Visas and immigration

You must not work if the words “No work” or “Work prohibited” are printed on your visa. If you do work, it would be a breach of your immigration conditions and a criminal offence.

You can do most kinds of work, but you must not:

• be self-employed
• be employed as a professional sportsperson or sports coach
• be employed as an entertainer including acting/performing
• take a permanent full-time job

You might want to do unpaid voluntary work. There is a difference between unpaid employment and voluntary work, and you should always check with an employer who offers you voluntary work whether it might be seen as unpaid employment. The time you spend doing unpaid employment counts towards the total number of hours of work you can do in a week.

You are unable to take a gap year and work in the UK. If you defer your studies, your visa will be curtailed and you will be required to leave the UK.

Further information on working during your studies can be found on UKCISA website.

If you would like to undertake a placement or internship during term time, you will need to make sure that it complies with the Home Office’s requirements and discuss with your course leader in the first instance.

Visa students studying at degree level or above can take up a full-time placement or internship during term time provided that:

• the placement or internship is an integral and assessed part of the course
• the placement or internship takes up no more than 50% of the total length of the course

AUB will still be responsible for you as your sponsor during your placement or internship, which means we will continue to monitor and record your attendance.

If you are offered a placement or internship outside of term time (such as during the summer holidays), you can work full time and AUB will not be responsible for monitoring your attendance, nor does the placement have to form part of your course.

The Graduate Route visa gives students an opportunity to stay in the UK to work and develop their careers for up to two years after they graduate. Full details on the application process are available on the government's website.

Eligibility and how the Graduate Route Visa works

• The Graduate route is an unsponsored route, meaning you don't need a job offer to apply for the route. You'll be able to work flexibly, switch jobs and develop your career in the UK as required.
• The Graduate Route is available to international students who have a valid student visa at the time of application and who've successfully completed a degree at undergraduate level or above at a Higher Education Provider with a track record of compliance.
• You'll need to have completed the entirety of your course in the UK as a student.
• The Graduate Route will require a new visa application, which'll only be possible from inside the UK. It'll include the payment of a visa fee of £822 and the Immigration Health Surcharge at the full rate of £624 per year (both fees are subject to change) and the full amount needs to be paid when applying.
• For most applicants, the process will be entirely digital, and if your application is successful, you'll be issued with an e-Visa.
• You'll start your application at gov.uk, where you'll create a UK Visas and Immigration account and use the ‘UK Immigration ID Check’ app to verify your identity. To do this, you'll need either your Biometric Residence Card or Permit (BRC/P), or passport, depending on whether you have a physical or digital visa.
• You'll also need to know the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) you used for your most recent student visa application in order to apply for the Graduate Route.
• You can only apply after your sponsor (AUB) has reported you to UKVI as having completed your course. We'll email you to confirm when we've reported your successful completion to UKVI. We recommend that you read both the overview of the visa and the Graduate section of the Immigration Rules before applying for your visa.

Skilled Worker is a visa route for people who've been offered a skilled job in the UK. In order to apply under the Skilled worker visa category, you must meet all the following minimum requirements:

• Your employer (who has offered you a job) must've been approved by the Home Office and must provide you with a ‘certificate of sponsorship’.
• Your job must be on a list of eligible occupations and the salary must normally be the highest of three options: £25,600 per year; £10.10 per hour; or the going rate for the type of job you'll be doing (amounts subject to change).

You can find out more about the Skilled Worker minimum requirements, what you need to apply, fees and the application process on the Home Office website; we also recommend that you read the Skilled Worker section of the Immigration Rules in full before submitting any application. In addition, UKCISA have published a comprehensive and helpful guide to working after your studies.

We're only able to provide students with basic advice on this visa category. However, your employer should be able to confirm what's required to apply. If you'd like more specialist advice, we recommend you discuss your application with an authorised Immigration Adviser before submission.

The Temporary Work visa is aimed at young people, giving them a chance to live and work in the UK for a limited time. You can apply for a Temporary Work visa if you have an offer for a full-time internship that meets UKVI’s requirements. The internship must be paid in line with the UK’s minimum wage legislation. For more information about the visa, refer to the government's guidance.

You need a certificate of sponsorship before you submit your visa application. Under the Tier 5 (Temporary Worker -Government Authorised Exchange), this can be issued by a government-approved sponsor. Relevant schemes include AIESEC (Access Tier 5 scheme), GTI (Tier 5 Intern Program) and BUNAC (Intern in Britain); refer to the full list of sponsors for more information.

We're unable to offer any guidance on this visa category. We strongly recommend that you do your own research and contact an authorised Immigration Adviser or one of the approved sponsors linked above for further information.

The Innovator Founder visa has replaced the Start-Up and Innovator visas and is for individuals who want to start and run an innovative business in the UK. In order to apply for this visa, you must be endorsed by an approved body; please refer to the full list.

You can read about the eligibility requirements for the Innovator Founder visa on the Home Office website; we also recommend that you read Appendix Innovator Founder to the Immigration Rules in full before formally contacting an endorsing body.

We're unable to offer any guidance on this visa category. We strongly recommend that you do your own research and contact an authorised Immigration Adviser or one of the approved endorsing bodies linked above for further information.