Working in the UK

Work rights are a condition of your immigration permission, so it’s very important that you are clear about what you may and may not do. You must always comply with any work restrictions associated with your visa, as well as ensuring that your work does not affect your progression on your course.

The following guidance is relevant for full-time Student visa holders at the University of Gloucestershire. Part-time Student visa holders are not allowed to work.

Working hours

As a Student visa holder, you either have a work restriction or a work prohibition. The UK immigration authorities take work restrictions very seriously.

If you are studying a full-time course at or above UK degree level, you can work:

• Up to 20 hours per week during term-time
• Full-time outside term-time

A ‘week’ means any seven-day period starting on a Monday. You are responsible for ensuring that you do not exceed your weekly working hours, therefore it’s essential to maintain detailed records of your working hours. This is especially important if you work irregular hours, or if you have more than one employer (inside or outside the UK), as employers may not know about work you are also doing elsewhere.

‘Term-time’ means the period when the University expects you to be studying. ‘Outside term-time’ means any other time, e.g. the period before your course starts and after it ends, and during official vacations. You can find the calendar of term dates on the University’s website or in your course information. Please liaise directly with your course team if you require additional information to evidence specific academic dates for your programme.

For undergraduate students, vacation periods are the published University breaks and periods between semesters.

For postgraduate taught students, and students on the taught-phase first year of a Professional Master’s by Research programme, vacation periods are the published University Christmas and Easter breaks, and any course-specific official break during the summer, bespoke to their academic programme (if applicable).

For postgraduate research students, and students on the research-phase second year of a Professional Master’s by Research programme, vacation period is the University Christmas closure only.

If you have submitted all your coursework, you can only work full-time once:

• You are past your CAS expected course end date, or
• Your confirmed award has been published (whichever comes first)

Work restrictions

There are some restrictions on the types of employment you can undertake as a Student visa student. You cannot do any of the following:

• Be self-employed
  • This includes freelancing and ‘gig-economy’ work, such as Deliveroo or Uber drivers
  • Any work or trading as a freelancer, contractor or consultant is highly likely to be considered self-employment, which is not permitted under the Student visa work conditions
• Be employed as a professional sportsperson including as a sports coach
• Be employed as an entertainer
• Work as a doctor or dentist in training, unless you are on the foundation programme
• Take a permanent full-time job
  • ‘Permanent’ means there is no end date in your contract
  • You can do a permanent part-time job
  • Outside term-time, you can do a full-time fixed-term job

Work placements

If you are a Student visa holder, you are only permitted to undertake a work placement under certain conditions:

• You are only permitted to undertake an approved placement that is an assessed and integral part of your academic programme, and
• In line with 6.7a of the Home Office Student Sponsor Guidance Document 2: Sponsorship Duties, as a student studying on the Student route, you are eligible to work full-time in a paid or unpaid approved placement, and
• The total duration of the placement must not exceed 50% of the total length of your course

If your work placement meets the above requirements, you will be permitted to work (paid or unpaid) for more than 20 hours per week. However, you must not be self-employed, or employed as a professional or semi-professional sportsperson, or an entertainer.

As your visa sponsor, the University of Gloucestershire will report the details of your work placement to the Home Office. This applies whether your work placement takes in place on the work placement premises, remotely or abroad.

Volunteering versus voluntary work

You are able to volunteer while you are studying. Volunteering is different from Voluntary Work (unpaid employment) and does not count towards your weekly working hours limit. Volunteers will normally help a registered charity or voluntary or public sector organisation.  

If you are volunteering with an organisation, you must not: 

• Have a contract of employment 
• Take the place of an employee 
• Receive payment for your contribution, including payment in kind 

You are permitted to undertake Voluntary Work in the UK however you must be aware that Voluntary Work counts towards your maximum number of hours of work during a week. 

As a voluntary worker you: 

• Are usually paid in some form 
• Often have a contract with an employer 

If you are unsure, you should check with the organisation whether what you are doing can be regarded as Voluntary Work. 

Proving your right to work

Work eligibility is contingent on visa status rather than student status – international students who hold a Student visa to study in the UK are subject to working restrictions set by the Home Office. As such, employers will need to conduct their own checks to verify that your current visa permits you to work and your work entitlement.

You’ll need to prove your right to work in the UK to your employer before you start working for them. You may request a letter to support an employer’s right to work checks (‘term-dates’ letter) which confirms your enrolled student status and the details of your Student visa. This should be forwarded to a prospective employer, along with your right to work share code.

Please liaise directly with your course team if you require additional information to evidence specific academic dates for your programme.