Graduate Route Visa
The Advice Service and International Advice Service are independent services located within the University of Lincoln. We offer a free confidential and impartial legal service to all students at the University of Lincoln.
If you would like to email your query or book a telephone appointment with an international specialist adviser please email: Internationaladvice@lincoln.ac.uk
You can also email with your questions or speak to a specialist adviser face to face. Full contact details and face to face drop in times for International Advice can be found in the following link: Contact Details for Specialist Advice.
The Graduate Route launched on 1 July 2021. It allows students who have completed a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree to stay for up to two years to work at any skill level, or to look for work. Those who have completed a PhD will be granted permission for 3 years.
Graduate Route applications made on or after 1st January 2027 will be granted permission for 18 months and not 2 years. PhD students will still be granted permission for 3 years.
You must have Tier 4 or Student immigration permission at the time of application in order to be eligible. You can only apply from inside the UK. You will need to undergo identity, security and criminality checks.
Students starting courses from 1st January 2024 will not be allowed to bring dependants with them on their Student Visa unless they are going to be studying on a postgraduate research course or a PhD course.
The Graduate Route eligibility criteria is not changing and so students affected by the dependant visa change will not be able to have dependants join them in the UK under the Graduate Route.
Please read our detailed guidance in the sections below to help you understand the eligibility criteria and how and when to apply.
If after reading our guidance you need individual advice you can:
- contact the International Advice Service at the University of Lincoln, or
- contact the UKCISA Student advice line. The UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) also has detailed information on their website, including money and fees, travelling in and outside the UK and starting work
Useful Apps
Eligibility
International students who successfully complete an undergraduate degree or postgraduate degree at the University of Lincoln with Student immigration permission at the time of application will be eligible.
You will be able to apply after the Board of Examiners have confirmed your final results, showing that you have successfully completed your course. The Student Visa Compliance Team at the University of Lincoln will report your successful completion to UKVI, and you can apply after this.
The Student Visa Compliance Team at the University of Lincoln will not report your successful completion to UKVI until you have paid in full, all of the tuition fees for your course.
If your Student permission expired before 1 July 2021, you will not be eligible to apply (unless you can extend your Student permission first).
You can only apply from inside the UK. You must apply before your current visa expires.
Normally if your total course is 12 months or shorter, you should spend the full duration of your course in the UK with Student immigration permission, if your course is longer than 12 months you should spend at least 12 months in the UK with Student immigration permission.
You will only be eligible to apply for the Graduate Route visa once, even if you undertake more than one eligible course in the UK. Therefore if you are planning to do a undergraduate and postgraduate course in the UK, think about when would be the best time to apply depending on your career plans.
What is the length of the Graduate Route visa?
Currently, the Graduate Route visa allows students who have completed a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree to stay for up to two years to work at any skill level, or to look for work. Those who have completed a PhD will be granted permission for 3 years.
The Graduate Route rules are changing from the 1st January 2027.
Graduate Route applications made on or after 1st January 2027 will be granted permission for 18 months and not 2 years. PhD students will still be granted permission for 3 years.
How and when to apply
The Graduate Route process is NOT automatic and so you will need to apply by completing an online form. The application form will ask you for your CAS number. The CAS number is the number of the CAS that was given to you for your original Student Visa.
You will NOT need a new CAS to make a Graduate Route visa application.
You will only meet the eligibility criteria for the qualification, after the exam board for your programme has taken place, and your results have been officially confirmed. You must have successfully completed your course and your successful completion reported to UKVI in order to be eligible.
Successful completion of your studies is when you have completed your programme and the Board of Examiners have confirmed your award of qualification. Programme boards normally take place 1-2 months after the end date of your course, however this may vary between Schools.
The Student Visa Compliance Team at the University of Lincoln will report your successful completion to UKVI. You can only apply after this.
You must apply before your current Student immigration permission expires, or on the day it expires at the very latest.
It is not recommended to wait until the day your visa expires to apply, but if you do apply on the day your visa expires, please see the information from UKCISA about completing the application form.
Do I need a new CAS to make an application?
You DO NOT need a new CAS to make a Graduate Route visa application.
The Graduate Route application form will ask you for your CAS number. This will be the number of the CAS that was provided to you for your original Student Visa application.
How much does it cost to apply
The application fee is £880, and the Immigration Health Surcharge is currently £1,035 per year of permission granted.
Your eligible dependants will also have to pay an application fee and the Immigration Health Surcharge. Graduate visa: How much it costs – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Contact Student Services
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