Change of circumstances or course
Goldsmiths, as your visa sponsor, is required to keep the Home Office up to date about your studies, therefore it is important you tell us of changes.
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Change of circumstances
If the information the Home Office holds about you is not up to date, or your circumstances change and you don’t tell us, then it could affect your visa status and studies.
Please contact us as soon as possible if any of the following happens:
- You change your visa type, for example, if you obtain a work visa or a spouse visa
- You plan to take an interruption in your studies
- You plan to, or have, withdrawn from your studies
- You complete your course earlier than expected
- You wish to change courses
- You obtain a new passport
- You have concerns about your visa status, or any of the conditions associated with your visa
You should also make sure that your contact details are up to date on your student record. You can do this using My Goldsmiths.
Our obligations
Goldsmiths has a legal obligation to notify the Home Office in the following circumstances:
- You stop attending your course, or miss too many classes
- You do not enroll on your course by the latest enrolment date
- You withdraw from your studies
- You complete your course earlier than expected
We will always email before notifying the Home Office of a change in circumstance. This is another important reason why you must keep your contact details updated via My Goldsmiths
Changing courses
It can be difficult to change courses if you have a Student visa, and it is not always possible.
If you request to change programmes, the process involves the Immigration Advisory Service liaising with you about your visa and assessing whether the change is permitted. You should continue to attend classes on the course for which you were issued a visa until the Immigration Advisory Service confirms that you are legally able to change programmes.
It is essential that you abide by the conditions of your visa, as failure to do so can have serious consequences for your current Student visa and any future immigration applications you may make.
It is also important to note that in some cases you could be required to apply for a new Student visa from overseas in order to be able to switch courses. The Immigration Advisory Service will advise you if this will be required in your case.
Read our page on the process to change course.