Visa and immigration
Change from BRP cards to eVisas
Information about eVisas and what you need to do before and after you travel to the UK.
The UKVI is no longer issuing BRP cards for Student visas. Instead, students will now be issued with an eVisa.
More information about the eVisa can be found on the gov.uk website.
Accessing your eVisa
Once your visa application has been approved, you will get an email from the UKVI informing you about your successful application. You will need to open a UKVI account to access your eVisa.
It may take a couple of days after you open an account before your account becomes active to access your eVisa. You will also need to download a share code to enable the Visa and Compliance team to verify your immigration status and complete your right-to-study check.
The length of your visa will be determined by your course dates. For courses that are less than 12 months long, you will get an additional 2 month visa wrap up period after your course end date. If your course is 12 months or longer, you will receive an additional 4 month visa wrap up period after your course end date.
Please check your visa length as soon as your application is approved and urgently contact the Visa and Compliance team if you believe your visa dates are incorrect.
What you need to do
Before you travel to the UK
You need to:
- Open your UKVI account as soon as you get issued with your eVisa.
- Obtain your eVisa share code after you have opened your UKVI account.
- Upload the following documents onto your Enroly CAS Shield account:
- Your eVisa share code
- Your UKVI decision letter/email
- Your entry clearance vignette if you are issued with one
- Your passport ID page
After you arrive in the UK (but before you arrive on campus)
You need to:
- Upload the following documents onto your Enroly CAS Shield account as soon as you arrive in the UK:
- Your passport page with an entry stamp obtained at the UK border
- Your boarding pass and flight ticket (if you do not get a passport entry stamp at the UK border)
- You must also ensure you have paid all the required course fees and completed your online enrolment.
Please note that if you were issued with a new passport between the time you submitted your visa application and the time you travelled to the UK, you must upload your new passport onto your Enroly CAS Shield account.
After you have uploaded all your documents onto your Enroly CAS Shield account and paid all the required course fees, you must arrive on campus immediately after your arrival in the UK (and well before the latest enrolment date stated above) to complete your right-to-study checks with the Visa and Compliance team, as well as to complete your enrolment and obtain your Student ID card with the Registry (Student Records) team.
You must bring the following with you to the campus:
- Your original passport
- Your CAS Shield account username and password
After you have completed your right-to-study checks with the Visa team, you will be directed to the Registry (Student Records) team to complete your face-to-face enrolment and to obtain your Student ID card.
EU and Study abroad students without an Enroly CAS Shield account
If you do not have an Enroly CAS Shield account:
- Please email all the documents stated in the 'Before you travel to the UK' and 'After you arrive in the UK' sections above, to the Visa and Compliance team at visa@yorksj.ac.uk. You must do this before you arrive on campus.
- You must also ensure you have paid all the required course fees and completed your online enrolment before you arrive on campus.
After you have completed your right-to-study checks with the Visa team, you will be directed to the Registry (Student Records) team to complete your face-to-face enrolment and to obtain your Student ID card.
As an international student, it is essential to complete these steps to ensure you are fully enrolled and ready to start your studies.
More information is on our Complete international student registration page.