Parent of a Child Student visa

Overview

This visa allows you to live with your child and look after them while they study. It does not allow you to work, to study, or to claim public funds, and it does not lead to settlement. In practice it is a caring role: the Home Office expects you to be here for your child and to return to your home abroad afterwards.

You can stay until your child's Child Student permission ends or until your child turns 12, whichever comes first. You can apply up to 6 months before you travel, and you can extend from inside the UK if you still qualify.

If your application succeeds you receive an eVisa, a digital record of your status, rather than a physical card. You will need a UKVI account linked to the passport you travel on. Keep it up to date if you renew your passport.

Who can apply

The route is narrow. It is only for a parent whose young child already has, or is applying for, a Child Student visa. You can apply if:

• you are 18 or over and you are the child's parent
• your child is aged 4 to 11 on the date you apply
• your child studies, or will study, at an independent fee-paying school in the UK
• you will be the only parent in the UK, because the child's other parent lives outside the UK and is not seeking to come here
• you keep your main home outside the UK and plan to leave when your permission ends

It is not for parents of children at state schools, parents of children aged 12 or over, or parents who want to work. If you want to study yourself, look at the Student visa. If you only want to bring your child for a short course or settle them in at the start of term, a visit may be enough: see our Standard Visitor visa page.

Requirements

• Your child's visa: your child must hold Child Student permission or be applying for it at the same time. Our Child Student visa page explains what the child needs.
• Living together: you must intend to live with your child for the whole of your stay.
• Money: you must have enough to support yourself and your child (the figures are below), and enough to keep up your home abroad.
• Main home abroad: you must not intend to make the UK your main home.
• Suitability: the general grounds for refusal apply, for example criminal convictions, past overstaying or false documents.
• TB test: if you live in a country on the Home Office list and are coming for more than 6 months, you need a certificate from an approved clinic.

Financial requirement

You must show £1,560 for each month of your intended stay, up to a maximum of 9 months. For a stay of 9 months or longer that is £14,040. This sum covers you and your child together.

If you will also look after a brother or sister who is a Child Student, add £625 a month for each extra child, again up to 9 months. That is £5,625 for each extra child.

For example, a mother coming for the school year with her 8-year-old son needs to show £14,040. If her 6-year-old daughter joins the same school as a Child Student, she needs £19,665.

The money must have been held for 28 days in a row, and your most recent bank statement must be dated within 31 days before you apply. The balance should not fall below the required amount at any point in those 28 days. The account is normally in your own name, but money in your partner's account abroad can also count.

You do not need to show these funds if you are extending in the UK and have already been here with permission for at least 12 months.

Your home abroad

The Home Office looks closely at whether your real home is outside the UK. Title deeds or a tenancy agreement, recent utility bills, and evidence that your partner or family still live there all help. You also need enough money to keep that home running while you are away.

How to apply

1. Confirm your child's place at an independent school. It is usually simplest to apply at the same time as your child's Child Student application.
2. Gather your documents: your passport, evidence that you are the child's parent (usually a birth certificate), bank statements for the funds, evidence of your home abroad, a TB certificate if you need one, and certified translations of anything not in English or Welsh.
3. Complete the online application on GOV.UK. From outside the UK you can apply up to 6 months before you travel.
4. Pay the Home Office fee and the Immigration Health Surcharge.
5. Prove your identity. Outside the UK you attend a visa application centre to give your fingerprints and photograph. In the UK you book an appointment at a UKVCAS service point.
6. Wait for the decision. If you are granted permission, set up your UKVI account to view and share your eVisa.

Costs

The main costs are:

• the Home Office application fee
• the Immigration Health Surcharge, which gives you access to the NHS and is paid for the length of your permission
• a priority or super priority fee, if you want a faster decision and the service is offered where you apply
• other costs, such as a TB test, certified translations and optional services at the visa application centre

The current Home Office fee and surcharge are shown on this page. You can also work out the total for your family with our visa cost calculator.

Processing times

From outside the UK, you should usually get a decision within 3 weeks of your visa application centre appointment. Some centres offer priority or super priority services for a faster decision. Applications that need extra checks, such as verifying documents, can take longer.

From inside the UK, a decision usually takes about 8 weeks from the date you apply, prove your identity and provide your documents. If you applied before your permission expired, you can stay while you wait. Do not travel outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man before the decision, or your application will be treated as withdrawn.

Plan around the school calendar. An application made in early summer leaves time to deal with any request for more evidence before the September term.

Partners and children

Only one parent can be in the UK on this route. Your partner, if they are the child's other parent, cannot join you and must live outside the UK. Other relatives, such as grandparents, cannot come as your dependants either, although they may be able to visit for short periods as visitors.

You can bring your child's brothers and sisters only if they also hold or are applying for a Child Student visa, which means they must be at least 4 and at an independent school. This visa does not let you bring a younger child who is not studying.

Extending your stay and settlement

You can apply to extend from inside the UK as long as your child is still under 12 and still has Child Student permission. Each grant ends when your child's permission ends or on their 12th birthday, whichever is sooner. You cannot switch from this visa to another type of visa from inside the UK. If you want to stay for a different reason, you will normally need to leave and apply from abroad.

This route does not lead to settlement. When your child turns 12, your permission ends. Your child can carry on as a Child Student, but only with suitable care in place, for example boarding at school or living with relatives in the UK. It is wise to plan this at least a year ahead, together with the school.

How we can help

We check whether this route fits your family, taking into account your child's age and how long they will study here. If your child is close to 12, we look at whether another arrangement makes more sense.

We prepare the evidence list, review bank statements against the 28-day rule, and help you show that your main home is abroad. Where both you and your child are applying, we coordinate the two applications so that they support each other.

We also prepare extension applications, deal with any Home Office requests for more information, and advise on administrative review or a fresh application if an application is refused. You can book a consultation through our consultations page.

Frequently asked questions

Can both parents come with our child?

No. Only one parent can be in the UK on this route, and the other parent must live outside the UK. If the parents want to change places, take advice first, because the timing of each application matters.

Can I work or study while I am in the UK?

No. The visa does not allow any work or study. If you want to study, you would need to qualify for a Student visa in your own right and apply from abroad.

Does my child have to go to an independent school?

Yes. Your child must attend an independent fee-paying school. Parents of children at state schools or academies cannot use this route.

I came to the UK as a visitor. Can I apply from here?

No. You cannot apply for this route from inside the UK if your last permission was as a visitor or a short-term student, or was granted outside the Immigration Rules. You need to apply from abroad.

What happens when my child turns 12?

Your permission ends on your child's 12th birthday, or earlier if their permission ends first. Your child can continue at school as a Child Student if suitable care is arranged, for example as a boarder. You would need to leave the UK unless you qualify for another visa.