Student Visa Process Timeline

Twelve months out to arrival

1. 12 to 9 months before: tests Sit the admissions test — SAT or ACT, GRE or GMAT, LSAT, UCAT or LNAT — and an English test the visa authority accepts, so that one score serves admission and the visa. Australia’s two-year validity clock and the UK’s SELT list decide which English test to book.
2. 9 to 6 months before: applications and offers Apply, accept, and pay the deposit that triggers the I-20, CAS, letter of acceptance or CoE. For Canada, ask the institution about the attestation letter at acceptance; for the UK, note the CAS is valid for one application.
3. 6 to 4 months before: the money Move the funds into the account that will be shown and leave them there — 28 days for the UK, and long enough for any authority to see them as settled. Obtain loan sanction letters and sponsor declarations, and Australia’s income evidence if that route is used.
4. 6 to 3 months before: apply The UK opens six months before the course; the US interview can be booked once the I-20 and SEVIS fee are in hand, and issuance is allowed up to a year ahead; Canada and Australia open on the offer documents. Biometrics, medicals and police certificates take weeks.
5. 3 months to arrival: decision and travel Three weeks is the usual UK decision; the US decision is at the interview; Canada and Australia publish their times. Book travel inside the entry window — 30 days before the course for the US, a month for the UK.
6. After arrival: conditions Register with the institution, keep the work-hour limits, and know the post-study route’s rules before the final year, since UK Graduate visa length changes on 1 January 2027 and Canadian PGWP eligibility depends on the programme.