International students are required to submit certain documents to apply for student visa outside the UK. The requirements vary as per the nationality of the student and where the student is submitting the application. It is crucial to know for sure what documents must be provided to make the application valid and successful because these are the only documents that the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) will consider to reach a decision.

This article is written to provide guidance on required supporting documents that students having Bangladeshi nationality must provide when applying from Bangladesh under student category – this category is for international students coming to the UK for post-16 education. To qualify as a student you must be at least 16 years old.

Please note that to initiate the process, you must complete an online application form and to complete the application process, you must book and attend an appointment at the Visa Application Centre in Dhaka or Sylhet for biometric fingerprints. You can book the appointment online through Visa Facilitation Services (VFS) website after you complete and submit your visa application online. You will receive a booking confirmation email for the appointment – take a printout of this when you go to the Visa Application Centre (VAC).  

You can upload your documents online on VFS website and the process is very simple if you have the required documents clearly and correctly scanned on your computer/laptop. If this is not possible, you can take the hard copies to the VFS centre on the day of your appointment, they will do this for you with set fees.

Documents you must provide:

• A current passport that is not expiring in next 6 months;
• Unexpired TB (tuberculosis) certificate ;
• Educational certificate and/or transcript as mentioned in the ‘Documents used to obtain offer’ section of CAS statement;
• English Language Test i.e. IELTS test report as and if mentioned in the ‘Documents used to obtain offer (English language)’ section of CAS statement;
• Bank statement and/or bank letter from UKVI approved bank (or letter from official financial sponsor, scholarship provider or a loan letter from the loan provider);

Additional Documents:

You may need to submit additional documents depending on your circumstances including:

• Receipts for any tuition fees and/or accommodation costs that you have already paid to the UK Tier 4 sponsor, if this information is not included on the CAS statement;
• ATAS clearance certificate if mentioned in the ‘Documents used to obtain offer’ section of CAS statement;
• If you are a Tier 4 (General) student and using funds held in your parent/s’ bank account , you will need to provide your birth certificate showing your full name & both parents’ full name; and a letter from parent/s with declaration of relationship and permission to use the funds for your maintenance purposes;
• Translations of any document that is not in English or Welsh. Both original and translated copy must be submitted;

Guidance notes – Bank statement

You will need to submit personal bank statements (not business or company bank statement) covering a consecutive 28 day period ending no more than 31 days before the date of your application. You can use bank statements either from your current account and/ or from savings account.

Your personal bank statements must show:

• your name or your parent’s name & address; and
• the account number; and
• the bank’s name and logo; and
• the bank’s address and contact details, and
• the amount of money available; and
• the currency type; and
• statement period; and
• statement print date.

If you wish to submit electronic bank statements these must contain all of the details listed above. In addition, you will need to provide a supporting letter from your bank on company headed paper, confirming the authenticity of the statements provided;

Alternatively an electronic bank statement bearing the official stamp of the bank in question will be accepted. This stamp must appear on every page of the statement;

If you want to use a joint account as proof of your money, you must be named on the account along with one or more other person;

In the absence of bank statements, you can use a letter from your bank confirming funds have been held for a consecutive 28 day period ending no more than 31 days before the date of your application. The letter must be on bank’s original letterhead and it must show:

• your name or your parent’s name & address; and
• the account number; and
• the date of the letter; and
• the bank’s name and logo; and
• the bank’s address and contact details, and
• the money in your account; and
• the currency type; and
• that there is enough money in the account (to cover your remaining course fees and living costs).

Please note that Home Office accept financial statements from the following bank in Bangladesh:

• AB Bank Limited
• BRAC Bank Ltd
• City Bank
• Commercial Bank of Ceylon Ltd
• Dhaka Bank Ltd
• Eastern Bank Limited
• First Security Islami Bank Ltd
• The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) Ltd
• Mutual trust Bank Limited
• National Credit and Commerce Bank Ltd
• One Bank Ltd
• Shahjalal Islami Bank Ltd
• Southeast Bank Ltd
• Standard Chartered Bank
• State Bank of India
• Prime Bank Ltd
• Pubali Bank Ltd
• Woori Bank Ltd
• Bank Alfalah Limited
• The City Bank Ltd
• Trust Bank Ltd

Additionally, Home Office will also accept financial statements from the following banks in Bangladesh until further notice:

• Premier Bank Limited
• Standard Bank Limited
• IFIC Bank Limited

The above list is taken from gov.uk at the time this article is written. You should always check for any changes and maintain account in a listed bank only.

Guidance notes – Official Financial Sponsorship or Government Sponsor:

• Tier 4 (General) students can receive official financial sponsor from Her Majesty’s Government, Bangladesh government, the British Council or any international organisation, international company, university or a UK independent school to cover some or all of your course fees and/or living costs for 12 months;
• If the financial sponsor is only covering part of your course fees or living costs, you must show evidence to prove that you have the rest of the money needed;
• You must provide a letter of confirmation from your Official Financial Sponsor on official letter-headed paper or stationery which must have the official stamp of the organisation. The letter must contain:

• Your name;
• The name and contact details of your Official Financial Sponsor;
• The date of the letter;
• The length of the sponsorship; and
• The amount of money the sponsor is giving to you or a statement that your Official Financial Sponsor will cover all of your tuition fees and living costs.

Guidance notes – Loan letter:

• As evidence of maintenance money if you are using loan, the loan must be provided by your national government, state or regional government, or by a government-sponsored student loan company or be part of an academic or educational loans scheme.

Guidance notes - IELTS test report:

• If your sponsor is a Higher Education Provider (HEP) i.e. university and they make their own assessment of your English language ability. If so, the university will mention this in the ‘Documents used to obtain offer’ section of CAS statement. They may also mention ‘no document is required to be submitted as evidence of this’. In this is the case, you do not need to submit IELTS test report or any other documents as evidence of your English Language ability.

Guidance notes – document translation:

• If any of your documents is not in English of Welsh, you must submit the original document along with the fully translated copy that can be independently verified by the Home Office. The translator/translator company must confirm that the translated document is an accurate translation of the original document. Additionally, the document must contain the date of the translation, full name, signature and contact details of the translator/authorised officer of the translator company.
• Translation of academic certificates will not be accepted.

Guidance notes – Tier 4 (General) students under the age of 18:

• If you are a 16 or 17 year old General student applying from Bangladesh to study in the UK, you will need a Letter of Consent from your parent/s or legal guardian/s, confirming your relationship with them; consent to your application study, independent travel and living in the UK;
• The letter must confirm if your parent(s) or legal guardian(s) have legal custody or sole responsibility for you. If they have sole custody then the concerned must sign the letter. If they do not, the letter must confirm that each of your parent(s) or legal guardian(s) agree to the contents of the letter and it must be signed by each parent or legal guardian;
• You must prove your relationship with your parent(s) or legal guardian(s) with evidence including birth certificate showing the name of your parent(s); or certificate of adoption showing the name(s) of your parent(s) or legal guardian; or a court document naming your legal guardian.

Guidance notes – ATAS (Academic Technology Approval Scheme) certificate:

• If you are applying to study for a postgraduate qualification in certain sensitive subjects, knowledge of which could be used in programmes to develop weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) or their means of delivery, to apply for an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate before you can study in the UK.

Check this link to find out which academic subjects that need a certificate from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office:

• If you’re a new student and need an ATAS certificate, you will need to get this certificate before applying for a visa. You can apply for an ATAS certificate up to 9 months before the starting date of your course. An ATAS certificate is valid for 6 months from date of issue.
• Applications for an ATAS clearance certificate must be made online on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website at www.fco.gov.uk/atas. This site also contains information about the scheme and the list of designated subjects. If you are granted clearance, an ATAS certificate will be issued to you in an email. You must provide a copy of your ATAS clearance certificate with your application.

You can find out ‘Guidance on how to apply for an ATAS certificate’ from gov.uk. To apply for ATAS certificate follow this link at gov.uk. 

Disclaimer: This article has been written to provide guidelines only to prepare Bangladeshi students throughout the admission and visa application process – there has been no attempt or intention to provide any Immigration Advice. If you require immigration advice, you must seek this from an OISC (Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner) regulated adviser or company. To find an immigration adviser, please check here at gov.uk.