The following information
outlines the minimum documentation you must submit with your
application. Please read carefully and if you believe you meet all
the requirements you should complete the Questionnaire which you
will find under the link ‘Questionnaire to Accompany Student Visa
Applications’.
This questionnaire should be
submitted along with your Visa Application Form, and ALL
supporting documentation.
Original documents
are required and must be in
ENGLISH
or accompanied by
a notarized translation of same.
All documents must be clearly
legible. The Visa Officer will need to easily identify what they
are and to whom they refer.
The Questionnaire must be
fully completed and the Declaration signed by you.
Any unsigned declarations,
false information, forged or fraudulent documentation will result
in the refusal of your application and no appeal will be
permitted.
The onus is on you, the
applicant, to satisfy the Visa Officer that a visa should be
granted.
The granting of a Student Visa does not entitle
you to have any person, whether related to you or not, to join or
visit you in Ireland
■
In applying for a Student Visa you must
be able to show that:
You are enrolled on a privately funded course
involving at least 15 hours of organized daytime tuition each
week
You have paid the requisite fees to the college
You have the academic ability to follow your chosen
course
You have a level of English language sufficient to
do so (except in the case of an application which is solely for
an English language course)
You have immediate access to at least €7,000. This
is the estimated cost of living in Ireland for a student for one
academic year.
You must also demonstrate that you or your sponsor
has ready access to an amount of at least €7,000 for each
subsequent year of your studies, in addition to the course fees
for each of those years
You have private medical insurance
You can account for any gaps in your educational
history
Your intention is to return to your country of
permanent residence following completion of your studies in
Ireland
There now follows an explanation of what will
be accepted as evidence for the above requirements. Please
ensure you read this carefully and submit ALL documents with
your application. Again, it is important that these are
original, clearly legible documents, in English, or accompanied
by a notarized translation. They should clearly indicate what
they are and to whom they refer.
■
Evidence of Course
A Letter of Acceptance from the college, confirming
you have been accepted and enrolled on a course of full-time
education, involving a minimum of 15 hours organized daytime
tuition each week
This letter should specify the course you will be
studying
It should also confirm the amount of fees payable
for your course, and that this amount has been paid
If the college has taken out medical insurance on
your behalf, details of this must be contained in this letter of
acceptance
NOTE:
The educational and other credentials of a college will be taken
into consideration by the Department of Justice, Equality and
Law Reform in reaching a decision on a visa application.
Recognition by the Department of Education and Science through
ACELS meets these criteria in the case of English language
schools.
Please
refer to the list of courses recognized by the Department of
Education and Science on its website:
www.education.ie
■
Fees
Where the course fees are less than €6,000, fees
must be paid in full to the college, prior to applying for your
visa. Evidence of the amount paid should be included in your
Letter of Acceptance from the college
Where the course fees are in excess of €6,000, you
must pay at least this amount prior to applying for your visa, and
evidence of this should be shown in your Letter of Acceptance.
This minimum amount is an Immigration requirement. However, the
college you wish to attend may require full payment of fees.
■
Ability to Follow Your Chosen Course
You must provide evidence that you have attained the
necessary level of academic achievement required to follow your
chosen course
Such evidence will include – exam results,
qualifications obtained and certificates proving this
■ Level of English
You must show that you have the capacity to fully
partake in your chosen course through the medium of English and
satisfy the Visa Officer in this regard
It is recommended that all applicants, regardless of
nationality or educational background, undertake the International
English Language Testing System (IELTS) English language test, and
provide original certificate with your visa with application
Other acceptable certificates will be those from an
internationally recognized test such as TOEFL or Cambridge
Failure to provide such a certificate may result in
delays in processing your application, and possible refusal of
same
Submission of false or fraudulent certificates with
your application will result in it being refused, and no appeal
will be permitted
Any certificate must have been issued within 2 years
of the expected commencement date of your course
The recommended band scores are –
IELTS –
minimum score of 5
TOEFL –
minimum score of 173
Cambridge –
First Certificate in English (FCE) or higher
These recommendations are subject to review pending
advice from the Department of Education and Science
(Students applying solely for an
English Language course are currently exempt from this
requirement)
NOTE: THIS IS FOR IMMIGRATION PURPOSES ONLY IF
THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT OF THE COLLEGE IS HIGHER THAN THE
SCORES ABOVE, YOU MUST MEET THE COLLEGE REQUIREMENTS
■
Short-term Preparatory English Language
Courses
If you have been accepted on a specific course of studies, but you
need, or are required, to complete a preparatory course of English
prior to commencing your main course, the following requirements
apply:
English language course must be short term, and not exceed a
maximum duration of 6 months
You must submit a detailed study plan, including the duration and
dates of your preliminary English course, and details and dates of
your main course of study
Fees for both the English preparatory course AND the first
year of your main course must be paid in full to the college
Evidence of this must accompany your application
English Language Requirements for Such
Courses:
IELTS –
minimum overall band score of 4
TOEFL – minimum score of 137
Cambridge – PET (Preliminary
English Test)
■
Applicants who have not completed formal 2nd
Level Education
If you are applying for a course of 2nd level educational studies,
the requirements outlined above for the preparatory English also
apply
NOTE:
2nd level courses can only be undertaken in
a private, fee-paying school or college
■
Evidence of Finances
You must show you have sufficient funds to support your stay in
Ireland without recourse to public funds, or the reliance on
casual employment
Fully complete the Financial Details section of the Questionnaire
If you are being sponsored by another person or persons, you must
list each person and give clear details of their relationship to
you
Give clear details of the financial support they will be giving you
for the duration of your stay in Ireland
Their bank account must show a good credit record for a minimum of
six months immediately prior to making your application
As you will be required to have a minimum of €7,000 available to
you during the first year of your studies, your sponsor will
need to show that this amount is available to support you AND
that they have enough funds to maintain themselves and other
family members
Any lump sum lodgments made during the immediate three months prior
to your application must be fully explained, with supporting
evidence provided
For example - if such a lump sum lodgment has come from the
proceeds of a sale of property or encashment of Savings
Certificates, Fixed Rate Deposit accounts, or any similar type
sources, then clear evidence of this must be provided
Where no evidence is provided your application will be refused
You must also demonstrate that you or your sponsor will have ready
access to an amount of at least €7,000 for each subsequent year
of your studies, in addition to the course fees for each of
those years
Evidence accepted will include a letter from your sponsor’s
employer confirming employment details, plus 4 recent pay-slips.
This letter should include contact details for the employer,
including name, address, and phone number (landline, not mobile)
If your sponsor is involved in business, evidence of this must be
provided, such as a Certificate of Registration from the
authorities in your country
All financial documentation should clearly indicate what it is and
to whom it relates
All bank statements should include the name and address of the
account holder and the account number
They should also include full contact details of the bank – name,
full address of branch where account is held, telephone number
(landline, not mobile), e-mail and website addresses (where
available)
Where this information is not normally available on a bank
statement, it should be accompanied by a letter from the bank,
on official bank stationery, giving these details. Where a bank
statement or a letter from the bank is submitted giving only a
mobile phone number, post box number as address, or an email
address of Yahoo, Hotmail etc, this will not be considered as
evidence of finances, and may in fact raise an issue of
credibility over the whole application.
The statement should cover a six-month period immediately prior to
your application, and show all transactions that have taken
place during this time
Handwritten entries or details on bank statements will not be
accepted
■
Medical Insurance
Private medical insurance cover is required
Your college may arrange this on your behalf. If so, details of
this must be included in your Letter of Acceptance from the
college
If it is not arranged by the college, you must organize this
yourself and provide evidence with your application
■
Educational and Employment History
You must provide full details of your previous education on the
questionnaire
You must submit all exam results obtained, along with your
qualification certificates
You must provide information to account for any gaps between your
last period of full time education and your application to study
in Ireland
If any such gap in education has been filled by periods of
employment, you must give full details of your employment history
If your employment history or educational background have no
obvious connection to the course you now wish to pursue, you must
give a full explanation of why you are now embarking on a change
of career
■
Immigration History
You must provide full details of all visa applications you have
made for any country, including Ireland
If you have ever been refused a visa for any country, you must
submit the original letter of refusal that issued to you by the
Authorities of that State
If you have ever been in Ireland before, whether legally or
illegally, you must give details of your time here
Failure to disclose any of the above details will result in your
current application being refused
►
Further Information You Must Consider
■
Passport
· Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months after the
expected completion of your studies in Ireland
· If you hold any previous
passport, you should also submit this with your application
■
Decisions
· The processing times for Student Visa Applications
vary depending on the volume of applications lodged, and the
time it takes for an application to reach the Visa section in
Dublin from the Embassy in which it was lodged
· You should allow as much time as
possible when applying for a visa but a minimum time of 8 weeks
is recommended
· The Visa Section will endeavour
to have your application assessed as soon as possible
· Visa decisions are published
weekly on our website –
www.justice.ie. You can
check a decision by entering the Visa Reference Number that
issues to you
■
Right of Appeal
· If you are refused a visa you may appeal this
decision within 2 months
· Appeals must be submitted in
writing to: The Visa Appeals Officer, Department of Justice,
Equality and Law Reform, 13-14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2. If you
applied to the Visa Office in Beijing, Moscow or New Delhi, you
should submit your appeal to the relevant office
· Your appeal should fully address
all the reasons for which your application was refused. Any
additional supporting documentation should be submitted with
your appeal for consideration
· You must quote your Visa
Reference Number on your appeal, along with your name and
nationality
· There is no fee payable for
appealing a visa refusal decision
· There will be no appeal allowed
if you are found to have given false or misleading information
in any part of your application, or submitted false, forged or
fraudulent documentation
►
IF YOU ARE GRANTED A STUDENT VISA
■
Arrival in the State
· If your application for a visa has been approved, the Embassy
to which you applied will affix a visa to your passport
· The dates entered
on your visa indicate the dates between which you may seek to
enter the State
· It is important to
note that a visa is a form of pre-entry clearance to the State
only, and does not guarantee that you will be permitted to enter
or remain in the State
· Immigration
Officers at the point of entry are entitled to question any
person on arrival. If they are not satisfied with the bona-fides
of any person, or their reasons for wishing to enter the State,
they have the right to deny entry to any such person, despite
the fact they hold a valid visa
· It is recommended
that you have supporting documentation related to your course of
study with you to present to the Immigration Officer on
disembarkation from your flight
■
Attendance at Course
· You have been granted a Study Visa on the basis that you will
attend school/college to partake in a course which involves
at least 15 hours of organized daytime tuition each week.
· It will be
necessary for you to show evidence of your attendance record to
the Garda National Immigration Bureau when seeking to have your
permission to remain in the State extended.
· If you do not show
a satisfactory attendance rate at your course you will not be
entitled to remain in the State
■
Registration and
Permission to Remain
· If you intend staying in Ireland for more than 90 days, it is
a requirement that you register with the Garda National
Immigration Bureau (GNIB) either at 13-14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2,
or the Immigration Officer in area in which you are residing.
There is a charge of €100 each time you register
· Extensions of your
permission to remain in the State to pursue your studies will
only be granted if the Immigration Officer is satisfied with
matters such as your level of attendance at your course,
evidence of your accommodation, finances and medical insurance
· Permission to
remain in the State is not usually granted for a period of more
than a total of 18 months unless the student is attending a full
time course of at least one year’s duration leading to
qualifications recognized by the Minister for Education and
Science – see website
www.education.ie
■
Re-entry Visas
· The initial visa issued to you will be valid for a single
entry to the State
· If you have a
valid reason for leaving the State for a short period of time
you must apply, in advance of making any arrangements, for a
Re-entry visa.
· You must be able
to prove you will be continuing with your studies on your return
to the State
· Before a re-entry
visa can be issued, you must be registered with the Garda
National Immigration Bureau
· For information on
how and where you can apply for a Re-entry visa please see link
to ‘Re-entry Visas’ on
www.justice.ie
· It is your
responsibility to ensure you have the correct visa (where
relevant) for the country you intend traveling to
·
NOTE: A visa must be obtained from the UK authorities prior
to travelling to Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland consists of
Counties Antrim, Armagh, Derry, Down, Fermanagh and Tyrone)
■
Entitlement to take up
Casual Employment
· Only students attending a full time course of education of at
least one year’s duration leading to qualifications recognized
by the Minister for Education and Science will be permitted to
take up casual employment
· Access to
employment is denied to all other students
· Casual employment
is defined as up to a maximum of 20 hours part time work per
week, or full time work during normal college vacation periods.
Such work should not interfere with your course attendance, as
failure to provide evidence of a satisfactory attendance record
will result in refusal of any extension to your permission to
remain
· The entitlement to
casual employment will cease on completion of your college
course
· The stamp placed
in your passport by GNIB will indicate whether or not you are
permitted to take up casual employment
· If you are in
doubt about this you should check with GNIB before you accept
any job offer.
· Any breach of your
visa conditions will lead to a review of your case and possible
removal from the State
■
Students Under 18 Years
of Age
· Any person who wishes to pursue a course of study in Ireland
must be enrolled at a private fee-paying school or college
· The requirements
outlined above will apply for all students
· Parental consent
from both parents (where applicable) is required
· The granting of a
visa to a person under the age of 18 years for the purpose of
study does not give any entitlement to any other family member
to accompany or join the student in the State
· Details of the
person in whose care the minor shall be must be provided with
the application
· The provisions of
Part IVB of the Children Act 2001 will apply when examining such
applications – see website:
http://acts.oireachtas.ie/en.act.2001.0024.4.html
Source:
http://www.justice.ie/80256E01003A21A5/vWeb/flJUSQ6XTML6-ga/$File/StudentVisa24thJan2007.pdf
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