Support for EU and International Students
The information on this page is an overview of the support available for both EU and international students. For further information and if you are in immediate financial need, please contact the Student Advice Centre on 0113 3801 290 or email us on advice@luu.leeds.ac.uk.
Tuition Fee and Maintenance Loan
If you're a student from another EU country, you can apply for financial help from Student Finance England. Depending on your circumstances, you may qualify for help with tuition fees or help with tuition fees and living costs. However, please be aware that most EU students only qualify for help with tuition fees, so maintenance funding should not be relied upon. The initial criteria to apply for financial assistance from Student Finance England, as an EU national, are:
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you must have been living within the EEA or Switzerland for at least three years prior to the start of your course;
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this must have been for a purpose other than education
Help may also be available if you’re a migrant worker from an EEA (European Economic Area) country or Switzerland, or if you’re the child of a Turkish worker in the UK.
If you are a national of the EEA/Switzerland, who has been ‘ordinarily resident’ in the EEA or Switzerland for at least three years prior to the start of your course and you are working in the UK, you may qualify for help with tuition fees as a migrant worker. More information and eligibility criteria for the children of Turkish workers can be found at www.direct.gov.uk.
Part-time EU students may qualify for a grant to help with tuition fees. To apply for this:
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your course must be at least one year.
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your household income must be below a certain threshold.
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you need to have been living within the EEA/Switzerland for at least three years prior to the start of your course for a purpose other than education.
For more information, please see the Student Finance England (SFE) web pages at www.direct.gov.uk.
Unfortunately, international students who do not meet the requirements outlined on the SFE website do not qualify for support from Student Finance England. It is a condition of receiving a visa that you must be able to provide evidence of your funding before you begin a course. If you do not have funding in place, you cannot obtain a visa.
Sponsorships from employers, loans from banks, support from family and personal savings are some ways of financing your fees and living costs. If your sponsorship or means of funding falls through, please contact the Student Advice Centre as soon as possible to discuss your options.
The University of Leeds is offering a number of Fully Funded International Research Scholarships (FIRS) for PhDs beginning in 2012/13. For more info please see here: http://www.leeds.ac.uk/info/20023/postgraduate_research/1621/fully_funded_international_research_scholarships_available/1
Funding from Educational Bodies and Charitable Trusts
Whilst you are unlikely to find complete funding via this route, applying to educational bodies and charitable trusts can provide you with a small amount of additional funding, which may be of use in you are suffering from financial hardship. However, they cannot be relied upon since there is a limited amount of funding available and not all applicants will be successful. For links and a guide to how to apply for these funds, please see the following pages on our website at www.leedsuniversityunion.org.uk/helpandadvice/money/fundingfromeducationalbodiesandcharitabletrusts.
The British Council and UKCISA websites are especially useful for international students: http://www.britishcouncil.org/new/ and www.ukcisa.org.uk.
The UKCISA website in particular provides comprehensive details on all aspects of studying as an international or EU student in the UK. Other useful websites include: www.family-action.org.uk, www.ctbi.org.uk and www.lechetrust.org.
Research Councils are another possible source of funding, mainly for PhD courses, or integrated Masters and PhD programmes. They rarely offer funding for Masters level courses and do not provide funding for Undergraduate level courses. Visit the Research Councils UK website at www.rcuk.ac.uk.
Employment
Many students, EU, international and home, take on part-time jobs for extra financial support, as well as work-based experience. EU students have no restriction on the amount of hours they can work, whilst international students can generally work 20 hours per week, including voluntary work. During holidays, there are no restrictions on the amount of hours per week an undergraduate student can work, providing they are in temporary not permanent employment. Please note: this does not apply to postgraduate students, who can only work full-time once the course had ended. If in doubt, please contact the International Student Office on 0113 343 3930 or internationalstudents@leeds.ac.uk for more information about the conditions of your visa and the amount of hours you are permitted to work.
The University recommends that students on a full-time taught course do not take on more than 20 hours paid or voluntary work per week. Students cannot face disciplinary procedures for working more than 20 hours, but employment cannot be used as a reason to miss classes or as mitigating circumstances. Recommendations in the Taught Student Guide can be found at www.leeds.ac.uk.
Research students may have restrictions placed on the number of hours they can work. For clarification please contact your department or see the Research Student Handbook here: www.leeds.ac.uk/rsa/handbooks.
To work in the UK you will need a National Insurance Number. To apply for one, you may need to have an ‘evidence of identity’ interview and provide documents to prove your identity. You can do this through Jobcentre Plus; the nearest office is:
21-22 Park Place
Leeds
West Yorkshire
United Kingdom
LS1 2SL
Telephone: 0845 604 3719
Textphone: 0113 214 8005
If you are a student from Bulgaria or Romania, you need to apply for permission to work before accepting work in the UK. You will need to complete a BR1 form.
Joblink in the Union building holds regular National Insurance Roadshows, where staff from Jobcentre Plus come to the Union, making it so much easier to apply. Keep an eye out on our website and read the LUU news email updates regularly for dates of the next one and when it is advertised, book your place by calling Joblink on 0113 3801 444.
Council Tax
Full-time EU and International Students do not have to pay Council Tax if they are living with other full time students. If you live with your partner who is not a student they will be exempt from paying council tax if they:
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are not a European Economic Area National.
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have Limited Leave to Remain in the UK (i.e. are not permanently settled here).
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are cannot take employment due to their immigration conditions OR are not allowed to claim benefits (income support, jobseekers allowance, housing benefit, child benefit etc.). This regulation does not apply to spouses permanently settled in the UK.
To notify the council of this, complete an exception form available from either the Student Advice Centre, Leeds Revenues Service, PO Box 60, 2 Great George Street, Leeds, LS2 8JR or as a download from www.leeds.gov.uk.
If you are unsure of your or your spouse’s eligibility for council tax exemption, please visit our pages on tax: www.leedsuniversityunion.org.uk/helpandadvice/money/tax and email the Student Advice Centre for further information and assistance.
If you live with other people who are not students, they will have to pay council tax, but they cannot ask you to share the cost; you are not liable for council tax.
Expecting a child
If you are expecting a child and are having financial problems, the Student Advice Centre may be able to help you with a loan of equipment, such as prams, cots, clothes and other equipment. Please see our pages on this at www.leedsuniversityunion.org.uk/helpandadvice/money/newbornbabyfund.
If you are pregnant, but do not wish to continue with the pregnancy and require financial assistance to cover the costs of the procedure, you may be able to get this help from the Abortion Fund. For more information on this please see our pages here: www.leedsuniversityunion.org.uk/helpandadvice/money/abortionfund.
As with all grants, applicants to the New Born Baby Fund and the Abortion fund are assessed on a case by case basis and, unfortunately, not everyone will be eligible for financial assistance. However, the Student Advice Centre can provide alternative support in the form of money management guidance.
Financial Hardship
Unfortunately, there is no statutory funding for international and EU students in financial hardship. However, there are possible options that may be open to you. To discuss these in full, please contact the Student Advice Centre. If you are in immediate financial hardship, please do not delay in doing so. It is helpful if you have completed a One Form for when you see us.
The Access to Learning Fund is not available to international students, although there are a few exceptions. Please check your residency eligibility here: www.leeds.ac.uk.
For more information on whether you are able to apply to the Access to Learning Fund and to pick up an application form, please contact Financial Aid in the Marjorie and Arnold Ziff Building on 0113 343 2007 or financialaid@leeds.ac.uk.
To avoid financial difficulties, you may also find it useful to consider your finances and put together a budget before you arrive. For help and advice on the cost of living in the UK please visit: www.leedsuniversityunion.org.uk/helpandadvice/money/costofliving, www.leeds.ac.uk/international/planning_your_finances and www.studentcalculator.org.uk. The Student Advice Centre also offers budgeting advice appointments: to book please call us on 0113 3801290.
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