Working on a Student visa

The short version

A Student visa lets you work, with conditions: hours are capped in term time and relaxed in the holidays. Exactly how many hours, and which kinds of work are off limits (self-employment, for one), are set out in your own visa conditions – you can see them in your eVisa account, and your uni usually spells them out in your offer letter too. Go by the number in your conditions.

What the official wording actually says (with screenshots)

This section quotes GOV.UK and nothing else. Working hours are a visa compliance issue – get one number wrong and you lose your immigration status, not just pay a fine. So every key claim below comes with the original English sentence, and you can check it yourself. Screenshots taken 2026-09-05.

Step 1: Notice that GOV.UK doesn't give a fixed number of hours

In the "what you can and cannot do" section of the Student visa overview page, it says:

"You may be able to work – how much depends on what you're studying and whether you're working in or out of term-time."

Notice there isn't a single number of hours in there.

The hours are in the Immigration Rules, Appendix Student, ST 26.1, and they come in three tiers (checked 2026-09-05):

The "20 hours a week" you see all over the internet is only the first tier. If you're on a language course, a foundation year or a diploma, you may well be in the second tier, and if your course is part-time you can't work a single hour. Work to 20 when you're in one of the other two tiers and you'll be over your limit without knowing it.

So the answer hasn't changed: your limit is whatever your own visa conditions say. (For the full wording of the three tiers and the no self-employment rule, see "Student visa work limits: the red lines".)

The same section has two more lines that matter just as much:

Among the things you can't do: "be self-employed". Buying and reselling goods for people, freelance gigs and running your own shop could all fall under this.

"If your application is successful, you'll be told what you can and cannot do on a Student visa."

That last line is the whole point of this guide: the answer was sent to you personally. It isn't in any guide.

Step 2: Your own conditions are in your eVisa

The GOV.UK eVisa page says:

"Your eVisa shows your identity and immigration status. This includes what rights you have in the UK, for example to work, rent or claim benefits."

So check your eVisa. Don't ask older students, don't take your employer's word for it, and don't copy any number from this guide either.

Step 3: What the sign-in page looks like

The eVisa sign-in first asks which identity document you used when you set up your UKVI account: passport, national identity card, biometric residence card or permit, or a UKVI customer number. If you can't remember, there's a link further down: "I do not know which identity document I use to sign in".

Once you're in, screenshot the section that sets out your work conditions and keep it. Your employer has to do a right to work check when you start, and you want something in black and white for yourself too.

This screen is where our screenshots stop. Past this point it's your own personal details – those are yours, not ours to capture.

Why we keep saying "check your own"

Conditions can differ depending on your type of course and when your visa was issued. An employer or agent telling you "everyone works these hours" isn't evidence. If you're found working over your hours, what's at stake is the visa itself, not a fine you pay and forget – this is the one hard red line for international students who work.

Three things to do

1. Before you start a job, sign in to your UKVI account and screenshot the section on your work conditions;
2. Take term dates from your uni's official calendar – the line between term time and holidays is the line where your limit changes;
3. If you have two part-time jobs, add the hours together – don't count each one separately.

One more thing

A proper employer will do a right to work check when you start (with a share code, much like the one for renting). Cash-in-hand work with no check puts every risk on you, from your visa to unpaid wages. However skint you are, don't touch it.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

The short version

The minimum wage is a hard line. First, work out which band you're in – it goes by age, and apprentices have a band of their own. Take work below your band's rate and you lose more than money: you lose your paper trail and your leverage too.

The four current bands (gov.uk, from April 2026)

The apprentice band has a catch – don't get it wrong: the apprentice rate applies to apprentices under 19, or 19 or over but in the first year of their apprenticeship. So a 21-year-old apprentice gets £8 in their first year, not £12.71; only after that year do they move back to their age band (21 and over = £12.71).

The gov.uk page says it itself: "The rates change on 1 April every year." That line will outlast every number above – the rates change every 1 April, so check the latest page rather than remembering old figures.

When your first payslip arrives, check two things

1. Is your hourly rate high enough? Divide your pay by your hours. If it's below your age band, it's illegal - whatever they say about cash in hand, a trial period or "we're only a small shop".
2. Is your tax code right? Part-time jobs often start you on an emergency tax code that takes too much tax. You can claim it back - see "Overtaxed at work? Claim it back".

Common mistakes

• Agreeing to cash in hand. Cash in hand often comes with lower pay, and you're left with no record, so if something goes wrong it's your word against theirs.
• Counting free meals or a room towards your hourly rate. The legal minimum is about money – don't let anyone confuse you with "it works out the same".
• Being too nervous to say anything. These are official figures, so show your employer the gov.uk page. If you can't sort it out, your Students' Union adviser can help for free.
• The rates change every April. They're updated every 1 April, so check the latest page rather than remembering old figures.
• Only remembering "12.71". That's the 21-and-over band; 18-20s, under-18s and apprentices each have their own rate. Use the wrong band and you'll either lose out or wrongly blame your employer.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

The short version

gov.uk's official line: if you've paid too much tax, you can claim a refund (a rebate), whether it's from wages, a pension or several other things. The classic one for students with part-time jobs: you start a job, get put on an "emergency tax code" and taxed at a higher rate, when your income for the whole year never gets anywhere near your tax-free allowance. That money is yours, so get it back.

Three steps

1. Check the tax code on your payslip. Every payslip shows your tax code – look closely for the first few months of a new job.
2. Go to the gov.uk tax refund page. The official tool in the link sends you to the right claim route for your situation (wages, leaving the UK and so on).
3. Follow HMRC's instructions to claim. It's free from start to finish, and you don't need a "tax refund agent".

Common mistakes

• Assuming that once it's taken, it's gone. The system won't sort out every penny for you. If you don't check, you lose it.
• Paying an agent. All an agent does is go through the same free process for you, then take a cut.
• Forgetting about it once you graduate and leave. You can still claim after leaving the UK, so keep your payslips and P45 safe before you go (see "Leaving the UK? Get your tax back from HMRC").

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.