Graduate Visa
The Graduate route is a post-study work route for eligible people who have successfully completed qualifying UK study under the Student route. It does not require an employer sponsor or job offer, but the application must be made from inside the UK and the relevant study requirements must be met.
On this page
- Is this the right route?
- Your Student immigration history
- Successful completion
- Which qualifications qualify?
- Study in the UK requirement
- Previous Graduate or DES permission
- How long permission lasts
- Work and study conditions
- Dependants
- When Graduate permission ends
- Which issues apply?
- Related routes
- How ENS can help
- FAQs
In brief
- The Graduate route is a post-study work route after qualifying UK study on the Student route.
- It needs no employer sponsor or job offer, but must be applied for from inside the UK.
- Your Student immigration history and successful course completion matter.
- The guide explains the qualifying course and UK-study requirements.
Is the Graduate route the right one to review?
The Graduate route is designed for eligible students who have successfully completed qualifying UK study and want to remain in the UK temporarily to work or look for work.
It is not a general visa for anyone who has ever studied at a UK university, and it is not based on employer sponsorship.
You studied outside the UK
If your main basis is a recent degree from an eligible overseas university, review High Potential Individual.
High Potential Individual →You already have a sponsored job
If your immigration basis is a qualifying sponsored role, review Skilled Worker.
Skilled Worker →Your basis is recognised talent or achievement
If your case is based on professional recognition, endorsement or a prestigious-prize pathway, review Global Talent.
Global Talent →Your Student immigration history matters
Graduate is a post-Student route. The validity requirements require the applicant to have, or have last had, relevant Student or Tier 4 (General) permission, subject to the limited exceptions described in the Rules.
Having a UK qualification by itself is not enough. Your qualification and immigration history must fit the Graduate route framework.
Evidence areas to review:
- current or most recent Student permission;
- qualifying course;
- course completion;
- Student sponsor;
- CAS and course history where relevant;
- previous Graduate / Doctorate Extension Scheme immigration history.
You must have successfully completed the relevant course
The Home Office guidance requires successful completion of the course undertaken during the relevant Student permission.
Your Student sponsor normally notifies the Home Office that you have successfully completed the course. The guidance also explains that a missing notification should not automatically lead to refusal where the application would otherwise qualify and the CAS indicates a qualifying course.
Do not assume that your course end date alone establishes successful completion. The Graduate route focuses on successful completion of the qualifying course.
Qualifying degree or professional course
The route covers successful completion of a UK bachelor’s degree, UK postgraduate degree or certain other relevant qualifications recognised by the Graduate rules.
UK bachelor’s degree
A qualifying UK bachelor’s degree completed during the relevant Student permission.
UK postgraduate degree
A qualifying UK postgraduate degree completed during the relevant Student permission.
Certain regulated professional courses
Some qualifications connected with professions regulated by UK law or public authority may qualify even where the award is not a standard degree.
A course being taught at postgraduate or degree level does not automatically make it eligible for the Graduate route. The guidance gives a postgraduate business-administration diploma as an example that does not meet the qualification requirement.
The course must also meet the UK-study requirement
Qualifying for Graduate is not determined only by the qualification awarded. The applicant must also meet the route’s study-in-the-UK requirement under the relevant Student permission.
Someone who studied the entire course while holding another immigration category, such as dependant permission, does not satisfy this requirement merely because the course itself was at a UK institution.
Participation in permitted study-abroad programmes does not automatically prevent the study-in-the-UK requirement being met. Historical Covid-19 concessions were time-limited provisions for specific older cohorts — confirm the current position on GOV.UK.
Graduate is not a renewable route
You cannot normally receive Graduate permission more than once.
The validity rules require rejection where the applicant has previously held Graduate permission or Doctorate Extension Scheme permission. Graduate permission cannot be extended by submitting another Graduate application.
How long Graduate permission is granted for
The period granted depends on your qualification and the date of application. Under the current Home Office guidance there is a transition on 1 January 2027 for non-doctoral qualifications. Confirm the current position on GOV.UK before applying.
3 years
The current guidance provides a three-year Graduate grant where the qualifying course is a PhD or other doctoral qualification.
Application date matters
For other eligible qualifications, the current guidance provides two years where the Graduate application is made before 1 January 2027 and 18 months where it is made on or after 1 January 2027.
Do not rely on a generic statement that every Graduate visa lasts two years — the grant depends on your qualification and application date.
Working and studying on the Graduate route
Paid and unpaid work
Graduate permission allows paid and unpaid employment, and you are not tied to one employer.
Business and self-employment
Self-employment, business activity and other professional activity are permitted.
No professional sport
Professional sport, including professional coaching, is prohibited.
Study may be permitted
Study is permitted, except where the course should instead be undertaken under the Student route. ATAS can also apply.
Can family members stay as Graduate dependants?
Graduate dependant rules are more restrictive than simply allowing a Graduate to add new family members. A dependant partner or child will ordinarily need to have been the main applicant’s dependant under the Student route, subject to specific provisions for children born in the UK during relevant Student or Graduate permission.
Student dependants
Existing Student dependants may generally continue under the Graduate dependant framework if the separate requirements are met.
Specific provisions apply
The current guidance contains specific treatment for children born in the UK during the parent’s relevant Student or Graduate permission.
The Graduate route is not a general opportunity to add a completely new dependant partner. Graduate applicants and their dependants are not required to meet a separate financial requirement under this guidance.
Planning your next immigration route
Graduate permission is temporary and cannot simply be renewed through another Graduate application. If you want to remain in the UK beyond your Graduate permission, you will need to consider whether you meet the requirements of another immigration route at that time.
Global Talent
Where the relevant talent, endorsement or prestigious-prize framework applies.
Global Talent →Innovator Founder
Where you are pursuing a qualifying endorsed business proposition.
Innovator Founder →Moving to another route is not automatic. You must meet that route’s requirements at the time you apply. The Graduate guidance used for this page does not provide a direct route to settlement.
Which Graduate route issues should you review?
Answer a few questions and this guide points you to the framework, issues and evidence areas to review. It is a guide only — it does not decide eligibility or predict a decision.
Guide only: this tool identifies immigration frameworks, issues and evidence areas that may need review. It does not determine eligibility, give a score or probability, predict a Home Office decision or assess an appeal.
Recently completed your UK studies? Get a fixed-fee check of your Graduate route eligibility and timing.
Get a fixed-fee quoteOur regulatory scope. ENS Immigration Advice is regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority at Level 1. We can advise and assist with straightforward Graduate route applications within our authorised competence. Where a matter involves a refusal, complex overstaying or immigration-history issue, suitability concern or another contentious circumstance, we will identify the complexity boundary and direct you to the appropriate next step. How our IAA Level 1 scope works · Refusal or complex issue → specialist referral.
How ENS can help
Check the Graduate route framework
We can help identify whether your Student permission, course, successful completion and study history fit the Graduate route framework.
Organise your evidence
We can help organise the relevant course, immigration-history and application evidence for a straightforward Graduate application.
Prepare a straightforward application
We can assist with preparing and checking a straightforward Graduate application within ENS’s IAA Level 1 authorisation.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to apply for the Graduate visa from inside the UK?
Yes. The guidance states that Graduate route applications must be made from within the UK.
Do I need a job offer or employer sponsor?
No. The Graduate route allows eligible applicants to remain in the UK to work or look for work and does not use the employer Certificate of Sponsorship model.
Is having a UK degree enough for the Graduate visa?
No. The route also requires the relevant Student immigration history, successful completion and compliance with the Graduate study requirements.
Does my university need to notify the Home Office that I completed my course?
The Student sponsor normally notifies the Home Office of successful completion. However, the guidance says an otherwise grantable application should not automatically be refused solely because the notification is missing where the CAS indicates qualifying study.
Can professional qualifications qualify for Graduate permission?
Some can. The guidance recognises certain professional qualifications connected with professions regulated by UK law or public authority, but not every diploma or postgraduate course qualifies.
How long is the Graduate visa granted for?
The period depends on the qualification and application date. Under the current guidance, qualifying doctoral graduates receive three years. Other eligible applicants receive two years if they apply before 1 January 2027 and 18 months if they apply on or after that date.
Can I extend the Graduate visa?
You cannot obtain another Graduate grant simply by making a further Graduate application. Previous Graduate permission makes a further Graduate application invalid under the guidance used for this page.
Can I work or be self-employed on the Graduate route?
Yes. The guidance permits paid and unpaid employment, self-employment, business activity and professional activity, subject to the prohibition on professional sport.
Can I bring a new partner as my Graduate dependant?
The Graduate dependant framework is generally based on dependants who already held relevant Student dependant permission, subject to specific provisions including some UK-born children. It should not be treated as a general route for adding a completely new dependant partner.
Does the Graduate route lead directly to settlement?
The Graduate guidance used for this page does not establish a direct Graduate settlement route. Graduate permission is time-limited, so anyone wishing to stay longer would need to consider another immigration route and meet its requirements.
Source basis: Home Office, Graduate route, version 6.0, published for Home Office staff on 3 August 2026. Immigration Rules and guidance can change; confirm the current position on GOV.UK before applying.
Discuss a Graduate route application
If you have completed qualifying UK study and want to review the Graduate route, we can help identify the immigration framework and evidence areas that need attention.