Visa advice for EU and EEA students
A message from the Principal, Autumn 2020
St Clare’s, Oxford is a diverse, inclusive and international college and we will continue to welcome people from across the globe to study here.
It is a priority for us to support our EEA students with the visa and immigration advice and support they may need.
We remain faithful to Anne Dreydel’s original vision for St Clare’s and are committed to our twin charitable objectives of advancing international education and understanding. Britain remains an outward-facing, tolerant and friendly country and we are optimistic that St Clare’s will continue to thrive.
For advice about the steps you may need to take in order to study at St Clare’s, please see below. We believe that the new visa and immigration system will be fairly straightforward to use. Please do also refer to the most up to date Government guidance.
I look forward to welcoming you to St Clare’s in the near future.
Andy Rattue
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The UK Government has set out plans for the UK’s new points-based immigration system, which will come into force on 1 January 2021.
St Clare’s and EU/EEA nationals in the UK:
- No UK citizens and non-EU nationals are affected by any post-Brexit immigration changes.
- EU/EEA nationals will continue to be able to travel in and out of the UK relying on their passport or national ID card as they do now until at least 31 December 2020.
- You’ll have until 30 June 2021 to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme for immigration status. If you arrive in the UK during the transition period after Brexit happens, you will also be eligible to apply.
- Applications under the EU Settlement Scheme are intended to be simple and straightforward and there is no application fee.
- Applicants will need to prove their identity; prove their residence, and pass criminal checks.
- Under the Student route all students, including EEA students, must demonstrate they meet the required 70 points of the new points-based system. Students must have an offer from an approved educational institution, speak English to the accepted standard and be able to support themselves during their studies.
- The preliminary decision will be given immediately after submission and a formal decision arrives a few weeks later.
- Applicants will not receive a document, but instead, their status can be checked online.
- We advise that all new and existing students from the EEA, and all EEA students joining St Clare’s apply for the EU Settlement Scheme. This must be done by 30 June 2021.
- For more information, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/studying-in-the-uk-guidance-for-eu-students