UK Expands eVisas – What Pakistani Students Need to Know
📌What is Changing?
The UK is going digital — your visa and immigration status will now be stored online as an eVisa, instead of being shown on:
- Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs)
- Visa vignette stickers in passports
- Passport stamps (called “wet ink stamps”)
👩🎓 Who Does This Affect?
- YES: Students or workers staying in the UK for more than 6 months
→ Must create a UKVI online account to access your eVisa - NO: Tourists and short-term visitors (less than 6 months)
→ No UKVI account needed
✈️ Why Are Boarding Passes & Baggage Tags Now Required for Enrolment?
Because of eVisas, you no longer get a stamp in your passport when you arrive in the UK.
🔍Problem:
Universities like Ulster University and Northumbria London Campus need proof that you arrived in the UK legally and on the correct visa, especially for your Right to Study check.
✅Solution:
They now require students to bring:
- Boarding Pass (shows your travel date and flight)
- Baggage Tags (evidence you arrived with luggage from overseas)
These help replace the missing passport stamp and confirm your legal arrival in the UK.
🛂 What Should Pakistani Students Do?
- Before traveling:
- Apply for a UK visa as normal
- Wait until you get your passport and visa back from the Visa Application Centre (VAC)
- After arriving in the UK:
- Keep your boarding pass and baggage tags
- Collect your BRP (still required until 31 Dec 2024)
- Create your UKVI account to access your eVisa
- For enrolment:
- Show your boarding pass, baggage tags, and passport
- Soon, only your eVisa and UKVI account will be needed
📅 Important Dates:
- Now: Students must bring boarding pass + baggage tags
- Until 31 Dec 2024: BRPs still valid and required
From 2025 onward: The system will be fully digital (eVisa) only