We recommend that if you do not already hold immigration permission, which permits study in the UK,  you can apply for the Standard Visitor to attend a short-term exchange at LSE.

The UK is rolling out Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA), which will need to be applied for prior to travelling to the UK for nationals of countries who do not require a visa to travel to the UK as a visitor.

The rollout commenced with Qatari nationals, who will now need to apply for an ETA to travel to the UK on or after 15 November 2023. An ETA will cost £10 and permits multiple journeys over two years. You can find out more on the official UK government factsheet.

You can apply for your ETA on the UK government website:

Apply for an ETA

From 1st February 2024, nationals of the following countries will need to apply for an ETA in advance of any planned travel on or after 22 February 2024:

• Saudi Arabia
• Oman
• Bahrain
• Kuwait
• UAE
• Jordan

It has not yet been announced when ETAs will be rolled out to other nationalities.

• You cannot extend your Standard Visitor visa in the UK
• You cannot switch into another visa category in the UK e.g. Student Route or Graduate Route
• You cannot undertake any work or business in the UK
• You are not entitled to free treatment from the National Health Service 
• You cannot use the Standard Visitor visa to study a full time degree programme by applying for successive visas.  
  
• The 11 month Short-term Student route can only be used for English Language programmes where you are coming to the UK to learn English. It is not the right choice for a short-term exchange at LSE.

Depending on your nationality, you will either need to obtain your visa before travelling or you can request entry as a Short-term Student at the border. You can check if you need to apply for your visa before travelling on the gov.uk website.

• If you need to apply for a visa before travelling, you are known as a Visa National.
• If you do not need to apply for a visa before travelling you are known as a Non-Visa National.

You can request your Standard Visitor visa letter from the following web page:

Standard Visitor Visa Letter Request

It currently costs £115 to apply for a  six month Standard Visitor visa at the embassy. You will be granted with a multi-entry sticker in your passport which will be valid for 6 months.  This means you can leave and re-enter the UK using the same Standard Visitor visa.

UK Visas and Immigration 

If you are from a country which does not need to apply for a visa before travelling as a tourist, you can request to enter the UK as a Standard Visitor at the border.

You will need to ask the Border Force Office to enter as a Standard Visitor and show them the letter you have been given by LSE if you are just entering for studies.  Please make sure you have this in your hand luggage.

The stamp you receive at the border is only for a single-entry.  If you plan to travel outside of the UK and have further sessions of teaching to attend, you will need to request to enter as a Standard Visitor each time you arrive at the UK border.

If you are travelling through Ireland, this is known as the Common Travel Area.  You will not go through UK immigration controls so you will need to show that you have entered Ireland (e.g. a stamp in your passport) and provide your boarding pass as evidence of how you travelled to the UK.

e-Gates 

The following nationalities can enter the UK using the e-Gates :

• USA
• Japan
• Singapore
• South Korea
• Australia
• New Zealand
• Canada
• EU/EEA/Swiss nationals

Please bring a copy of either your boarding pass or flight details to enrolment. If you enter via the e-Gates, LSE will need to record your date of arrival.