Providers need more clarity on visa sponsorship. In the previous iteration we added guidance telling providers how they can become a visa sponsor.
Before becoming a sponsor, not all providers know:
- how visa sponsorship works
- if they are eligible to sponsor a Student visa or a Skilled Worker visa
- if their accrediting body sponsors Student visas
Types of visa available to candidates
Depending on their circumstances and the course they’re applying for, candidates may be eligible for a:
- Skilled Worker visa
- Student visa
The Skilled Worker visa:
- is available only for salaried courses
- can be sponsored by the school where the candidate would be working, or by the local authority or multi-academy trust that the school operates under
The Student visa:
- is available only for fee-paying courses
- can only be sponsored by the accredited body ratifying the course
More information about the different types of visas for students is available on GOV.UK.
What we changed
We updated the guidance to show:
- a more detailed explanation of visa sponsorship
- information on where to find out more
Future considerations
In future we’ll consider:
- removing the visa sponsorship page for lead schools
- changing the visa sponsorship page for accredited bodies
Removing the visa sponsorship page for lead schools
Student visas can only be sponsored by School Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) or a Higher Education Institute (HEI).
We will remove the question, “Can candidates get a sponsored Student visa for your fee-paying courses?” for lead schools as it is not relevant.
Skilled Worker visas can be sponsored by lead schools, HEIs and SCITTs. Providers can decide whether they will sponsor a Skilled Worker visa for a salaried course on a course-by-course basis.
We will remove the question, “Can candidates get a sponsored Skilled Worker visa for your salaried courses?” for all providers and move the question into the new course flow.
This means that for lead schools, there will not be a visa sponsorship page in the ‘About your organisation’ section.
We will show student visa sponsorship information on the lead school’s ‘About your organisation’ page where their accredited bodies have answered the question.
Changing the visa sponsorship page for accredited bodies
Accredited bodies (HEIs and SCITTs) can sponsor student visas for fee-paying courses.
We will consider keeping the visa sponsor page for accredited bodies. This page will only include the question, “Can candidates get a sponsored Student visa for your fee-paying courses?”.
We will consider removing the question, “Can candidates get a sponsored Skilled Worker visa for your salaried courses?” and ask it during course creation.