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- Advice for new students
Advice for new students
A visa is a certificate (sometimes referred to as Entry Clearance) which gives you permission to enter the UK.
The visa is put into your passport or travel document by an Entry Clearance Officer at a British mission overseas.
If you are applying to study in Edinburgh, you may need to apply for a visa to enter the UK.
Student categories
There are 3 categories:
- European students (European Economic Area)
- Visa national students
- Non-visa national students
Check your category
Check your category using the links below, then follow the advice given for your category.
If your home country is not listed in the EEA or in the visa-national list, you fall into the non-visa national category.
Advice for European students (European Economic Area)
Once you have identified your immigration category, link to further advice on visas and entry to the UK.
Advice for visa and non-visa nationals
Our information for students starting in September 2010 is currently being updated. Please refer to the UK Border Agency website at for information about Tier 4 General student visas for studying in the UK.
This article was published on Mar 9, 2010