Dependants- International Students

In June 2023 the UK Government announced that it intended to make some changes to the UK immigration system on 1st January 2024. 

These changes include: 

"Removing the right for international students to bring dependants unless they are on postgraduate courses currently designated as research programmes.” 

"Removing the ability for international students to switch out of the student route into work routes before their studies have been completed.” 

"Reviewing the maintenance requirements for students and dependants.” 

On 17th July 2023, the UK Government released it's formal Statement of Changes to the Immigration Law, which added further clarification to some of the intentions above.

This Statement confirms that international students, who start their course on or after 1st January 2024, will not be eligible to apply for dependants to join them in the UK unless the Student is either government sponsored and on course of more than 6 months, OR they studying a Postgraduate Research degree such as a PhD or other doctoral qualification or a Masters made up mainly of Research. 

Conversely, those whose courses start before 1st Jan 2024 (so September/Autumn 2023) will still be able to apply to bring their dependants to the UK. They do not have to make their dependant applications at the same time as their own visa application but can make this application at any point during their course. 

Regarding switching from Student to Work routes in the UK, clarification has been made that students will not be able to switch into a work route until they have completed their course. The only exception to this is for PhD students who have already completed 24 months of their course at the time of switching or students who had already made a visa application to switch before 17th July 2023.

You may also find the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) a useful resource, so please also check there.

If you are bringing dependants to the UK, it is your responsibility to ensure the following:

1. You have enough money, upfront, to support your family in the UK. You should not rely on part-time work to fund your living costs and tuition fees, your primary focus should be on your full-time study
2. You source and finance suitable family accommodation in the UK. If you cannot arrange this before you arrive, it may be necessary for you to come to the UK alone at first, find accommodation suitable for you and your family and then bring your family members later 
3. You must live no more than a maximum of 50 miles from the University campus. All family members must be living together
4. You apply for school places on time and adhere to UK school admissions and attendance processes. You may also need to organise additional childcare, so as not to impact on your engagement with your full time studies
5. You have read all the University support resources provided for you in relation to the above. The University can offer you advice and guidance but you must make your own arrangements:

              UK Living Costs and Finances: International Students
              International Students’ Information Guide
              Information for International Families

When your dependants apply to come to the UK depends on your personal, financial and practical situation and you should pay particular attention to the information about finances, accommodation and responsibilities listed on our Families and UK Living Costs pages.

Some students believe that if they want to apply for the Graduate Route after they have studied, then their families must be here with them for the duration of their course in order to be eligible. This is not true - only the student must have been in the UK for the whole length of the course, a dependant just has to be a Student Dependant (and have arrived in the UK) by the time you make the Graduate Route application.

Therefore, it is possible for dependants to stay at home and only apply for a visa to join you (as a dependant on your Tier 4/Student Route visa) in the last month or so of your course (e.g. perhaps July/August for courses that end in September). We know that lots of students are not aware of this and so are bringing it to your attention.

Why would I want to bring my family towards the end of my studies instead of the beginning?

There are several reasons why you may want to do this:

• UKVI financial requirements for a Student visa and their dependants are very high. Living costs are worked out on the length of the visa (up to a maximum of 9 months)- so applying towards the end of your course means you and your dependants will need less upfront living costs as part of your initial visa applications
• Immigration Health Surcharge costs are set by UKVI in 6 month ‘bundles’. If you apply for your dependants visas in the last 2 months of your course, they will only need 1 bundle of 6 months Immigration Health Surcharge in their initial dependant applications (£235 each- instead of £705 each for a standard 1 year Masters course)
• Accommodation and cost of living for families is very high in the UK, you may want to save this additional expense until both parents can legally be working full time in the UK to help cover these costs
• You may want to live close to family and friends, who are not in the Swansea area to help with accommodation or childcare costs (the University does not hold any responsibilities relating to these). While you are studying, you and your family are restricted to living a maximum of 50 miles from the Campus. Under the Graduate Route, you can live and work where you like.
• Family accommodation is very scarce in Swansea and can be very expensive, your family coming later allows more time to look for suitable/affordable accommodation in the Swansea area or, after your course is finished, to look elsewhere in the UK if you so wish!
• Single person accommodation is plentiful and reasonable in Swansea and so this could save both money and stress!
• Coming as a student and bringing your family later allows you to truly focus on your studies, to get great grades and to complete within time

Of course, it will be a personal choice on what you decide to do in relation to bringing your dependants. However, we just wanted to ensure that you were fully informed about your options in relation to Graduate Route and the timings of this.

If your course starts  before 1 Jan 2024

Family members can join, or travel with, you as your dependant in the UK if:

• You are government-sponsored and your course is over six months long OR
• You are doing a postgraduate level course that is 9 months or longer at a Higher Education Institution

OR (for students who are currently or have recently been studying in the UK only)

• You had Tier 4 or Student leave for your previous course where the course was over six months long AND
  • your permission is current or expired no more than three months before this immigration application AND
  • your new immigration application is for a course over six months long AND
  • They are not switching from one of the following visas
  • • a visit visa
    • a short-term student visa
    • a Parent of a Child Student visa
    • a seasonal worker visa
    • a domestic worker in a private household visa.

UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) has advised that students starting a taught Masters course before 1 Jan 2024 will still be eligible for their family to apply for dependants visas, including after January 2024 and whilst their student visa remains valid.

If your course starts on or after 1 Jan 2024

Following a change in the Immigration Rules, if your course starts on or after 1 January 2024, your partner and children may be eligible to apply for a dependant visa if:  

• Your course is a PhD, other doctoral qualification, or a postgraduate research degree of 9 months or longer OR
• You are government sponsored and your course is 6 months or longer. 

Please also download and read our Student Dependant Leaflet to assist you with dependant applications.

A  Student’s dependants (known as family members) can be:

• • your husband, wife or civil partner
  • your unmarried partner
  • your child under 18 years old - including if they were born in the UK during your stay

Please note that a child will not be granted a dependant visa unless both parents are going to be living in the UK for the full duration of the Student visa. Applications for children to stay in the UK with only one parent will fall for refusal unless one of the exceptions below apply. 

This is outlined in Appendix ST of the Immigration Rules (relationship requirements of a dependant child) where the rules state:

'Each of the applicant’s parents must either be applying at the same time as the applicant or have permission to be in the UK (other than as a visitor) unless:

• the parent with permission as a Student or as a partner of a Student is the sole surviving parent; or
• the parent with permission as a Student or as a partner of a Student has sole responsibility for the child’s upbringing; or
• the decision maker is satisfied that there are serious and compelling reasons to grant the child entry clearance or permission to stay with the parent who has permission on the Student route or as a dependant partner of a Student'

Documentary evidence of how your child meets one of the exceptions must be submitted with the dependant visa application. 

If a Dependant applicant meets all the requirements to be granted permission as the dependant of a Student, they should be granted permission in line with the expiry of the Student’s permission unless they are a dependant child and one parent in the UK has permission that will expire before the Student’s permission.

Where that is the case, the permission granted to the dependant child will be in line with the expiry date of the parent whose leave expires first.

Please also download and read our Student Dependant Leaflet to assist you with dependant applications.

Your family members must apply online. A fresh application form must be completed for each dependant. The visa fee is charged per dependant and at the same rate as for a Student visa application. The Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) is also charged per dependant at the same rate as the Student. Please see the leaflet Finance IHS Visa fees information sheet - this will help you calculate the IHS amount. Both fees will need to be paid at the point of submitting the online application. You will automatically be taken to the payment page as part of the application process and payment can be via Visa or Mastercard credit or debit card.

Each Dependant will also need to meet their own individual maintenance requirements.

If the dependant applicant is applying for entry clearance (applying from overseas) they must have funds to cover living cost of £680 per dependant, for each month of the immigration permission being requested, up to a maximum of 9 months, e.g. £6,120 per dependant for a course that is 9 months or longer. 

A partner or spouse can use bank accounts where either they or the main Student applicant are named as an account holder. This includes bank accounts that are held jointly with someone else. There is no restriction on who the other joint account holder/s can be but either the dependant partner/spouse or the main applicant must be one of the named account holders.

Child dependants must use bank accounts that are in the name of as at least one of their parents. No other bank accounts can be used.

Dependants cannot rely on funds held by the Student’s parent or guardian.

If you are receiving a government scholarship which covers your dependants, their names and the additional of living costs must be mentioned on your scholarship letter. See the Guide to documents for a Student Visa application  for further information.

Once the application is submitted and paid for, applicants will need to attach any supporting documents to their online visa application, then have their fingerprints and photographs (known as ‘biometric information’) taken a visa application centre. This will be at the same time as the Student if you are all applying together.

Application processing times vary and you can check current visa processing times on the Gov.UK website

Please also download and read our Student Dependant Leaflet to assist you with dependant applications.

If your dependant is already in the UK and wishes to extend their time in the dependant category (to the time matching the main Student) they usually should be able to do so. 

If your family member has a different visa status (not Dependant status), they MAY be able to switch to Dependant status from within the UK. Switching to this route from the following visa categories is NOT possible:

• a visit visa
• a short-term student visa
• a Parent of a Child Student visa
• a seasonal worker visa
• a domestic worker in a private household visa

Please note that the only document that you will need from the University is a Student Status Letter and this can be requested via MyUniHub. Please also see the entry clearance guidance below as it contains information about how to apply (online) and what else you need to prepare.

If the applicant is applying for permission to stay (applying in the UK) and has been living in the UK with permission for 12 months or longer on the date of application, they will meet the financial requirement and do not need to show funds. (However, we would always recommend that you try to have funds in place in case anything goes wrong and you need to apply late or switch to an overseas application).

If the applicant is applying for permission to stay (in the UK) where they have been in the UK less than 12 months, the Student or applicant must have funds up to a total of 9 months (or for the number of months applied for  if less than 9 months). This currently at a cost of £680 per each month of immigration permission up to a maximum of 9 months (£6,120 per dependant). 

The UK visa application fee is also the same as a Student visa application and is currently £490 per dependant.

Your dependants may take up employment as long as your visa is for 12 months or more. They can usually work for unrestricted hours but check their visa, once it is with you, to verify that there are no restrictions.

Your dependants can undertake study whilst in the UK.

Child dependants will be eligible to attend free state schools, which is a legal requirement for all children between the ages of 5 and 16. The school term starts in the first week of September and so, for September start courses, you should be making your visa applications as early as possible (you can do this 3 months before your Swansea University course start date) and coming to the UK as soon as you can (one month before your Swansea University course starts). If you are coming at a time outside of the main September intake, you should be prepared for delays before your child can start school. They may have to wait until the next vacation or school year before they can join.

It is not possible to enrol your children at school on a Visitor visa and you should be prepared to show that your children have the correct immigration to allow them to be enrolled.

All applications for school entry need to be made via the Swansea Council Schools Admissions Team and they have provided a lot of information for parents. This can be found on the Swansea Council website.

Please also see our comprehensive Families- International Students information which has guidance around, dependant visas, UK Schooling and Childcare, UK Finances and Living Costs alongside that about living in the UK.

It is important to note that if your adult dependants undertake a University postgraduate course in some science or engineering fields, they may be required to get permission under the Academic Technology Approval Scheme before they can enrol. You can find more information on ATAS here.

It is very important that you are aware of information regarding your baby if they are born in the UK. A baby born to visa nationals in the UK does not have automatic British citizenship/residency rights and is subject to immigration once they leave the UK.

You should also be aware of information relating to their healthcare via the National Health Service (NHS). This information below is taken from the Members’ Manual provided by the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA):

16.3.8 Healthcare for children born in the UK

Regulation 25(3) provides that babies born in the UK are liable for NHS charges)… in any period between three months after they are born and before their leave to remain is granted as they are deemed to be overseas visitors and are exempt from NHS charges only until they are three months old. Therefore, it appears that from this date they have been liable to be charged for NHS treatment, unless they pay the immigration health surcharge, which is only payable as part of an immigration application.

What this means is that babies older than three months will not be exempt from NHS charges and will have to either:

• Pay the NHS for any healthcare they receive after they are 3 months old (charged at 100-150% the NHS national tariff dependant on Nationality)
• Leave the UK (and apply for a dependant visa to re-enter the UK- as per the process above)*
• Apply for Leave to Remain (a visa) as a dependant from within the UK (which includes the Immigration Health Surcharge IHS payment)**

*A baby cannot re-enter the UK without valid immigration- irrespective of where they were born.

**It is not possible to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge in the UK without making an immigration application at the same time.

If you wish to make a dependant visa application please make sure that you are reading the information on this page carefully. The International@Campuslife team can support in UK applications, so please make us aware if you are in this situation.

Other considerations

It is also very important that you speak to your landlord (and your housemates) if you are living in a shared house. Some rooms are rented on a basis of single occupancy and so you will need to notify the relevant people that you are pregnant/when your baby is born in order to ensure that you do not face future difficulties. You cannot have a baby in University accommodation that is not specifically designated for family housing. You may have to source alternative accommodation and should be aware that there is currently (as of October 2022) no family housing available in and around Swansea- as is the case in much of the UK.

You will also need to ensure that you have adequate childcare to cover the times when you are due to be in class. You cannot take children and babies into class with you and should expect to be politely asked to leave if you try and do so. There is some information regarding choosing childcare on the Swansea Council website to help you. UK childcare can be very expensive so please ensure that you are making reference to the UK Finances and Living Costs: International Students to help you plan for that (you can see the costs in your own currency as well for comparison).