Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS)

Guidance on obtaining your CAS

What is a CAS?

International students applying for a Student Route Visa will need a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) number. This number confirms to UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) that you have been accepted to study at a valid UK university. We generate a CAS by inputting all the necessary information into the UK Government Sponsor Management System. It is important that the information we input about you and your course is correct as we cannot change it once your CAS number has been generated by the UKVI (though we can add a Sponsor’s Note in exceptional circumstances).

Please note: you do not need to have received your CAS statement before you start preparing for your Student Route visa application. The University’s International@CampusLife team have put together a comprehensive guide to to help and support you with this.

Obtaining your CAS

Steps on obtaining your CAS number/statement from Swansea University

CAS Checklist
1. Complete the CAS Shield application All offer holders will receive an invitation to CAS Shield, an online self-service system that enables you to provide all the necessary information to receive your CAS. Your personal details on CAS Shield will be pre-populated with the information you have provided on your application. Please make sure to check the accuracy of this information. You will be asked to upload documents as part of the CAS Shield process. The information required will depend on your personal circumstances. Do not email documents to us as this will cause delays. All information regarding your CAS should be uploaded to the CAS Shield system. If you have queries about your CAS, please use the messaging functionality on CAS Shield as this will allow us to deal with your queries more quickly.
2. Accept an unconditional offer of study If you have been given a conditional offer, you will need to meet the terms of your offer before a CAS can be issued.
3. Pay your deposit/provide sponsor letter *All self-funded International students are required to pay a deposit of £4,000 which goes towards your course tuition fees.* Details on how to pay can be found below. You must make your deposit payment by the relevant deadline - for more information, please read our Deposit Deadline FAQs. If you have received sponsorship to cover your tuition fees and have been awarded a full scholarship from an external source approved by Swansea University, you will need to provide a financial guarantee letter from your sponsor. Fully sponsored students do not need to pay a deposit. Financial Sponsorship letter: your financial sponsorship letter must name Swansea University as your chosen institution and must be from an ‘official financial sponsor’, i.e. Her Majesty’s Government, your home government, the British Council or an internationally recognised company, organisation, University or Independent School. Other types of sponsor, such as family members, will not be accepted by UK Visas and Immigration as evidence of sponsorship. OR you have provided us with confirmation that you have obtained a US Federal Loan. (You would not normally have to pay a deposit if you are receiving financial support from an official sponsor or from a US Federal Loan.)

CAS Checklist

1. Complete the CAS Shield application

All offer holders will receive an invitation to CAS Shield, an online self-service system that enables you to provide all the necessary information to receive your CAS. Your personal details on CAS Shield will be pre-populated with the information you have provided on your application. Please make sure to check the accuracy of this information.

You will be asked to upload documents as part of the CAS Shield process. The information required will depend on your personal circumstances. Do not email documents to us as this will cause delays. All information regarding your CAS should be uploaded to the CAS Shield system.

If you have queries about your CAS, please use the messaging functionality on CAS Shield as this will allow us to deal with your queries more quickly.

2. Accept an unconditional offer of study

If you have been given a conditional offer, you will need to meet the terms of your offer before a CAS can be issued.

3. Pay your deposit/provide sponsor letter

All self-funded International students are required to pay a deposit of £4,000 which goes towards your course tuition fees.

Details on how to pay can be found below. You must make your deposit payment by the relevant deadline - for more information, please read our Deposit Deadline FAQs.

If you have received sponsorship to cover your tuition fees and have been awarded a full scholarship from an external source approved by Swansea University, you will need to provide a financial guarantee letter from your sponsor. Fully sponsored students do not need to pay a deposit.

Financial Sponsorship letter: your financial sponsorship letter must name Swansea University as your chosen institution and must be from an ‘official financial sponsor’, i.e. Her Majesty’s Government, your home government, the British Council or an internationally recognised company, organisation, University or Independent School. Other types of sponsor, such as family members, will not be accepted by UK Visas and Immigration as evidence of sponsorship.

OR you have provided us with confirmation that you have obtained a US Federal Loan.
(You would not normally have to pay a deposit if you are receiving financial support from an official sponsor or from a US Federal Loan.)

Once the above steps have been completed the Admissions Office will prepare your CAS statement. A CAS statement can take up to 10 working days on completion of the above steps. However, if all of the requirements are met by you quickly, and we are not required to chase you for additional information, you can expect this time to be significantly reduced.

Remember that you do not have to wait for your CAS before you start your visa application preparation and process. As well as having a CAS number, you will need to prepare additional Student Route visa documents and complete an online Student Route form before you can book an appointment at your local visa centre. For some students this can take several weeks so make sure you are starting all your preparations as early as possible. Please see our complete guide to Making a Student Route Visa Application Overseas to help you. If you are already in the UK, you should read the guide to Extending your Student Route Visa in the UK.

We will e-mail you or your designated agent a copy of your statement containing your CAS number. You will not need an original copy of the letter for your visa application.

Please note: your CAS is valid for 6 months from the date of issue and you can apply for your visa as soon as you receive it

What we will list on your CAS statement

Your Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) number;
Your personal details (full name, nationality, passport number);
Swansea University’s Sponsor License Number (SLN);
Swansea University’s ACL: Alternative Collection Location code (this code must be entered on the Student Route visa form to ensure your visa card is sent to the University and not a UK Post Office)
Details about your course (course name and level, start and end dates, mode of study);
Finances (tuition fees, amount of deposit paid or the name of your sponsor);
Details of the documents we saw when we made your offer (you must include these documents, including any English translations, with your visa application as they will be checked by the UKVI caseworker);
Details of any previous study undertaken in the UK (where relevant);
ATAS statement (if appropriate), see the FCO website for more details;

Paying your deposit

If you applied using Swansea University's Apply System:

Log into the Apply System
Under Current Applications, locate the course you have applied for and select the CAS checklist to the right of the course name
Under the checklist on the left-hand side, select Make Payment
Select your payment option and follow the on-screen instructions

If you applied via UCAS, please use this Direct Link to make your deposit payment.

You must make your deposit payment by the relevant deadline - for more information, please read our Deposit Deadline FAQs

Financial Sponsor or Government Loan

If a government or company is paying your fees you should ask them for a letter confirming this (see section entitled ‘Steps on obtaining your CAS number/statement from Swansea University.’). You would not normally have to pay a deposit if you are receiving financial support from an official sponsor or from a US Federal Loan. Unfortunately we do not accept parents or family members as sponsors and these are not acceptable for visa purposes.

Other payment methods

Please refer to our Finance pages for the full list of available payment methods.

Frequently Asked Questions

When will I receive my CAS?

Once all steps have been completed, and your deposit has cleared, the Admissions Office will prepare your CAS statement. You will receive your CAS statement within 10 working days of the requirements being met. However, we cannot begin working on your CAS statement until all requirements are met, and we may need to contact you for further information. You are encouraged to complete all steps as early as possible.

Remember: you do not need your CAS to start preparing for your Student Route visa application.

Can I have an update on my CAS? When will I receive my CAS Shield invitation? Will I receive joint CAS? What is the deadline? How do I apply for my visa? Do I need a Secure English Language Test (IELTS for UKVI)? Where can I find more information on ATAS?

Get Visa and Immigration Advice

International@CampusLife

Our trained immigration advisors are on hand to help you through the visa application process.

They can also assist with any queries about being an international student in the UK that you might have.