Immigration update: important changes coming to Child Student Visa rules affecting care arrangements

The new requirements will have a significant impact on independent schools sponsoring pupils, particularly boarders. Schools will need to review and revise their policies and procedures concerning guardianship, CAS assignment, and pupil care arrangements. Some elements of the new rules appear difficult to apply in practice, and we have contacted UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI) to seek urgent clarification.

Below are a summary of the key changes.

Enhanced care arrangement and parental consent requirements

The new rules distinguish between full, weekly, and flexi-boarding imposing new conditions on care arrangements when not in the care of the school:

• Full boarders: Must stay at school during term time, and with a British citizen/settled person (nominated guardian, private foster carer, or close relative) during holidays.
• Weekly/flexi boarders: Must live with a private foster carer or close relative at weekends and outside term time.

Additional documentary requirements include:

• Parental consent letters must now detail the pupil's specific living arrangements, and we are expecting the Sponsor Management System to be updated so that these arrangements can also be included on the pupil's CAS.
• A letter of undertaking is required from the nominated guardian, private foster carer, or close relative confirming their agreement to the care arrangements, their address and contact details, and other prescribed information.

The nominated guardian, private foster carer, or close relative must be a British citizen or settled in the UK.

On an initial analysis, we are concerned about the practicality of meeting these requirements in many weekly or flexi-boarding scenarios so clarification is being sought from UKVI on this point. Specifically, establishing a formal private foster care arrangement in such cases seems unlikely, and many guardianship agencies may find it difficult to complete the letter of undertaking at the visa application stage if homestay arrangements are not yet finalised.

Policy and procedure updates

Schools should take immediate steps to:

• Ensure all sponsored boarders have guardians who meet the prescribed categories (nominated guardian, private foster carer, or close relative).
• Update internal policies and processes, ensuring that letters of consent and letters of undertaking are obtained and retained on file, ideally before assigning a CAS.

Travel and care arrangements

Schools will also have a new duty to make reasonable efforts to collect and retain information about travel plans for sponsored pupils who have a nominated guardian, including:

• Arrival times
• Who will collect the pupil
• Where the pupil will stay if not going directly to school
• Reporting non-enrolment to the relevant authorities

We will publish further updates as clarification is received from UKVI. A webinar on the new requirements will be held prior to their introduction, with invitations to follow shortly.

For any questions on these changes or other Child Student sponsorship matters, please contact Tom Brett Young in our Immigration team on 0121 227 3759, or complete the form below.