Receiving your visa and what to do next

If your application has been successful you’ll be given either:

• A sticker (called a vignette) in your passport, valid for up to 90 days, to enable you to travel to the UK.
• A digital status which allows you to view your immigration status information online – if you used the smartphone app to prove your identity. You will then be able to travel to the UK on your e-visa.

When you arrive at a UK airport, you will see the ePassport gates, if you have been given a:

• vignette: Please do not use the e-gates as your visa will need to be stamped by a UK Border Officer. The stamp activates your visa. If you are travelling to the UK via the Republic of Ireland, you may find there is no UK Border Force Officer to check and stamp your visa. In these circumstances you must keep evidence of your date of travel (for example your boarding card) as you will later need to prove the date of your arrival.
• digital status: You will be able to use the e-gates.  If you have Skilled Worker/Temporary Worker Sponsored Researcher visa, please retain your boarding card as evidence of you arrival date in the UK.

Your School/Department will carry out an in person Right to Work check.  They'll take copies of your passport and visa for their records.  If you have a Skilled Worker visa they will check the date of entry stamp in your passport. If you entered before your Skilled Worker visa was valid, you will not have the right to work and will need to leave the Common Travel Area (UK, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man and Ireland) and re-enter the UK within the validity of your visa. 

If you’re coming to the UK for more than 6 months you will have 10 days from your arrival in the UK or 10 days before your vignette expires (whichever is later) to create a UKVI online account to access your eVisa.  Once you have created your account you should follow the process below for another online Right to Work check to be carried out.

The Home Office have created a number of videos to support users with creating their account and their eVisas.  

You will need to request a share code so that the School/Department can carry out an online right to work check.  You can request the share code from the UKVI 'View and prove your immigration status' webpages. 

Prove your right to work to an employer

If there are any issues with securing your visa or you are not going to be able to start work on your agreed start date, please keep in touch with your School/Department contact and HR Helpline.

HR Helpline