Graduate Visa Cut to 18 Months From January 2027: Apply by 31 December
From 1 January 2027, the UK Graduate visa for bachelor's and master's graduates falls from two years to 18 months. The rule is already law — it was laid in October 2025 — and it depends on the date you apply, not the date you graduated. Anyone who applies on or before 31 December 2026 still gets two years. PhD graduates keep three years. Then, in the Budget on 28 October 2026, the government announced that graduates of "high-compliance" universities with strong graduate outcomes will keep two years — but the criteria, the list of universities and the start date have not been published.
So if you finish your course this year, the next seven weeks matter. This guide explains exactly who is affected by the 18-month rule, how to apply in time for the two-year visa, what the Budget announcement does and does not change, and how the shorter visa interacts with switching to a Skilled Worker job and the new settlement rules.
The short answer
- Applications on or before 31 December 2026: two years for bachelor's and master's graduates.
- Applications from 1 January 2027: 18 months for bachelor's and master's graduates.
- PhD graduates: three years, unchanged.
- Existing Graduate visa holders: unaffected — your grant stands.
- Budget, 28 October 2026: two years to be kept for graduates of high-compliance universities. No criteria, list or date yet, and no rule change laid.
- To beat the deadline you must be in the UK on your Student visa, and your university must have told the Home Office you completed the course.
- Cost today: £937 application fee plus the Immigration Health Surcharge of £1,035 a year.
What changes on 1 January 2027
The Graduate route lets international students stay and work in the UK, at any skill level and without a sponsor, after finishing a UK degree. The May 2025 Immigration White Paper proposed shortening it, and the change was laid in a statement of changes on 14 October 2025. From 1 January 2027:
| Qualification | Applied by 31 December 2026 | Applied from 1 January 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree | 2 years | 18 months |
| Master's degree (taught or research) | 2 years | 18 months |
| PhD or other doctorate | 3 years | 3 years |
The test is the date your application is submitted. A master's student who finished in September 2026 and applies in December gets two years; a classmate who waits until January gets 18 months, even though they graduated on the same day. If you already hold a Graduate visa, nothing changes: your expiry date stays as granted.
How to apply before 31 December 2026
To qualify for a Graduate visa at all, three things must be true when you apply:
- You are in the UK, on a Student visa (or Tier 4) that has not expired.
- You studied the course for the minimum time in the UK — usually the whole course for courses of 12 months or less.
- Your university has reported to the Home Office that you successfully completed the course.
The third point is where most people get caught. You do not need your degree certificate or graduation ceremony, but you cannot apply until the university has confirmed completion, which usually follows the exam board. If your course finished in September or October, chase your university's international or visa compliance team now and ask when your completion will be reported. If your results come out in late December, ask whether the report can be made before the holiday shutdown — many universities close for two weeks over Christmas.
The application itself is online. You will need your passport, your BRP or eVisa details and your CAS number from your last Student visa. Decisions usually take around eight weeks, but what matters for the two-year grant is the submission date. You can stay in the UK while you wait, and your Student visa conditions apply until the decision. Our full Graduate visa guide covers eligibility in detail, and the eVisa guide explains how to share your status.
Who cannot beat the deadline
Students on courses that end in 2027 — including September 2026 and January 2027 starters on one-year master's courses — will apply after 1 January and get 18 months, unless the high-compliance exception applies to them. So will anyone whose Student visa has already expired, since the Graduate visa can only be applied for from inside the UK on a valid Student visa.
The Budget's two-year exception for high-compliance universities
In the Autumn Budget on 28 October 2026, the government said it would keep two-year Graduate visas for graduates of "high-compliance" universities with strong labour-market outcomes for their graduates. The Home Office and the Department for Education will design the criteria. What we know and do not know:
| Question | Answer as of November 2026 |
|---|---|
| Is the 18-month rule still happening on 1 January 2027? | Yes — it is law, and nothing has been laid to change it |
| Which universities count as high-compliance? | Not published |
| What are the criteria? | To be designed by the Home Office and DfE; likely to draw on visa compliance and graduate employment |
| When does the exception start? | No date announced |
| Will it apply retrospectively to 18-month grants? | Not stated |
The likely shape is a link to the compliance system universities are already measured on. Since June 2026, sponsors must keep Student visa refusal rates below 5% and meet enrolment and completion targets, and a red-amber-green rating is due to be published on the sponsor register. Our guide to university RAG ratings explains how that works. If you are choosing a university for 2027, a strong compliance record is now worth weighing alongside rankings and fees — but do not choose on a list that does not exist yet.
What 18 months means in practice
Six fewer months matter most for one thing: getting into a sponsored job. Most graduates use the Graduate visa to find a Skilled Worker role, and the employer needs time to obtain a sponsor licence if it does not have one, assign a certificate and wait out the application. With 18 months, a realistic plan looks like this:
- Months 0–6: apply widely, prioritising employers that already hold a sponsor licence.
- Months 6–12: once in a role, agree the switch and salary with the employer.
- Months 12–15: employer assigns the Certificate of Sponsorship; you apply to switch, leaving a buffer before expiry.
As a Graduate visa holder switching to Skilled Worker, you qualify for the new entrant salary rate — £33,400 or 70% of the going rate — but time on the Graduate visa counts towards the four-year new-entrant limit. Our guides to the Skilled Worker salary threshold and switching to a Skilled Worker visa set out the rules.
Settlement no longer counts Graduate time
There is a second reason the shorter visa matters less than it seems, and it is not good news. Under the earned settlement policy confirmed on 2 November 2026, time on a Student or Graduate visa will no longer count towards indefinite leave to remain, and the ten-year long residence route will close. Your settlement clock will start on a qualifying work visa, so the Graduate visa is best treated as a bridge to a sponsored job, not as time banked towards ILR. We explain the new tracks in our guide to earned settlement.
Cost of the Graduate visa
| Visa length | Application fee | Health surcharge | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 years (applied by 31 Dec 2026) | £937 | £2,070 | £3,007 |
| 18 months (applied from 1 Jan 2027) | £937 | £1,552.50 | £2,489.50 |
| 3 years (PhD) | £937 | £3,105 | £4,042 |
The surcharge is paid upfront for the whole visa, at £1,035 a year (£517.50 for each extra half-year), so the shorter visa is cheaper. Fees usually rise each April, so check gov.uk on the day you apply. Partners and children who are already in the UK as your dependants can apply alongside you, each paying the same fee and surcharge; our guide to student visa dependants rules covers who qualifies.
Frequently asked questions
Is the UK Graduate visa being reduced to 18 months?
Yes. For bachelor's and master's graduates who apply on or after 1 January 2027, the Graduate visa lasts 18 months instead of two years. PhD graduates keep three years. The change is already in the Immigration Rules.
If I apply in December 2026, do I get two years?
Yes. The length depends on the date you apply, so an application submitted on or before 31 December 2026 is granted for two years. You must be in the UK on a valid Student visa, and your university must already have reported that you completed your course.
Does the 18-month rule affect people who already have a Graduate visa?
No. Existing Graduate visa holders keep the length they were granted. The 18-month period applies only to new applications made from 1 January 2027.
Which universities will keep the two-year Graduate visa?
None has been named yet. The 28 October 2026 Budget said graduates of high-compliance universities with strong labour-market outcomes will keep two years, but the Home Office and Department for Education have not published criteria, a list or a start date.
Can I extend a Graduate visa?
No. The Graduate visa cannot be extended, and you can only hold it once. To stay longer, you need to switch to another route, usually a Skilled Worker visa, before it expires.
How much does the Graduate visa cost in 2026?
The application fee is £937, plus the Immigration Health Surcharge at £1,035 a year. A two-year visa costs £3,007 in total, and an 18-month visa £2,489.50. Fees usually change each April.
If you are finishing a course this year, the cheapest win available is timing: an application in December rather than January buys six extra months to land a sponsored job. If you want help checking your completion date, preparing the application before 31 December, or planning the switch to a Skilled Worker role, book a free consultation or start with our UK visa process guide.