Visas and Nationality Services

The Visas and Nationality services support you if you need to evidence the level of your degree and/or your English language proficiency for the UK Home Office.

These services are for you if you are applying for one of the following visas or routes:

  • Family (including spouse), settlement or citizenship/naturalisation
  • Tier 2
  • Skilled Worker
  • Skilled Work: Health and Care
  • Start-up and Innovator
  • Minister of Religion
  • High Potential Individual

The Visas and Nationality (PhD) and Visas and Nationality (PhD with English Proficiency) services provide verification of PhD level qualifications for those intending to use their PhD to qualify for tradeable points for the Skilled Worker route.

The Visas and Nationality (High Potential Individual) and Visas and Nationality (High Potential Individual with English Proficiency) services provide verification of degrees for those intending to use their qualification in their application to the High Potential Individual route.

It is important that you carefully read the service descriptions below and apply for the correct service.

There are five Visas and Nationality services available:

  • Visas and Nationality (English proficiency)
  • Visas and Nationality (PhD verification)
  • Visas and Nationality (PhD verification with English proficiency)
  • Visas and Nationality (High Potential Individual)
  • Visas and Nationality (High Potential Individual with English proficiency).

The service you need depends on what you need to evidence.

If you would like to You need the

use your Bachelor, Master’s or PhD degree(s) to demonstrate the level of your qualification and your English proficiency for a UK visa application

Visas and Nationality service (English proficiency)

For this service, we can only assess qualifications that

  • are considered comparable to a Bachelor, Master’s or PhD degree in the UK and
  • were taught solely in English.

We compare your university (Higher Education) degree(s) to the standard of Bachelor, Master’s or PhD in the UK. This is the Academic Qualification Level Statement (AQUALS).

And, if your degree was not studied in a majority English-speaking country, we also confirm the level of your English language proficiency based on your qualification and according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). This is the English Language Proficiency Statement (ELPS).

Once we have received all required documents and payment, we will complete your assessment within 10 working days. If you have a deadline, we recommend that you use our 24- or 48-hour Fast Track service.

You can see an example of a Visas and Nationality Statement here.

use your PhD to qualify for tradeable points for the Skilled Worker route

Visas and Nationality service (PhD verification)

For this service, we can only assess qualifications that are considered comparable to a PhD degree in the UK.

We provide a statement confirming your PhD is comparable to the standard of a PhD in the UK. This is the Academic Qualification Level Statement (AQUALS).

In addition, we will check and confirm if the degree is genuine by contacting your institution.

We do not provide information regarding English language proficiency on this statement. If you require this, you may need the Visas and Nationality Service (PhD verification with English proficiency) service.

During the application process, we will ask you to complete and sign a Letter of Authorisation. This allows us to contact your institution to verify your degree.

Once we have received all of the necessary documents and payment, we will complete your assessment within 30 working days.

use your PhD to qualify for tradeable points for the Skilled Worker route, and demonstrate your English proficiency for a UK visa application

Visas and Nationality service (PhD verification with English proficiency)

We provide a statement confirming your PhD is comparable to the standard of a PhD in the UK. This is the Academic Qualification Level Statement (AQUALS).

In addition, we will check and confirm if the degree is genuine by contacting your institution.

And, if your degree was not studied in a majority English-speaking country, we also confirm the level of your English language proficiency based on your qualification and according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). This is the English Language Proficiency Statement (ELPS).

If your PhD degree was not taught in English but you have another degree which was taught in English, for example, a Bachelor or Master’s degree, we may be able to provide the AQUALS and ELPS for your Bachelor or Master’s degree, provided that they meet the requirements of the service.

During the application process, we will ask you to complete and sign a Letter of Authorisation. This allows us to contact your institution to confirm the details of your award.

Once we have received all of the necessary documents and payment, we will complete your assessment within 30 working days.

Use your Bachelor, Master’s or PhD degree to demonstrate the level of your qualification for an application to the High Potential Individual Route.

Note: Before applying, please ensure your qualification meets the Home Office requirements by checking the guidance on the Home Office website.

We will process all undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications which meet the academic level requirements for this service. Responsibility for checking whether your qualification meets the Home Office requirements rests with the applicant.

Visas and Nationality service (High Potential Individual)

For this service, we can only assess qualifications that

  • are considered comparable to a Bachelor, Master’s or PhD degree in the UK

We compare your university (Higher Education) degree(s) to the standard of Bachelor, Master’s or PhD in the UK. This is the Academic Qualification Level Statement (AQUALS).

In addition, we will check and confirm if the degree is genuine by contacting your institution.

We do not provide information regarding English language proficiency on this statement. If you require this, you may need the Visas and Nationality (High Potential Individual with English Proficiency) service

During the application process, we will ask you to complete and sign a Letter of Authorisation. This allows us to contact your institution to verify your degree.

Once we have received all of the necessary documents and payment, we will complete your assessment within 30 working days.

Use your Bachelor, Master’s or PhD degree to demonstrate the level of your qualification for an application to the High Potential Individual Route, and demonstrate your English proficiency for a UK visa application

Note: Before applying, please ensure your qualification meets the Home Office requirements by checking the guidance on the Home Office website.

We will process all undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications which meet the academic level requirements for this service. Responsibility for checking whether your qualification meets the Home Office requirements rests with the applicant.

Visas and Nationality service (High Potential Individual with English Proficiency)

For this service, we can only assess qualifications that

  • are considered comparable to a Bachelor, Master’s or PhD degree in the UK
  • were taught solely in English.

We compare your university (Higher Education) degree(s) to the standard of Bachelor, Master’s or PhD in the UK. This is the Academic Qualification Level Statement (AQUALS).

And, if your degree was not studied in a majority English-speaking country, we also confirm the level of your English language proficiency based on your qualification and according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). This is the English Language Proficiency Statement (ELPS).

If the degree you wish to present for verification was not taught in English but you have another degree which was taught in English, we may be able to provide the AQUALS and ELPS for this award, provided that it meets the requirements of the service.

In addition, we will check and confirm if the degree is genuine by contacting your institution.

During the application process, we will ask you to complete and sign a Letter of Authorisation. This allows us to contact your institution to verify your degree.

Once we have received all of the necessary documents and payment, we will complete your assessment within 30 working days.

You should apply online for the Visas and Nationality service.

Depending on the service you require, we may ask you to present different documents. You will need to provide clear colour photos or scans of the documents. There is more information on these documents on the Frequently Asked Questions page.

Service

Documents needed

Visas and Nationality Service (English proficiency)

(note that documents must be in colour)

  • Final certificate(s) in their original language
  • Official Transcript(s) in their original language (we cannot accept student versions)
  • Certified translations of your documents, if not in English
  • Medium of Instruction letter if you need to evidence your English language proficiency (this must be a separate document to your certificate or transcripts – see FAQs for details)
  • Proof of name change, if your current name does not match the name on your qualification documents.

Visas and Nationality Service (PhD verification)

(note that documents must be in colour)

  • Final certificate(s) in their original language
  • Official Transcript(s) in their original language (we cannot accept student versions)
  • Certified translations of your documents, if not in English
  • Passport / Photo ID
  • Proof of name change, if your current name does not match the name on your qualification documents.

Visas and Nationality Service (PhD verification with English proficiency)

(note that documents must be in colour)

  • Final certificate(s) in their original language
  • Official Transcript(s) in their original language (we cannot accept student versions)
  • Certified translations of your documents, if not in English
  • Medium of Instruction letter if you need to evidence your English language proficiency
  • Passport / Photo ID
  • Proof of name change, if your current name does not match the name on your qualification documents.

Visas and Nationality Service (High Potential Individual)

(note that documents must be in colour)

  • Final certificate(s) in their original language
  • Official Transcript(s) in their original language (we cannot accept student versions)
  • Certified translations of your documents, if not in English
  • Passport / Photo ID
  • Proof of name change, if your current name does not match the name on your qualification documents.

Visas and Nationality Service (High Potential Individual with English Proficiency)

(note that documents must be in colour)

  • Final certificate(s) in their original language
  • Official Transcript(s) in their original language (we cannot accept student versions)
  • Certified translations of your documents, if not in English
  • Medium of Instruction letter if you need to evidence your English language proficiency
  • Passport / Photo ID
  • Proof of name change, if your current name does not match the name on your qualification documents.

For affordable, high-quality certified translations suitable for applications on this website, we recommend dialexy.com

Prices

Visas and Nationality Service (English proficiency)

£140.00 + VAT*

Visas and Nationality Service (PhD verification)

£210.00 + VAT*

Visas and Nationality Service (PhD verification with English proficiency)

£210.00 + VAT*

Visas and Nationality Service (High Potential Individual)

£210.00 + VAT*

Visas and Nationality Service (High Potential Individual with English proficiency)

£210.00 + VAT*

*VAT is payable where applicable