Student visas · IAA-regulated advice
UK Graduate Visa Advice in Birmingham & London
Stay in the UK to work, or look for work, after you complete your degree, with no job offer needed. We check you qualify, prepare your Graduate visa application and help you plan your switch to a Skilled Worker visa, for a fixed fee agreed in writing.
Last checked 11 October 2026 · Reviewed by Vishal Gautam, IAA-regulated adviser
Overview
What is a UK Graduate visa?
A Graduate visa lets you stay in the UK to work, or look for work, after you successfully complete a UK degree or other eligible course on a Student visa. You don’t need a job offer or a sponsor, and you can be self-employed.
It’s the Graduate route under Appendix Graduate of the Immigration Rules. You apply from inside the UK once your university or college has told the Home Office you’ve completed your course. The visa can’t be extended and doesn’t lead to settlement, so it’s your chance to find a job that lets you switch to another visa, such as a Skilled Worker visa.
✓This is your visa if…
- You’re in the UK on a Student visa (or Tier 4 (General) student visa) that hasn’t expired
- You’ve successfully completed a UK bachelor’s or postgraduate degree, or another eligible course, during that visa
- Your university or college is a student sponsor with a track record of compliance and has reported your completion
- You studied in the UK for the whole course, or for at least 12 months of a longer course
→Look at another route if…
Quick check
Could you qualify? Six questions, one minute
Answer honestly. Nothing is saved or sent: this is a general guide, not advice on your case.
Are you in the UK, with a Student visa (or Tier 4 (General) student visa) that hasn’t expired?You must apply from inside the UK, before your Student visa ends.
Have you completed a UK bachelor’s or postgraduate degree, or another eligible course, on that visa?Eligible courses include a PGCE or PGDE, an approved law conversion course, the Legal Practice Course and the Bar Practice Course.
Is your university or college a student sponsor with a track record of compliance?The Home Office register of student sponsors shows ‘Student Sponsor – Track Record’ in the status column.
Has your university or college told the Home Office you’ve successfully completed your course?You don’t need to wait for your graduation ceremony or certificate. Ask your university if you’re not sure.
Did you study in the UK for the whole course, or for at least 12 months of a course longer than 12 months?Time away during term breaks or at weekends still counts as studying in the UK.
Have you never had a Graduate visa or Doctorate Extension Scheme permission before?You can only be granted a Graduate visa once.
Eligibility
Graduate visa requirements
All 70 points come from successfully completing an eligible UK course. You must apply from inside the UK while you have Student permission, and meet the other requirements on the day you apply.
Your course and your university
- A UK bachelor’s degree or UK postgraduate degree, completed during your last Student visa
- Or a PGCE or PGDE, an SRA-validated law conversion course, the Legal Practice Course, Solicitors Course or Diploma in Professional Legal Practice, or the Bar Practice Course or Bar Course
- Or a professional course at UK bachelor’s degree level or above for a profession regulated by UK law or a UK public authority
- Your last sponsor must be a higher education provider with a track record of compliance
- Your sponsor must have told the Home Office you’ve successfully completed the course by the date you apply
If your university let you change course without a new Student visa, only the course you changed to counts. If you’re a Students’ Union sabbatical officer, the course you completed just before that role counts.
Your Student visa and time in the UK
- You must be in the UK when you apply, and have, or have last had, permission as a Student
- For a course of 12 months or less, you must have studied in the UK for all of it
- You can’t apply if you’ve already had a Graduate visa or Doctorate Extension Scheme permission
- If a government or international scholarship agency paid both your fees and living costs for a course you completed in the last 12 months, you need its written consent
- You must not be in breach of immigration law or on immigration bail, and your history and any criminal record are checked
Apply before your Student visa expires. Until you get a decision, don’t travel outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man: your application would be withdrawn.
What you can do on a Graduate visa
- Work in most jobs, look for work or be self-employed
- Unpaid voluntary work for a charity, voluntary organisation or statutory body
- No work as a professional sportsperson, including as a sports coach
- Study only on a course that wouldn’t qualify for a Student visa; if it would, you’d need a Student visa instead. An ATAS certificate may be needed for some sensitive subjects
- No access to public funds (most benefits) or the State Pension
The visa starts on the day your application is approved. It can’t be extended, and Graduate time doesn’t count towards the 5 years for settlement as a Skilled Worker.
Your partner and children
- Your partner and children can stay only if they’re already in the UK as your dependants on your Student visa
- A child born in the UK during your Student or Graduate visa can also apply
- A child aged 18 or over must already have been your dependant
- Your partner must still be your partner: married, in a civil partnership, or in a relationship for at least 2 years
- Their visa ends on the same date as yours
Family members apply separately, from inside the UK, using your application number. New family members can’t join you from abroad on this route, but may be able to if you switch to a Skilled Worker visa.
Graduate visa to Skilled Worker: what you’ll need
- A job offer from an employer licensed to sponsor Skilled Workers, and a certificate of sponsorship with a start date no more than 3 months after you apply
- A job skilled to degree level (RQF 6 or above). Jobs below that level qualify only in limited cases, mainly Temporary Shortage List or Immigration Salary List jobs with a certificate issued before 31 December 2026
- As a Graduate, or within 2 years of your Graduate visa ending, you count as a new entrant: at least £33,400 a year and 70% of the going rate for the job
- Your Graduate and new-entrant Skilled Worker time together can’t be more than 4 years; after that you usually need the standard £41,700 and the full going rate
- English at B2, which a UK bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate meets
You can switch inside the UK. Skilled Worker can lead to settlement after 5 years; your Graduate time doesn’t count towards them.
Documents
Graduate visa documents: the easy part
The list is short, because your university reports your completion straight to the Home Office. Refusals usually come from timing and eligibility, not paperwork.
What everyone needs
- Your passport or other travel document
- The CAS reference number from your Student visa application
- Proof of your current Student visa
- Your scholarship provider’s consent, if it paid your fees and living costs
- Proof of your relationship, if your partner or children apply too
- Certified translations of anything not in English or Welsh
Your partner and children each need their own passport, proof of their current permission and your application number. For a child, proof of their address may be needed.
Costs & timeline
Graduate visa cost and processing time
The Home Office fee is £937, plus the health surcharge of £1,035 a year: £2,070 for a 2-year visa, so £3,007 in total. If you apply on or after 1 January 2027, the visa lasts 18 months and the surcharge is £1,552.50. You’ll usually get a decision within 8 weeks.
Applying in the UK
| Home Office application feeeach person applying | £937 |
| Immigration Health Surcharge2-year visa (apply on or before 31 December 2026): 2 years at £1,035 | £2,070 |
| Home Office total, per adult2-year visa; £2,489.50 for 18 months, £4,042 for 3 years after a PhD | £3,007 |
Home Office fee from the fees table in force from 8 October 2026 and Immigration Health Surcharge from GOV.UK, checked 11 October 2026. The surcharge is £1,035 a year: £1,552.50 for an 18-month visa and £3,105 for a 3-year visa. Each family member pays the same fee; the surcharge for a child under 18 is £776 a year. Our consultation fees →
Complete your course
Before your Student visa endsYour university or college tells the Home Office you’ve successfully completed it. You don’t need to wait for your graduation or certificate.
Apply and prove your identity
In the UK, before your Student visa expiresOnline application, fee and surcharge paid, then the ID check app or a UKVCAS appointment. Family members apply separately.
Decision
Usually within 8 weeksYou can stay in the UK while you wait. Don’t travel outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, or your application is withdrawn.
Work, or look for work
2 years, 18 months, or 3 years after a PhDYour visa starts the day it’s approved and you get an eVisa. Any job except as a professional sportsperson, or self-employment.
Your next visa
Before your Graduate visa endsIt can’t be extended. You may be able to switch to a Skilled Worker visa, usually at the lower new-entrant salary rate.
Avoid a refusal
Common Graduate visa refusal reasons
Most problems come from timing or eligibility rather than documents. These are the issues we check first.
Applying before completion is reported
Your sponsor must have told the Home Office you’ve successfully completed your course by the date you apply. Finishing your exams isn’t enough until it’s reported.
We check: with you whether your university has reported your completion before you pay the fee.
A course or provider that doesn’t qualify
The qualification must be a UK degree or another listed course, gained during your last Student visa, and your last sponsor must have a track record of compliance.
We check: your course, your provider’s status and any change of course.
Not enough study in the UK
You must have studied in the UK for the whole course, or for at least 12 months of a longer one. Time studying from abroad may not count.
We check: your study dates, any study abroad and any time you were away.
Your Student visa runs out first
You must apply from inside the UK before your Student visa expires. A late application is refused unless a narrow exception applies, such as applying within 14 days for a good reason beyond your control.
We check: your expiry date and plan the application around it.
A Graduate visa you’ve had before
You can’t be granted a Graduate visa if you’ve already had one, or permission under the Doctorate Extension Scheme. The application can be rejected as invalid.
We check: your immigration history before you apply.
Missing sponsor consent
If a government or international scholarship agency paid your fees and living costs for a course completed in the last 12 months, you need its written consent, or the application can be rejected.
We check: whether your funding needs consent, and whether your family members need a letter too.
How we help
Graduate visa to Skilled Worker: how we help
To stay longer, you’ll need to switch to another visa, such as a Skilled Worker visa. As a recent Graduate you can usually be paid the new-entrant rate of at least £33,400 and 70% of the going rate. We help with both steps, for a fixed fee.
Eligibility consultation
We check your course, provider, completion and Student visa dates, and whether your family can stay.
Graduate visa application
We prepare and submit your application, and your partner’s and children’s, before your Student visa ends.
Skilled Worker switch check
We check your job offer, occupation code, salary and the new-entrant rules before your employer issues a certificate.
Skilled Worker application
We prepare your switch in the UK and plan your route to settlement after 5 years.
Our scope: we’re regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority at Level 1. If you’re refused, we explain your options, including administrative review, and refer you to a solicitor or higher-level adviser where your case needs a higher level of advice.
FAQs
Graduate visa questions, answered
Can I apply for a Graduate visa from outside the UK?
No. You must be in the UK on the day you apply, and have, or have last had, permission as a Student. There’s no way to apply for a Graduate visa from abroad, so plan any travel around your application.
When can I apply, and how long does it take?
As soon as your university or college has told the Home Office you’ve successfully completed your course, and before your Student visa expires. You don’t need to wait for your graduation ceremony or certificate. You’ll usually get a decision within 8 weeks, and you can stay in the UK while you wait.
How long will my visa last if I apply near the end of 2026?
It depends on the date you apply, not the date of the decision. If you apply on or before 31 December 2026 you get 2 years; on or after 1 January 2027, 18 months. After a PhD or other doctorate it’s 3 years either way, and the visa runs from the day it’s approved.
Can I work, be self-employed or study?
You can work in most jobs, look for work, be self-employed and do unpaid voluntary work, without a sponsor. You can’t work as a professional sportsperson, including as a sports coach. You can study only on a course that wouldn’t qualify for a Student visa; for one that would, you’d need a Student visa instead.
Can my partner or children stay with me?
Only if they’re already in the UK as your dependants on your Student visa, or your child was born in the UK during your Student or Graduate visa. A new partner or a child outside the UK can’t join you on this route, but may be able to if you switch to a Skilled Worker visa. Each family member pays the £937 fee and the surcharge, and their visa ends with yours.
Can I extend my Graduate visa or use it to settle?
No. It can’t be extended, you can only have one, and it isn’t a route to settlement. Graduate time doesn’t count towards the 5 years for settlement as a Skilled Worker, but it can count towards the 10 years needed for long residence.
How do I switch from a Graduate visa to a Skilled Worker visa?
You need a job offer from a licensed sponsor, usually skilled to degree level, and a certificate of sponsorship; you can then apply in the UK. As a Graduate you count as a new entrant, so the salary can be £33,400 and 70% of the going rate, but your Graduate and new-entrant time together can’t be more than 4 years. A UK bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate meets the B2 English requirement, and the standard Home Office fee in the UK is £943 for up to 3 years or £1,865 for longer, plus the surcharge.
What can I do if my Graduate visa is refused?
You can usually ask for an administrative review, which checks whether the caseworker applied the Rules wrongly. It costs £80, and you must apply within 14 days of getting the decision. We look at the refusal and tell you plainly whether a review or a different route makes more sense.
Related routes
Before and after your Graduate visa
Student visa
Study at a UK college or university from age 16.
Read more →Skilled Worker visa
Work for a licensed sponsor, with a route to settlement.
Read more →ILR after 5 years
Settle after 5 years on a work route such as Skilled Worker.
Read more →All study routes
Compare student options side by side.
Read more →Ready when you are
Career, sorted.
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