The Home Office has regulated that for certain nationals (China and HK SAR included), if you are over 16 years old, coming to the UK with a visa valid for more than 6 months, you should register with the police. Therefore, Chinese students will need to check such information.

How can you find the requirement?

You should find something like “Register/Report to Police” or “Pol. Registration” in the conditions on either 

- Your visa sticker in your passport (if you apply for Tier 4 visa from China), or 

- Your decision letter (if you extend Tier 4 visa in the UK) 

Note, if you do not find the police registration requirement in either document, please contact [email protected] for help.

Who need to register now?

For our prospective students who are coming over in the next couple of weeks, if you have had a combined CAS for English language courses and your degree level studies, you will need to register with the police once you arrive in London. 

If you have got a single CAS for your language courses only, then you should not need to register for now as you should have a visa less than 6 months. If later you pass the presessional language test and need to extend your visa, you will then need to complete the police registratoin once your Tier 4 extension is granted. 

How to register with the police in London for the first time?

If you live in London during your studies, you will need to register with the police at the Overseas Visitors Records Office (OVRO). In order to register for the first time, you need to have the following documents ready:

• Your completed Registration Pro Forma. The form is available for download from the following link: https://beta.met.police.uk/globalassets/downloads/overseas-records-office/registration_pro_forma_2016.pdf

• Your UK passport-sized photo (45mm x 35mm), glued to the Pro Forma - no staples!

• Your passport containing your visa sticker (if applying from outside the UK), or your Biometric Residence Permit card (if extending in the UK)

• Your Home Office decision letter

• £34 registration fee, payable by card or cash

As long as you have requested an appointment to register with the police, this meets the 7 day requirement, sometimes (expecially during peak time) the appointment time may be in a few weeks.

What happens next?

Once registered, you will receive a Police Registration Certificate (PRC). This is a paper document and you will need it for visa applications in the future. If your circumstances change, you will need to report the changes to local police or OVRO depending on what type of changes they are. It is important you report all changes promptly. Further information can be found on the OVRO Website https://beta.met.police.uk/advice-and-information/registering-as-an-overseas-visitor/reporting-a-change-in-circumstances-or-new-visa/.

More details can be found on OVRO official website : https://beta.met.police.uk/advice-and-information/registering-as-an-overseas-visitor/