Money and your visa

Bank (and building society) account statements must:

• be for accounts held in your name or that of your parent(s) (see ‘Using parents’ accounts’ below), unless you are eligible to submit an adult dependant's account
• include the bank’s name and information about the bank such as contact details or a branch/sort code
• include the name of the account holder and the account number
• include the date the statement was produced
• be supported by a printed currency conversion of the closing balance (if not held in GBP £) using OANDA
• be translated into English in full if any part of the statement is not in English.

Print-outs of electronic statements are acceptable, providing they contain the above information. There is no need to have these stamped by the bank.

It is acceptable to submit statements for more than one account. The length of time for which funds are held will be calculated by counting back from the date of the most recently dated statement and the statements together must cover the whole period of time for which the funds must be held.

Funds will not be counted if they are held in a financial institution where any of the following apply:

• UKVI cannot make satisfactory verification checks
• The financial institution is not regulated by the appropriate regulatory body for where the institution is based
• The institution does not use electronic record keeping

A UWE Bristol Immigration Adviser would be happy to check your bank statements before you make your online application.

If relying on money held by parents, you must provide (in addition to bank statements which meet the criteria above):

• evidence of your relationship, ie an original or notarised copy of a birth certificate*
• letter (original, signed and dated) in which your parent acknowledges their relationship to you, and gives their consent for you to use their funds for study.

*Please refer to a UWE Bristol Immigration Adviser if you do not have a birth certificate. UKVI will not accept an affidavit in lieu of a birth or adoption certificate.

You can use the following documents in support, and sometimes instead, of bank statements:

• a letter from your bank, dated no more than 31 days before application, confirming that funds of at least the required amount have been in the relevant account for 28 consecutive days. The letter must be on headed paper, signed by a bank official, and must contain contact details.
• if you are from certain countries such as China, a certificate of deposit issued no more than 31 days before online application, showing that at least 28 days have passed since the deposit of an amount, which exceeds the required amount. We strongly advise that the bank confirms the funds are available and are not frozen or inaccessible
• passbook for a bank or building society, covering a consecutive 28-day period ending no more than 31 days before online visa application, showing that funds of at least the required amount have been present continuously in the relevant account.

All criteria under 'Bank Statements' (above) must be met for all documents submitted.

An official financial sponsor can be one of the following:

• the government of the UK or national government of your own country
• the British Council
• an international organisation or international company*
• a university or UK independent school.

If your tuition fees and living costs are met in full by an official financial sponsor you do not need to provide the type of financial evidence (bank statements etc) described above. Instead, you must provide a letter from the sponsor which:

• clearly shows your name
• clearly shows the date of the letter
• gives the name and contact details of the sponsor
• states the duration of the sponsorship
• states either the amount of the money the sponsor is giving to you or that the sponsor will meet all of your tuition fees and living costs.

If your sponsorship does not meet the amount needed (see ‘How much money do I need?’), you must make up the difference and provide evidence in the form of bank statements etc.

*There is no definition in the rules of an international company, but decision makers will check the letterhead of correspondence and conduct a web search to establish whether a company has a presence in more than one country. If there is likely to be any doubt, we advise you to submit additional evidence showing that your sponsor has offices in more than one country.

If you are receiving official financial sponsorship from UWE Bristol, details will appear on your CAS and you are not required to provide a separate letter.

You can use a loan for a student visa application only if it is provided by a government, or a government-sponsored student loan company, or if it is part of an academic or educational loans scheme which is provided by a financial institution regulated for the purpose of issuing student loans by the official regulatory body for the country the institution is in and where the money is held. The loan must be in your name alone.

The document which confirms your loan must:

• be dated no more than six months before visa application
• state your name and the date of the letter
• confirm the loan is a student loan provided by either the relevant government or a government sponsored student loan company or an academic or educational loans scheme
• state the amount available as a loan
• show that the loan will be available to you before you travel to the UK (if applying overseas)*
• not contain conditions placed upon release of the loan other than successful visa application
• appear on official stationery.

*If the loan is approved by your national government for the purpose of study, release of the funds can be withheld until after you arrive in the UK. If the loan is paid directly to UWE Bristol before you travel, the living costs element can be made available by the time you arrive in the UK.

Tuition fees which have already been paid will be deducted from the relevant fixed sum. The Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) must state the amount of fees which has been paid, or you must present receipts. The only exception to this occurs when you have an official financial sponsor (see Official Financial Sponsors, above). If payment of tuition fees is not demonstrated using the CAS or receipts, you must show that you can pay your tuition fees whether they have been paid or not.

Accommodation fees up to a maximum of £1,334 can also be deducted from the relevant fixed sum. The accommodation fees should have been paid to UWE Bristol (not to a third party) and, as with tuition fees, this amount will not be deducted unless the CAS explicitly states that accommodation costs have been paid, or you can produce receipts.