partner's name, if your partner is present in the UK or applying at the same time
- your parent or legal guardian's name
- Student loan from a regulated financial institution (this includes government, academic and educational loan schemes)
- Official financial or government sponsorship or grant
- Certificate of deposit
Overdrafts, stocks and shares, pensions (where the funds cannot be accesssed immediately) and bank accounts that don't use electronic record keeping are NOT accepted as evidence to show you have the required amount of money.
The 28-day rule
Unless you are relying on a student loan or official financial sponsorship, you must show the full funds have been held for a consecutive period of 28 days (finishing on the date of the closing balance).
During the 28-day period this money cannot drop below the required amount for even 1 day or you will not meet the Home Office requirements and your application will be refused.
28 days will be counted back from the closing balance and the closing balance cannot be more than 31 days old on the date of the application.
The date of application is usually the date you submit and pay for your online Student Visa Aplication and not the date you maybe required to show your financial documents.
Money in other currencies
If money is held in another currency, this will be converted into pound sterling (£) using the UKVI approved OANDA currency converter.
Format of evidence
The format requirements for financial evidence can be found in the Student and child guidance.
Your bank statement should include:
- the date it was issued
- the account holders name(s)
- the name of the bank or building society
- the balance on the account for the 28 day period finishing on the date of the closing balance.
You can provide a download of electronic bank statements as long as it has this information. You do not need to have these stamped by the bank.
Using your parent(s) funds
If you wish to use a personal bank account in your parent's name (or names), you must also include:
- your birth certificate as evidence of their relationship to you; and
- a signed letter from your parent(s), confirming the relationship between you, and confirming that they consent to the funds being available to you for study in the UK.
Extra conditions apply if you are relying on money held by your legal guardian.
You cannot use evidence of money held in any other person's name, even if you have their permission to do so.
Nationalities that don't need to show financial evidence
Some students do not need to submit evidence of their qualifications or that they satisfy the financial requirements with their application. The Home Office calls this the ‘differentiation arrangement’ for ‘low-risk applicants’. Nationals from the EU, EEA and Switzerland have been added to the list of 'low risk' nationals.
You are a low-risk applicant if you apply for Student immigration permission (from inside or outside the UK) and you have a passport issued by one of the countries or territories listed in the Financial evidence for Student and Child Student route applicants.
Please note it is very important that as a low-risk applicant you still obtain the evidence of your qualifications and your money (in the correct format) even though you do not need to send them. This is because the Home Office can request this evidence as part of its decision-making process and will refuse your application if you are unable to provide it by the given deadline.