If your nationality appears on the Home Office list of visa nationalsLink opens in a new window then you should apply for a Visit Visa onlineLink opens in a new window before you come to the UK. The earliest you can do this is three months before you travel.

If your nationality is not on this listLink opens in a new window, then you can enter the UK as a visitor at the UK border, using just your passport - the Visit Visa will begin from the date that you enter the UK.

However, the UK travel requirements are changing and soon all visitors, coming to the UK for up to six months and not on the visa national list will be required to obtain permission to travel - Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) before travelling. Please check the immigration rules to see when ETA will apply to your nationality.

If you are a national of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates the ETA applies to you already and you must be granted an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA)Link opens in a new window before your journey.

A Visit Visa permits the following types of study in the UK, up to six months duration:

• Attendance at a PhD viva
• Re-sit or entrance examinations
• Short course, exchange or study abroad programme
• UK-based learning undertaken at Warwick, as part of one of our distance learning programmes
• Research or research tuition undertaken at Warwick, if relevant to a degree-level course you are following overseas
• Electives relevant to a course you are following overseas in medicine, veterinary medicine, science or dentistry

You should prepare the following documents when applying for a Visit Visa - more information about application requirementsLink opens in a new window can be found on the Home Office website.

If you are a visa nationalLink opens in a new window applying before travel, you will provide this information with your online visa application; if you are an EU or non-visa national you may be required to provide this evidence to a UKVI border official at the airport before you can enter the UK as a visitor.

• Passport or travel document

This should be valid for the duration of your stay in the UK, with at least one blank page

• Valid ATAS certificate

Only if required for your courseLink opens in a new window

• Financial evidence

There is no set amount of money that you need to show, but it should be sufficient to cover living costs for the duration of your visit; we suggest allowing £1,000 per month of your stay. You can use your bank statements or other proof of earnings, like payslips. If you will rely on funds from someone else, obtain a letter of consent and provide evidence of their relationship to you.

• Details of your study in the UK

This will be a visa support letter from Warwick, or if coming on a study abroad, exchange, or visiting research programme, your unconditional offer. Students on distance learning courses will be provided with a letter which confirms all the dates they are required in the UK, which can be used to apply for a long-term Visit Visa, if appropriate. If visiting the UK to undertake research or a medical elective, you will also need a letter from your home institution confirming your registration and that your study in the UK is relevant to your degree overseas.

You may also be required to provide some or all of the following information: accommodation where you will stay in the UK; onward or return flight bookings; family ties to your home country; evidence of employment.

There are some limitations to what activities you can do while in the UK on a Visit Visa - you may not:

• Work, either paid or unpaid
• Undertake a work placement
• Have contact with patients, if in the UK to undertake a medical elective
• Study on a course of longer than six months

If you are granted leave to enter the UK as a visitor at the airport, using just your passport, the start date of your Visit Visa will be your date of entry and your visa will be valid for six months from that date. You cannot extend this visa but if you exit and re-enter the UK, you will be granted fresh entry as a visitor on your return. You will receive no endorsement in your passport and should retain evidence of all visits to the UK.

If applying for a Visit Visa in advance of travel you will usually be granted six months, beginning from the start date of the visa vignette placed inside your passport. Do not enter the UK before the start date of your visa and ensure that you leave the UK before it expires.

If you are likely to be making subsequent trips to the UK for a period that exceeds six months, for example as part of a distance learning course delivered over several years, you could opt to apply for a long-term Visit Visa.Link opens in a new window

If you applied for your visa in advance of travel, check the visa vignette carefully for any mistakes and contact the visa application centre where you applied if you spot any errors. Inform your department at the university if you are concerned that you might not arrive for the start of your course due to a visa error. Remember, you can only enter the UK after the start date of your visa.

If you are a non-visa national, be mindful of your UK study period and the date you enter. Remember, your Visit Visa will start from the date you arrive in the UK and you are limited to 180 days of study at a time.

On arrival to the UK, you should carry all the supporting documents used to obtain your Visit Visa, but only provide these to a border official if specifically asked to do so.

A Visit Visa is not sponsored by an educational institution or any other organisation and so can be used to visit the UK for general purposes, such as tourism, or to visit someone living in the UK (for example, if you are inviting your parents to attend your Graduation Ceremony).

If you do not already hold an appropriate visa, you can also apply for a Visit Visa to attend your Graduation Ceremony.

The application requirementsLink opens in a new window are the same, as is the online form.