Before you join us, there are several essential tasks you need to complete. Here is a checklist of things to do before arriving and some important considerations.

Important: From the 15th of July 2025, UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) will no longer issue visa vignette stickers. It is now very important that all successful Student visa holders create a UKVI account and access their eVisa before travelling to the UK. For more information, please visit our Study Visa and Compliance webpage.

If you have questions or concerns, contact our Student Experience Team at studentexperience@chester.ac.uk.

Female student holding her mobile phone taking a selfie with two other girls in the background

Chester city rows, two students looking down the street at people, shops and tall buildings.

Students enjoying coffee in Chester city centre

A parent and student at an applicant day, talking to staff across a desk

three students standing on a quiet cobbled street in chester

English students using their mobile phones on an instagram hunt

male teacher looking at a mobile phone with a boy with Down syndrome

1. Book Accommodation

Moving to Chester to start your studies? It is essential that you have accommodation booked before you arrive in the UK.

2. Complete online enrolment

Online enrolment enrolment is a mandatory process that you should do before you travel to the UK.

Please note the following:

The online enrolment form will ask you to provide your Home address, by which it means your Overseas address. The form will move on to Term Time address, and will autocomplete this with your Overseas address. You must go to the bottom of the screen and click “Edit Term Time” and put your UK address. It is OK if you don’t know your long-term UK address, you can put wherever you will sleep in the UK for the first couple of nights. But you must put some kind of UK address in the “Term-Time Address” section, do not leave it as your overseas address. If you have already completed online enrolment and think you have done it wrong, you can go back and edit your term-time address.
When you get to the section about previous study, if you completed all your previous study overseas your institution will not be listed. Instead you should select “Non UK Institution”

3. Upload your photograph

All new students must upload a photograph for their student ID card in advance of their arrival.

4. Pay your fees

You must have paid at least £8,000 of your tuition fees before you can enrol. You must have started this transaction before you leave your home country. You cannot enrol or open a UK bank account before making this payment, and it can be very problematic to try and access your overseas account once you are in the UK. Make sure you have started the transfer BEFORE you travel to the UK. Failure to pay the enrolment fee before you arrive in the UK is the number one reason for visa cancellation and termination of studies at the start of the course. You can find information about how to pay your fees here. You cannot be enrolled before we have received £8,000 of tuition fee, no payment plans can be arranged for the enrolment fee.

Find out more information about fee payments.

5. Check your VISA decision letter

The Home Office will have sent to you, along with your passport after, your visa application was processed. It should have instructions on there about whether you will have a digital visa, E-Visa, a vignette sticker in your passport, or some combination of those three! You need to bring your passport and flight details to the International Enrolment Day. Please ensure you have followed the instructions on your UKVI decision letter to set up your UKVI account and access your e-visa. Please also update your CAS Shield account with your e-visa share code before the enrolment day event in order to save time and avoid enrolment delays.

Important:

As United Kingdom Visas and Immigration (UKVI) have announced that visa vignette stickers will no longer be issued from 15 July 2025 onwards, it is now extremely important that all successful Student visa holders create their UKVI account and access their eVisa before travelling to the UK.

Please click here for more information.

6. Read our international support resources

To assist you in preparing for your arrival and studies in the UK, please read our International Handbook and International Toolkit, containing information on how to open a bank account, travel and transportation, local international food stores, registering with a doctor and more! Please note, that you will not be able to access the toolkit until after you have completed online enrolment. Please note! You will not be able to access this until after you have completed online enrolment!

7. Present your passport and E-Visa

Once you have arrived in the UK, you will need to present the following documentation at an in-person enrolment event:

Your passport. This must be the actual document, not a copy. Once you get to the UK, do not send your passport to anyone until you have first shown it to the University of Chester to complete your enrolment.
A share code for your eVisa.
Proof of the date you arrived in the UK. This could be a UK border stamp in your passport, or your boarding pass, or your flight ticket.

For more information about entering the UK and enrolling, please click here. (Enrolling | University of Chester)

Please contact studyvisa@chester.ac.uk regarding any questions about E-Visa and enrolment.

The Study Visa team will provide details of the date, time and location of the event(s) closer to your start date. You only need to attend one event.

Please note: If you do not require a Student visa to study at the University of Chester, you will be required to present your current passport and your current UK visa (if applicable) to our Visa Compliance team to finalise your enrolment.

8. View your timetable

Learn how to view your academic timetable and find out when your first induction session is.

9. Find out when to arrive and collect your student ID

Discover your arrival day and the location to collect your student ID card. It is essential to collect your Student ID card and wear your lanyard while on campus. This helps our Security team to identify you as a student, ensuring campus safety. If you’re not wearing your lanyard, security may request that you put it on. If you have applied for Student Finance, collecting your student card is vital for confirming your attendance, which is necessary for receiving your maintenance money.

10. Register with a GP and Dentist

General Practitioner (GP), which is the term used for local or family doctors in the UK. You should complete this registration as soon as you know your term-time address. GPs offer a wide range of non-emergency services by appointment, including examinations, medication prescriptions, vaccinations, and referrals to other medical specialists.

You can easily find a list of GP practices near your address by visiting the NHS Find a GP website. This will guide you to the respective GP websites, where you can discover the process for becoming a registered patient.

Locating a local dentist is made simple through the NHS Find a Dentist website. It is important to note that there may be a small additional charge for NHS dental services and not all dental procedures are covered by the NHS. You will be able to do this after you have arrived in the UK.

11. Download the UoC app

The app displays your timetable, deadlines, alerts, and more on one page. Download it after you have completed online enrolment.

AFTER YOU ARRIVE IN THE UK

Present your Passport and Immigration Documents

Once you have arrived in the UK, you will then need to attend in-person to the International Student Welcome Event to submit the following documents to the Visa Compliance Team:

Your passport. This must be the actual document, not a copy. Once you get to the UK, do not send your passport to anyone until you have first shown it to the University of Chester to complete your enrolment.
Share code and flight details (upload these to CAS Shield now to save time)
Proof of the date you arrived in the UK. This could be a UK border stamp in your passport, or your boarding pass, or your flight ticket.

These documents must be presented in person at one of our International Student Welcome Event in Seaborne Library (Exton Park, Parkgate Road, CH1 4BJ).

For more information about entering the UK, and in-person enrolment at the university, please click here.

You only need to attend one of these events to complete your enrolment. It is mandatory for every international student to attend one of them in order to enrol at the university. The Study Visa Team will provide you with further details about the event. If you have any questions, you can email the team at studyvisa@chester.ac.uk.

Please note! If you do not require a Student Visa to study at the University of Chester you will be required to present your current passport and your current UK visa (if applicable) to our Visa Compliance Team to finalise your enrolment