Arrivals and orientation for EU and International students

Arriving in a new country can be exciting, but also a bit overwhelming. We understand that this year, you may find it more difficult to plan your arrival during the continuing pandemic, so we have taken the necessary steps to provide you with all the information you'll need to ensure you feel both welcomed and supported as soon as you arrive in the UK.

Before you arrive

Students joining us in the academic year 2021-22

The UK government recently announced a new traffic light system for international arrivals. This means that countries and territories are listed as red, amber or green and the specific requirements depend on where you are travelling from, and where you have visited (or passed through) in the 10 days prior to arrival in the UK. The rules may be subject to change so please check the UK government website for the most up to date information.

Before you travel

It is important to check the latest government guidance about what you need to do before you travel to the UK. The guidance may change at short notice so it is important you read and understand the rules before you book your travel to the UK from overseas.

The UK Border Force will be conducting spot checks on arrival into the UK to ensure that all passengers are fully compliant. Passengers will be subject to an immediate fine of £500 if they fail to comply with the new regulations.

Airport pick up

We want to ensure that you can arrive as safely as possible using the taxi service instead of providing a shared shuttle bus. We are heavily subsidising the cost of the taxi, meaning you will only pay a discounted rate of £20* for any journey from Heathrow and Gatwick airport, or £30** from St. Pancras International, to the Kingston area.

* Standard taxi rate from Heathrow/Gatwick airport to the Kingston area is approximately £45 depending on the time of travel.

** Standard taxi rate from St. Pancras International to the Kingston area is approximately £65 depending on the time of travel.

Details

  • When: September 2021 (dates to be confirmed)
  • Where: Heathrow Airport, Gatwick Airport or St Pancras International
  • Booking deadline: Two days before your arrival.

How to book

Email booking@zedcarz.co.uk with:

  • your name
  • KU ID number
  • flight number
  • date and drop-off address

Quote ‘KingstonUni' to get a discount flat rate of £20 for any journey from Heathrow or Gatwick airports to the Kingston University area or £30 from St. Pancras International train station. You can pay the driver either by credit card or cash.

If you are coming from Heathrow or Gatwick airport, upon arrival at the airport your driver should be in the arrivals hall holding a sign with your name on it. If you are arriving from St. Pancras International, your taxi will arrange a pick-up spot.

Arrival procedure for travelling from overseas to the UK

Students will need to comply with the following measures before they travel and after they have arrived in the UK, depending on which country they have departed from or travelled though in the preceding 10 days.

MeasureGreenAmberRed
Passenger locator form Yes Yes Yes
Pre-departure test Yes Yes Yes
Managed quarantine at hotel No No 10 days
Self-isolation at on-campus or own accommodation No 10 days* n/a
Test to release n/a On day 5 No
PCR testing On day 2 On day 2 On day 2
Further PCR testing No Day 8* Day 8

Covid-19 tests must be booked and paid for from a list of government-approved test providers.

* From 19 July 2021, anyone travelling from an amber list country, who has been fully vaccinated with an NHS vaccine, will not be required to quarantine on arrival in the UK or take a Covid-19 test on day 8.

Red List countries

The UK has introduced a travel ban for arrivals from some countries on the red list to protect the UK from new variants of Covid-19. If you have travelled from, or via, a red list country in the last 10 days, you can still travel to the UK if you have residency rights. Residency rights include holding a Student Visa, Tier 2 Visa or EU Settled/Pre-settled Status.

Before you travel to the UK from a Red List country you must:

On arrival in the UK from a Red List country you must:

  • Present a negative Covid-19 test result
  • Quarantine in a government managed hotel and take 2 Covid-19 tests
  • Tell us where you are staying by completing our online Red List quarantine arrivals and support registration form so that we will be able to immediately provide you with the necessary support as soon as you have arrived in the UK. Students holding an offer of a place to study at Kingston University will receive further information about how they can register for this support.

Amber List countries

Before you travel to the UK from an Amber List country you must:

On arrival in the UK from an Amber List country you must:

  • Immediately quarantine on-campus or in private accommodation for 10 days
  • Take a Covid-19 test on day 2 and on day 8
  • Under the Test to Release scheme you can choose to pay for a private Covid-19 test on day 5. If the result is negative (and the result of your day 2 test result was negative) you can end your quarantine but you still also need to take the compulsory test on or after day 8.

Green List countries

Before you travel to the UK from a Green List country you must:

On arrival in the UK from a Green List country you must:

  • Take a Covid-19 test on day 2 after you arrive. You will not need to quarantine unless the test result is positive.
  • You must self-isolate if you are informed by NHS Test & Trace that you travelled to the UK with someone who has tested positive for Covid-19.

After you arrive

Quarantine advice and support

Red List country arrivals

To help and support students arriving from, or via, a Red List country, the University will pay a large part of the cost of staying in a government managed quarantine hotel. This will be deducted from their tuition fee after completion of enrolment and submission of the online Red List quarantine arrivals and support registration form.

You must tell us on the day of your arrival at the quarantine hotel you are staying in and details of how we can contact you to provide support services.

We will also provide you with free essential goods, services and support throughout the quarantine period and beyond.

Students holding an offer of a place to study at Kingston University will receive further information about our quarantine advice and support packages, including how to sign-up and complete the online quarantine arrivals and support registration form, for those who will be arriving from, or via, a red list country.

Please contact us at international@kingston.ac.uk if you have any questions or need any advice about red list country quarantine support, and our team will get in touch with you.

Amber List country arrivals

To help and support students arriving from, or via, an Amber List country, who are required to quarantine on arrival and have booked their accommodation in our Kingston University halls of residence, students will not be charged for time spent during the managed quarantine period up until the 18 September, when the license period begins. In order to quarantine and yet not miss a moment of Welcome Week, we are also inviting you to arrive earlier so you can complete your quarantine period before the fun starts.

We will also provide you with free essential goods, services and support throughout the quarantine period and beyond.

Students holding an offer of a place at Kingston University will receive further information about our quarantine advice and support packages, including how to sign-up and complete the online quarantine arrivals and support registration form, for those who will be arriving from, or via, an amber list country.

Students living in private accommodation

To help and support students who will be living in private accommodation, we will provide you with free essential goods, services and support on your arrival, throughout the first few weeks and beyond, but only if you complete our online quarantine arrivals and support registration form.

Please contact us at international@kingston.ac.uk if you have any questions or need any advice about amber list country quarantine support, and our team will get in touch with you.

Green List country arrivals

To help and support students arriving from, or via, a Green List country, we will provide you with free goods, services and support when you arrive in the UK.

Students holding an offer of a place at Kingston University will receive further information about our quarantine advice and support packages, including how to sign-up and complete the online quarantine arrivals and support registration form, for those who will be arriving from or via a green list country.

Please contact us at international@kingston.ac.uk if you have any questions or need any advice about green list country support, and our team will get in touch with you.

Quarantine guidance living in halls accommodation

If you have booked a place in halls accommodation and are travelling from a country that requires you to quarantine, you'll need to travel immediately to your allocated room and follow the government guidance.

Find out more about how to self-isolate when you arrive in the UK.

Quarantine guidance for moving into private accommodation

If you are moving into private accommodation, you will need to follow the government guidelines on what to do when arriving in the UK and the requirements around quarantine if you need to self-isolate.

What will quarantine be like?

You will be expected to self-isolate at the address you provided on the public health passenger locator form for 10 consecutive days. You must avoid contact with others during this time however our essential goods, services and extensive support will provide you with everything you need.

Accessing the free Covid-19 vaccine and healthcare

Anybody aged 18 or over in the UK is eligible for the Covid-19 vaccination for free, regardless of their nationality or immigration status. International students who live in the UK will be able to access both doses of the free Covid-19 vaccination, in the same way as they are able to access other healthcare.

You should register with a GP (a doctor who is a general practitioner) online as soon as you arrive in the UK. You can search for the nearest GP surgery to your term time address on the NHS website and register as a new patient on the GP's website. If you will be living in Kingston, students are welcome to join our on-site GP practice and can register by contacting the Fairhill Medical Practice (the Health Centre) on the University's Penrhyn Road campus.

Students registered with a GP can book their vaccination appointment through the National Booking Service website or by telephoning 119. Those who are registered with a GP will also receive an invitation to be vaccinated from their GP practice.

While registration with a GP is encouraged to access the vaccine, individuals can request to book Covid-19 vaccination appointments as an unregistered patient through a local GP practice.

NHS England have produced and published a Covid-19 vaccination Frequently Asked Questions document for students in Higher Education. These FAQs will help answer some of the most common questions, including on how to get a vaccinated, vaccine eligibility and mixing different vaccine brands.

Support and well-being services at Kingston

Useful links

Biometric Residence Permits

A Biometric Residence Permit or BRP is a document issued by the Home Office to students as evidence of immigration permission. This is also known as leave to enter or remain. If you are applying for a Student Visa from outside the UK for a course which lasts more than six months, you will be issued with a BRP.

You will collect your BRP on arrival in the UK. You will be given an entry clearance vignette (a sticker) in your passport which will start no more than 30 days before your course start date as specified on your CAS statement.

You will be able to collect your BRP card from the post office designated on your visa decision letter. It is essential that you bring the following documentation with you:

  • Your passport and
  • Your visa decision letter

If you are required to quarantine on arrival in the UK, you will not be penalised for not being able to collect your BRP whilst coronavirus measures are in place. The post office will hold your BRP until you are able to collect it.

Police registration

Some international students will be required to register with the police on arrival in the UK. If you applied for your Student Visa overseas, this requirement will be printed on your entry clearance sticker in your passport. Please check the UK government website for the full list of nationalities who are required to register with the police in the UK.

Opening a bank account

It is important to open a UK bank account when you first arrive and you should do some research to find the best bank account for your individual needs. You can get advice from the following sources:

Student travel discount

Oyster card

  • If you are a full-time student, and live in a London borough, you can apply for an 18+ Student Oyster photocard that enables you to get discounted travel on the Transport for London network. Please note: you must enrol before you can apply for the discount card.

National Railcard

  • If you are travelling from outside of London, studying full-time and aged 16-25, you can get a 16-25 railcard that offers one-third off rail travel.

International orientation

We have put together lots of great tips and information to help you with settling in at Kingston. Make sure you have access to Canvas, our virtual learning platform, and the Kingston University app so you can view all the online orientation sessions. You can find out more about these platforms on our Welcome page.

Visit our welcome page to find out more about settling in at Kingston

International enrolment

Enrolment is when you officially register on your course. This is when you get your student ID card and officially become a Kingston University student. This year we are allowing international students to enrol online before joining us on campus. This is to make sure you can access all of the Welcome and Arrivals information while finalising your travel arrangements.

When online enrolment opens, you will receive an email with full instructions on how to enrol through OSIS (Online Student Information System) once your place has been confirmed (e.g. your status changes to unconditional firm). Please complete this as soon as you can.