Permission to work during studies

Non-European Economic Area (EEA) Students
Non-EEA students on courses lasting more than six months are allowed to work up to 20 hours a week during the semester and full-time during vacations and on work placements which form part of their course. There are some restrictions on the type of work that can be undertaken by non-EEA international students. For instance, they cannot become self-employed or take on work as a professional sportsperson or entertainer.

Families of International Students
If a student is given permission to be in the UK for 12 months or more, then their spouse or civil partner or children arriving in the UK with them should be given permission to work.

EEA Students
Nationals of most European Economic Area (EEA) countries are able to work in the UK without any restriction although there are some particular rules relating to citizens of the new member states. The EEA includes:

 

Austria	France	Latvia	Romania
Belgium	Germany	Liechtenstein	Slovakia
Bulgaria	Greece	Lithuania	Slovenia
Cyprus	Holland	Luxembourg	Spain
Czech Republic	Hungary	Malta	Sweden
Denmark	Iceland	Norway	UK
Estonia	Ireland	Poland
Finland	Italy	Portugal

New Member States
Nationals from Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic are required to register with the Home Office under the Worker Registration Scheme (WRS) as soon as they find work. Failure to do so within one month of this date renders their employment illegal. Students have to apply for a fresh certificate if they change or indeed find a second employer. Fortunately they do not have to pay the fee again. After working legally in the UK for 12 months ‘without interruption’, new member nationals no longer have to register and can then apply to the UK’s Home Office for an EEA residence permit as a worker. Nationals from Malta and Cyprus are not required to obtain a workers registration certificate.

Students from Bulgaria and Romania are able to work but must first obtain a registration certificate. This confirms them as EEA nationals exercising a treaty right as a student and provides them with permission to work for up to 20 hours a week.

Swiss Nationals
Swiss nationals have the same rights as EEA nationals to work without a permit in Scotland.