Priority service expanded to Tier 4 applicants in China
The UK has today (13 January) announced that the priority visa application service will be expanded to Tier 4 applicants (students) in China.
Priority service expanded to Tier 4 applicants in China
Those who choose this optional service will have their applications put at the front of the queue and we will aim to return a decision to the applicant within 5 working days.
The service is designed to offer maximum flexibility and convenience to students. Students can now choose to have their visa processed in a target of 5 working days, and can make their application in all 12 Visa Applications Centres (VACs) across the country.
The UK Tier 4 student visa continues to be multiple entry and as such allows students to come and go as they wish for the duration of their course plus four months (or one month for shorter courses).
Dominique Hardy, UK Visas & Immigration, Regional Director – Asia Pacific said:
The UK recognises the important contribution international students make and welcomes those who wish to study at our world-class institutions. We offer a world-class visa service to our Chinese customers. In China to year ending September 2014, demand for student visas increased by 4%, and student visitor visas increased by 5%.
The expansion of the priority service to students is in response to customer feedback, and is another example of how the UK visa service allows maximum flexibility and convenience for Chinese nationals coming to the UK.
Carma Elliot, CMG OBE, Minister (Culture and Education), Director China British Council said:
The new priority visa service is excellent news for Chinese students with a confirmed place of study in the UK and will give them greater choice and flexibility in the final stages of preparing to go abroad. Leaving home to study abroad is an exciting, life-changing decision - offering students a fast-track visa solution opens doors to a rewarding experience of the UK from the very beginning of their journey.
I’m confident this will be a welcome development for the more than 60,000 new Chinese students who come to the UK each year, and the 135,000 already in the UK, in pursuit of a quality, globally recognised qualification.