CAS (Continuing students)

Reasons for requesting a new CAS

In most cases, continuing students may need a new Student visa because their course details or circumstances have changed.  If you have gone through the ‘change of status’ approval process you should have received visa advice from ISSAC via email at the time you changed your studies. Refer back to this email for specific advice about your visa, what you need to do and when to request your new CAS.

You can also find more information about changes to studies on our Change of status page. You should also ensure that you are aware of any visa time limits and academic progression rules (if you can apply for your new visa in the UK or not).

 Some examples of when you may need a new CAS include:

• Extending your course
• Repeating studies
• Returning from a Leave of Absence
• Changing your programme/ course
• Switching from a different visa type to a Student visa

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How to request a new CAS 

If you are an applicant who is applying for a CAS to start a new course at the University, you must complete the Admissions CAS process. You can find more information here.

If you are a continuing student, the ISSAC Compliance team issues your CAS. The CAS request process is explained below:

• Email the ISSAC Compliance team at casenquiries@sheffield.ac.uk. Your email should include:
  • Your student registration number
  • A brief but clear explanation of why you need a new CAS 
• The team will then send you a CAS application form to complete and return, along with additional instructions.
• Once you return your completed application the team will create your CAS. You may be contacted again to provide additional supporting documents, depending on your situation
• Once your CAS is ready, you will receive a confirmation email and this will be submitted to UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI). The confirmation email will include instructions on how to view your CAS via muse. 

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When to request a new CAS

It is your responsibility to ensure that you request your CAS as early as possible and respond to any emails from the team requesting further information promptly. 

You should only request a CAS request up to three months before the date that you will need your new Student visa (which will be the start date of your new CAS). If you have received visa advice as part of a ‘change of status’ then this should tell you when you need to request a CAS. Some common examples for when to request a CAS would be up to three months before:

• Your current visa expiry date
• Your return from Leave of Absence
• The start of the next academic year 
• The start of the next semester

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What documents will I need to submit for my CAS

Depending on your circumstances, you may need to provide supporting documents before your CAS can be issued. In most cases, the team will ask for these documents during the process of creating your CAS, but you may also be asked for further documents. Some examples of what you may need to provide are included below (but do not cover all scenarios):

• Financial evidence (unless you are exempt from including financial evidence with your visa application)
• A copy of your new passport (if your previous passport has expired)
• Proof of leaving the UK (if you must apply for your Student visa from overseas)
• Proof of being fit to resume studies (if returning from a medical Leave of Absence)

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How long will it take for the CAS to be issued?

Once we receive your completed CAS form, our standard issuing time is 5 working days. However, if we need further information from you or your Academic Department this may take longer.

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What will the duration of my new CAS be?

Your new CAS will be issued in line with the period you require Student visa sponsorship for; this means the period that you are expected to study in-person within the UK.

In most cases, your CAS end date will reflect your registration expected course end date in full, however there are a few scenarios where your CAS end date may be earlier than this. For instance, you may receive a shorter CAS if you have a final submission date which is before your registration end date or if you will not be studying internally (with attendance) in the UK throughout your registration period.

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Receiving a new CAS 

You will receive an email to your University email account with details on how to access your CAS.

When you receive your new CAS, it is your responsibility to check the details carefully to ensure these are all correct.

In particular, take the time to check that your course end date is correct and matches what you expect it to be.

If there are any errors then you must contact us at casenquiries@Sheffield.ac.uk as soon as possible so we can look into the issue and make any corrections.

If you receive an incorrect visa because of CAS-related errors then UKVI will not correct this and you would need to make a new visa application using a new CAS again at full cost.

Example scenarios

Below are a few specific scenarios where additional guidance may be useful:

Change of Programme/ Course

• If you need a new visa as part of changing your programme then you may need to apply for a new visa immediately, during a vacation period, before the next academic year starts, or just before your current visa expires. This will depend on your specific circumstances and you will receive a detailed email from the ISSAC team at the time of the course change with full visa advice pertinent to your circumstances. Ensure that you read this visa advice very carefully so you know what rules apply to you.
• In some cases, you may have a short timeframe to request a new CAS and submit a new visa application in order to apply in the UK; this will be detailed in your visa advice email from the ISSAC team if this applies to you. Please be aware if you do not meet this timeframe then you would need to apply for your new visa from overseas instead.

Leave of Absence

• If your Leave of Absence was reported to UKVI then you will need a new visa to resume studies. You should request CAS up to 3 months before your return date. If you request your CAS more than 3 months before we may advise that you need to wait until you are within the 3-month period. 
• If you are on a medical Leave of Absence, you will need to have provided evidence that you are fit to resume studies and this would need to have been accepted by the University before a CAS can be issued. You can find more information here.

Further information on leave of absence (LOA) can be found on our LOA web page.

External repeat study

• If you are repeating studies externally (without attendance), you will not generally receive a CAS to apply for a Student visa, as you are not expected to be studying in-person. You can find more information here.
• You will need to request a new CAS and apply for a new Student visa up to 3 months before you will return to standard in-person studies e.g. before the next semester or next academic year.
• In most cases, you will be expected to return for any resit exams using a Visit visa. However, in some cases we can issue a new CAS to you to get a Student visa instead, for instance if you have in-person invigilated exams. Depending on your circumstances, your new CAS may only cover the specific exam period, or may cover your exam period until your course end date.

Further information can be found on our Repeats or resits web page.

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When a CAS might not be issued: CAS Policy

As a Student visa sponsor, the University reserves the right to decline a CAS application where it has reasons to believe that a student does not meet UKVI rules for receiving visa sponsorship, or where a student will not be able to meet the requirements for successfully obtaining a Student visa.

A CAS may also be denied based on University-specific policies or processes relating to Student visa sponsorship. Examples of such instances can be, but are not limited to:

• If you do not provide the requested supporting documents to obtain a CAS.
• Your financial evidence does not meet UKVI rules at the time of the CAS process.
• If you do not have any in-person teaching or assessments, for instance if you are repeating studies as an external student or are studying via remote or online learning only.
• If you have exceeded or will exceed the student, visa time limits set by UKVI.
• If you have used deception in a previous visa or University application.
• If you are currently overstaying your visa, or you have previously overstayed your visa in the UK.
• You have had a visa refusal from UKVI and cannot adequately address or resolve the reasons why this occurred.
• You have been refused further visa sponsorship under the University’s Visa Attendance process based on continued non-attendance.