When you arrive

In the International Student Barometer 2020*, the overall satisfaction rate for arrival was 90.7% (780 students participated)

*More info at tees.ac.uk/sections/international/isb2020.cfm

At the airport

Make sure you are well prepared and have all your documents ready, so that you can move through UK Border checks quickly and easily and have a good experience when you arrive.

The UK Border Force have created a 10 top tips document which we recommend you read. You can download it here.

Here is some additional advice which will help to make your arrival in the airport simple and stress-free.

When you complete your landing card, write an address where you can be easily contacted while you are in the UK.
Keep all your documents in your hand luggage and have it ready to present to a Border Force officer before you arrive at the Passport Control area.
You will need to present paper copies - electronic copies are not acceptable.

First year students will need

Admission/Offer/CAS letter(s).
Confirmation of payment/receipts for course and accommodation OR documentary evidence that you have sufficient funds to pay for these.

Returning students will need

Student ID Card or Admission/Offer/CAS letter(s).
Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) or evidence that you have continuing leave to remain as a student. Leave to remain will normally be indicated on your visa; but if this is endorsed in a passport that has now expired, you must also bring your old passport with you.

All returning students are advised to check their email accounts prior to travelling back to the United Kingdom for messages from the Home Office. If you have received email notification that your Student leave has been cancelled/postponed, you are strongly advised not to travel and you must contact your nearest British Diplomatic mission immediately for help.

Please remember- even if you have arranged our free airport pick-up service, you will not be able to meet the representative from Teesside University until you have successfully passed through Passport Control and collected your luggage. It is very important that you read the above advice and make sure you are organised and prepared for arrival at the airport by yourself.

Free meet and greet service for international students

When you have applied for your accommodation, don’t forget to apply for our free Meet and Greet service. You will be welcomed by one of our friendly student ambassadors when you arrive at either Durham Tees Valley or Newcastle International Airport and taken straight to your new home.

Book your meet and greet now

Equality and diversity

We welcome applications from every section of the community as part of our commitment to equality of opportunity within a diverse working and learning environment.

Welcome and orientation event

The welcome and orientation event provides international students with an opportunity to find out more about what it's like to live and study in the UK. It's a chance to meet other students from all over the world and will help you organise some of the things that are a priority for international students when you first arrive at Teesside.

We will post further details of the orientation programme here on our website closer to the date.

Police registration

You may need to register with the police if you come to the UK for longer than 6 months, extend your current leave or switch to a different visa. You’ll be told if you need to register with the police on one of the following documents

your entry visa vignette (sticker in your passport), if you’re travelling to the UK
the Home Office letter that approved your application for leave

Who needs to register with the police?

You may be told to register with the police if all the following apply:

you’re 16 or older
your visa or immigration application is for longer than 6 months
your visa or immigration application is not exempt from the police registration requirement
you’ve been told to register on your entry visa vignette or Home Office letter that approved your application for leave
you’re from one of the countries listed on the UK Government website

When should I register?

You must register within 7 days of arriving in the UK or, if your leave has been extended, within 7 days of getting your BRP card.

If you do not register:

any future immigration applications will consider that you did not register.
your current leave can be shortened.

How much does it cost to register?

It currently costs £34.

Where can I register/ update my registration?

The police station you go to depends on where you live. Contact your local police station directly to check how to complete the process.

The police registration process involves 2 stages:

Create an account and complete online registration. You must do this stage within 7 days of arrival in the UK or within 7 days of receiving your new BRP.
Book and attend an in-person appointments at your local police station. If you live in the Middlesbrough area, this will be Stockton Police Station. This option is available at the end of the online form.*

*At the current time, if it is a visa requirement to register with the Police and you live within Cleveland Police area, you must complete Stage 1 of the process within 7 days of your arrival in the UK. You will need to complete Stage 2 as soon as it is possible to do so.

If you have any questions about the process you can contact Cleveland Police directly:

E: ForeignNationalsRegistrationUnit@cleveland.pnn.police.uk
T: 01642 301319

Failure to register with the police, if required to do so, is a criminal offence and could lead to prosecution. You should carry your Police Registration Certificate at all times and it must be produced to a police officer or an immigration officer on request.

Which documents do I need to be able to register?

You’ll need to take:

A debit card to make a payment of £34
2 recent passport size colour photographs
your passport with your entry clearance vignette
your BRP card
the Home Office letter that approved your application for leave
Confirmation of your address in the UK
University enrolment letter (you can print this from your e-vision account)

Renewing an existing registration is free of charge.

Notifying the Police of any changes

Throughout your time in the UK, you must report to the police within seven days of the following changes:

change of address
change of course, school, college or university
change of marital status, name or birth of children
extension of stay granted by UK Visas and Immigration
change of passport
transfer from another Police force area
temporary absence of eight weeks or more from your registered address

You can do this by logging onto the online registration system delivered by the Police. You will need to book and attend an appointment, but will not be required to pay the fee again.

Change of Address, You must bring the following –
•Police Registration Certificate
•Proof of address e.g. Tenancy agreement/letter confirmation from university including room number
•Passport
•Visa/BRP/Home Office Decision Letter showing requirement to register with Police

Change of College/University/Course/Employment. You must bring the following –
•Police Registration Certificate
•Offer letter from University/CAS or Employment contract
•Passport
• Visa/BRP/Home Office Decision Letter showing requirement to register with Police

Change of Marital Status/name/birth of children. You must bring the following –
•Police Registration Certificate
•Marriage certificate/proof of name change/birth certificate of child
•Passport
• Visa/BRP/Home Office Decision Letter showing requirement to register with Police

Visa Update. You must bring the following –
•Police Registration Certificate
•Passport
• Visa/BRP/Home Office Decision Letter showing requirement to register with Police

Passport Update. You must bring the following –
•Police Registration Certificate
•Passport
• Visa/BRP/Home Office Decision Letter showing requirement to register with Police

Transfer from another Force
If you have already registered with the Police in another force area and have now moved to this area, you must update your Police Registration Certificate with this information. You must bring the following –
•Police Registration Certificate
•Passport
•Proof of address e.g. Tenancy agreement/letter confirmation from university including room number
•Offer letter from University/CAS or Employment contract
• Visa/BRP/Home Office Decision Letter showing requirement to register with Police

Lost or Stolen Police Registration Certificates
If you have lost you Police registration certificate:
Please look carefully for your police registration certificate. If you have left it at a previous address, whether overseas or in the UK, try to get it posted to you, even if it takes several weeks to arrive. If you definitely cannot find your police registration certificate you must apply for a replacement via the online system.
Please note: you will be charged £34 for a replacement certificate.

If your police registration certificate is stolen:
You must report this to your local police station immediately and get a crime number. You will then need to apply for a new police registration certificate via the online system. When you register for your new police registration certificate you will need to provide your crime number.
Please note: you will be charged £34 for a replacement certificate.

Leaving the UK

If you hold a Police Registration Certificate, you need to notify the police when you leave the UK for the last time.

Opening a UK bank account

It is important to open a bank account in the UK as soon as possible so that you are able to access your funds to pay for day to day expenses. It will also be useful to have funds held within a UK bank account should at any point in the future you need to apply to extend your visa or switch into another immigration category. In order to do this you will need to take certain information along to the bank of your choice. For bank account appointments you will need:

Passport including entry clearance vignette
Biometric Residence Permit (BRP card)
A letter of introduction showing your UK student details (bank letter), including the name of the UK Bank that you wish to use. This can be printed off from your University e-Vision account after you have completed enrolment.

Registering with a doctor (general practitioner)

There will be an opportunity to register with a local doctor (we call this a general practitioner or ‘GP’) at the welcome and orientation event. However, you can also do this directly with a GP practice yourself once you are here. As soon as you have a UK address you can use the NHS website to find the closest GP to where you live. When you have decided which GP you would like to register with, you will need to go there in person and complete the registration process. Once you are registered with a GP, you will be able to access NHS Secondary Healthcare Services, although there will be services that you need to pay for, so always check.

*Based on the views of 854 Teesside students within a global survey response of 179,950 students.
*More info on The International Student Barometer.

Verification data on request, email info@i-graduate.org