International students can stand as students’ union sabbatical officers. If you’re intending to stand for election, you may have questions about your immigration permission.
Information for sponsors and students' unions is in our Immigration manual. The manual is available only to UKCISA members. UKCISA membership is free for students' unions. See Membership.
The term 'Student' includes holders of Tier 4 (General) student immigration permission.
When can I undertake a role as a sabbatical officer?
Last updated 26 May, 2026
You might want to become a students’ union sabbatical officer either by taking a break from your studies or in the academic year after your course has ended.
The post is usually for one year but can be shorter. You might be able to stand for re-election for a second year, but this depends on the rules of your students' union. If you want to know what the role of a sabbatical officer involves, ask staff who work in your students' union or check its website.
You can carry out the role of a sabbatical officer more than once. The limit is two years at one institution but you can apply again to work with the NUS or at a different institution.
There are factors to consider around financial sponsorship and whether you have the right to work. Read the information below for details to consider:
You might have a loan, or receive financial sponsorship, for your course. Check the terms and conditions before you stand for election as a sabbatical officer. In some cases, you might have to start repaying your loan if you take a break from studies. Alternatively, you might be in breach of your agreement if you do not return to your employer when your studies end.
If you stand for election to serve as a sabbatical officer in the period after your course has ended, it may mean your loan does not have to start being repaid until after the sabbatical post ends. However, you should check this with your loan provider.
If you are required to return home after your course is finished (for example, if you are asked to by your loan provider, financial sponsor, or an employer), you can ask your students' union if, instead of taking up a full-time sabbatical officer post, you can do part-time work for them alongside your full-time course. You can also work full-time outside term time.
You must provide your financial sponsor's consent to an immigration application if:
you have completed a course in the last 12 months, and
your financial sponsor is/was a government or international sponsorship agency which paid all your fees and living costs.
The students' union must check that you have immigration permission that allows you to do the job. See our page on Student work.
Most types of immigration permission allow some employment.
What immigration permission do I need as a sabbatical officer?
Last updated 26 May, 2026
There are different considerations depending on whether you become a sabbatical officer part way through your course or after you have completed your course.
The following gives information on both scenarios and other factors to consider, such as evidence of funds and English language requirements.
The information assumes you already have Student permission. Talk to your college or university if you are studying with a different type of permission. It will be able to advise you and consider how long you have left on your existing permission and whether or not your existing permission allows you to work.
If you are in the middle of your course, and you currently have Student permission that allows work, you should be able to start full-time work as a sabbatical officer without making a new application. It does not matter that your documents refer to 10 or 20 hours of work a week. However, you must first discuss your plan with your Student sponsor, because it must first report your change of circumstances to the Home Office.
You will usually need to extend your permission later on so you can finish your studies. At that time, you will need a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) from your Student sponsor to use in an application for further permission as a Student. You should discuss the timing of your immigration application with your sponsor.
Also, be aware that when you stop being a full-time student, you become liable to pay council tax.
If you want to become a sabbatical officer after your studies, you must do this in the academic year that falls immediately after you complete your course. You can start the post on your current Student permission if it allows you to work but you will need to apply to extend your Student permission to complete the post.
The Students’ Union might pay your Student immigration application fee and/or immigration health charge. If not, make sure you have the money to pay these costs yourself. You will need a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) from your Student sponsor.
You will need a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) from your Student sponsor to undertake the sabbatical officer role because, in the Immigration Rules, the role is considered as similar to study.
The Students' Union might ask you to extend your permission before you start work. This is to avoid problems if the Home Office refuses your application.
You must not work if you get a rejection of your immigration application, or a refusal of it, and if you no longer have immigration permission. Seek advice from your Student sponsor or students’ union immediately.
If you are applying to do a sabbatical officer post You do not have to show you have funds. This means you do not have to provide evidence of finance as part of your application in or outside the UK.
If you are applying to continue studies after your sabbatical officer post You do not have to show funds if you apply in the UK, and you have been there at least 12 months.
You will have to show funds if you apply outside the UK or if you have been in the UK under 12 months.
English language requirements apply to sabbatical officers. Check what your confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) says about English language. You can ask your sponsor if you will need to provide evidence.
You can apply in or outside the UK. Your Student permission should cover the duration of the sabbatical officer post. This will usually be a period of up to 12 months.
You should also get an extra period before the post starts and up to four months after it ends.
Your immigration documents will not state that you are a sabbatical officer. They will refer to limits on your working hours, for example 20 hours a week in term time. However, you can work full-time as a sabbatical officer with this endorsement, provided that you have spoken with your Student sponsor about the arrangements (as above).
The college or university where you are, or have been, studying must continue to sponsor you as a Student. This is the case, even though you will no longer be studying with the college or university and, instead, will be working with the college’s or university’s students' union or even elsewhere with the National Union of Students (NUS).
You and/or the students' union or NUS must talk to your college or university as soon as possible after election. This is so that everyone is clear about what happens next.
If your student sponsor has not issued you with a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) for the sabbatical officer role, because you are undertaking the role part-way through your course, it must instead report to the Home Office that you will be working as a sabbatical officer. Your sponsor remains responsible for you. This means they must work with the students' union or NUS to ensure that you are working without problems.
Can I do a full-time sabbatical officer role at the same time as studying?
Last updated 26 May, 2026
You might wonder if you can continue studying your course while you take on a role as a sabbatical officer.
Full-time student union sabbatical officers are allowed to do ‘supplementary study’, because supplementary study is permitted under the Student route. However, supplementary study is not defined in the immigration rules so it is sensible to interpret it cautiously.
An alternative option would be to remain on your full-time course and do part-time work for the students’ union in the part-time working hours that your Student immigration permission already permits you to do (that is, 10 or 20 hours per week in term time and full-time in vacations).
Talk to your Student sponsor and the students’ union about all of this before you consider standing for election. If your Student sponsor is a UKCISA member, it can read UKCISA’s advice for sponsors in our UKCISA manual.
What happens when my sabbatical officer post ends?
Last updated 26 May, 2026
You can apply again for Student permission, if necessary. Read about your options below:
Your Student sponsor will report to the Home Office that you are now studying again. You should extend your immigration permission before your current permission expires. You should be able to apply in the UK.
If you have already finished your course, the Graduate route may be an option for you. In our web information (link above) we discuss applying under the Graduate route following time spent as a sabbatical officer.
Physical documents such as BRPs, and vignette stickers placed in your passport, are being replaced by a digital immigration permission known as an ‘eVisa’. Find out how to check your permission and how you prove it.
Most students complete their studies in the UK with no issues around their visa or Student sponsorship. However, occasionally changes are made to an institution’s Student sponsor licence that could affect you.
Essential guide on maintaining your student visa status in the UK, covering everything from attendance requirements to visa renewals, ensuring your educational journey remains uninterrupted.
