Inviting Friends or Family to the UK (graduation)
Useful information
If your parents, family or friends who will be attending your graduation as guests, it is likely that they will need to apply for a visa.
From 1st January 2021, EU/EEA nationals (except Irish Nationals) will also be subject to immigration control and require visitor permission to enter the UK.
*Certain nationalities are not required to formally apply for a visitor visa before travel and can get stamped in at the border. If the nationality is not listed in appendix 2 of the visa national list, then they are a "non-visa national" and can likely get stamped as a visitor at the border. If unsure, please check with us before travelling.
We recommend that those following this route still carry the same documentation ready to show at the border as evidence of your intention to visit.
If your visitors are "Visa-nationals" meaning you must formally apply for a visa prior to travel, then they can follows these instructions below.
You must apply for a Standard Visitor Visa from outside the UK. It is not possible to switch in to this category from within the UK.
Applications are made online via UKVI application website.
If your country does not support online applications, the application forms are available from the Home Office website.
You can find further guidance on supporting documents on the Home Office website.
The following nationalities when arriving in the UK are permitted to use the “E-Gates” for quicker entry into the UK.
All EU/EEA nationals (from 1st January 2021)
This means that if you are a national of any of the above countries you can choose to use the E-Gates at a UK airport instead of waiting in line to see a Border Officer. This is regardless of whether you have applied for your visa before travel or were planning to get stamped in at the border. It is not mandatory to use an E-Gate and you can still see a Border Officer if you want. Find out more information.
All other nationalities still must see a Border Officer and present their visitor visa/passport in person when entering the UK.