Fee status assessment
If you are unsure of what your fee status may be or you have been asked to complete a Fee Status Questionnaire by our Admissions Team, this page outlines the process we follow and points you to where you can seek additional advice.
The rules that govern assessment to pay fees at home rate in England is defined by the UK Government’s Department for Education regulations, outlined by the UK Council for International Student Affairs, UKCISA.
Information provided here is intended as a general guide. All assessments are made on an individual basis based on individual circumstances of each applicant. As an applicant or student at Queen Mary, it is your responsibility to check and query your fee status with the Admissions team before enrolling at the University.
We are unable to make any assessments before an application has been submitted. Our Admissions Team aims to make fair and transparent judgements when completing fee status assessments at all times.
What is a 'fee status'?
Your fee status determines the rate of fees that you will pay throughout your studies at Queen Mary. Fee status classification generally depends on your:
- Nationality or Immigration permission in the UK
- ‘Ordinary residence’ - where you have been living and what you have been doing for the three year period prior to the start of your course
To determine your fee status, our Admissions Team will assess the information that has been provided within your application against the UK Government regulations which are outlined by the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA).
The following summarises the possible fee status classifications at the University:
Home
To be eligible for the ‘Home’ rate of fees you must be ordinarily resident in the UK on the first day of the first academic year of your course in the relevant residency area, have no immigration restriction on the length of your stay, hold UK citizenship or required permission, and the sole purpose of your residency must not be full time education.
If you are a UK national who is normally resident in the Channel Islands or Isle of Man you will be assessed with a Home fee classification. Generally, the fees are aligned with the Home rate but you may be required to be settled in the UK before the start of your course.
EU nationals that hold EU Settlement Status and have been ordinarily resident in the UK or EEA for three years may be eligible for Home fee rate. If you are an EU/EEA/Swiss National living in the UK and have pre-settled or settled status, we will require share code and required evidence to conduct our assessment.
Overseas
Generally, if you are not an UK or EU national and you have not lived in the UK or EU then you will pay fees at an Overseas rate. If you hold a time-limited visa or permission to live in the UK it is very unlikely you will pay fees at Overseas rate (even if you have been living in the UK or EU).
Following the UK government announcement in 2021, EU, other EEA and Swiss nationals are no longer eligible for home fee status if they do not hold the right permission under the EU settlement scheme or live in the relevant residency area.
How we make assessments
The Admissions team carry out fee status assessment during the application process in line with the UK Government guidelines. Your fee status classification will be included in your offer letter.
If we are unable to make a decision based on the information included in your application form, we may request that you complete a Queen Mary fee status questionnaire [DOC 64KB] and provide additional supporting documents to help us make our assessment (see below for more information). We normally request this information through your Applicant Portal and ask that you return your completed questionnaire and documents within 14 working days of our request.
If you have received confirmation of your fee status decision but believe that the decision is incorrect, before you enrol or re-enrol at the University, you must:
Applicants:
- Complete fee status questionnaire with supporting documents and upload it to your application portal only for reassessment
Students:
- Complete fee status questionnaire with supporting documents and send it to adm-mgrs@qmul.ac.uk
Please view our Fee Status Assessment Guidance Notes [PDF 116KB] on how to complete your form and the documents required.
Once enrolled, there are very limited circumstances where fee status may change part-way through a course and requests will be considered only in line with the UK Government regulations. It is important to note that there are no guarantees of a change in tuition fee classification or fee amount.
Completing the Fee Status Questionnaire
If you have been asked to complete a Queen Mary fee status questionnaire [DOC 64KB], it is important you complete this form in as much detail as possible and return it to us within the deadline provided. The Fee Status Assessment Guidance Notes [PDF 116KB] can help you complete your questionnaire and documents to provide.
Supporting Documents
We require all applicants or students completing a Fee Status assessment form to provide evidence of their Nationality and evidence of ordinary residency in the UK. However, depending on your individual circumstances we may also require additional supporting documentation, particularly for those who have been temporarily absent from the UK or believe they are ordinarily resident in more than one country.
- Copy of your passport
- A scanned copy of any BRP (Biometric Residency Permit) (both front and back)
- A Sharecode to prove your EU Settlement or EU Pre-Settlement Status
- Home Office Letter confirming status in the UK
- Utility Bills from a property in the UK e.g. gas, electric and water bills. Council Tax bills, bank statements or tax returns are not generally considered on their own.
- Flight Confirmations
- Employment Contracts
Failure to return your completed questionnaire or provide additional requested evidence within the timeframe required will mean the Admissions Team will have to make an assessment solely on the information we have available and you will likely be assessed as an overseas student for fees purposes.
If you have any questions about completing your fee status questionnaire, please get in touch with our Admissions Team by emailing the Admissions team or by responding to the information request through your Applicant Portal.
Appealing your fee status decision
We acknowledge there may be instances where you feel we have not conducted our assessment accurately and so all applicants/students are provided the opportunity to appeal their fee status before full enrolment at the University. If you have received confirmation of your fee status decision but believe that the decision is incorrect please take the following steps:
Applicants:
- Appeal informally via your application portal only.
- If after reconsideration by our Admissions team you are unsatisfied with the outcome, you can submit a formal written appeal to the Head of Admissions (or nominee) by email to adm-mgrs@qmul.ac.uk within 14 working days following the outcome of the informal appeal.
Students:
- Submit a formal written appeal to the Head of Admissions (or nominee) by email to adm-mgrs@qmul.ac.uk.
What you need to include in a formal appeal
- a completed Fee Status Questionnaire
- details of the informal appeal (for applicants only) and the reason why the informal appeal discussions were not satisfactory
- details of the relevant UKCISA category you believe you should be considered under
- an outline of the reasons why the decision is being appealed
- any evidence that you have to support your claim
Appeals post-enrolment submission timelines are:
September entrants: fee status appeals must be submitted no later than the 31st of October of the year you are enrolling on.
January entrants: fee status appeals must be submitted no later than the 28th of February of the year you are enrolling on.
Appeals submitted after the above deadlines will not be considered even if the reassessment request may be successful.
As part of the enrolment process, you will be asked to confirm that your fee status is correct. You should therefore note that, by completing the enrolment process, you are confirming your fee status. Appeals against fee status assessment post-enrolment will only be considered on the grounds that there has been a procedural error in reaching the original decision.
Appeals will only be considered if there is new, additional evidence that merits review of the original fee status decision. Please note we are not able to accept appeals from third parties and the Admissions team carry out all fee status assessment at the University, and authorised to confirm fee status decisions. Therefore, information provided by other university staff is advisory only and non-binding.
All fee status questionnaires and supporting documents provided via the formal appeal process will be reviewed with a final assessment communicated in writing.
Find out more
Further information about fee status is available from the following resources:
- Queen Mary’s Advice and Counselling webpages
- The UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) provides information about tuition fee liability and whether or not you may pay the Home or Overseas rate.
- Details of the immigration and residence status requirements for ‘home’ fee status can be found on the UKCISA webpages.
Frequently asked questions
We are unable to provide advice or comment on fee status classification before you have submitted your application.
The rules and regulations surrounding tuition fee classification are incredibly complex and depend on your individual circumstances. Therefore, we can’t give you accurate advice until we know the full details of your circumstances. If we are unable to make a decision on your fee status based on your application alone, we will contact you to complete our Fee Assessment Questionnaire.
The UK Government regulations set out by UKCISA are applied at all English universities (and other UK universities use similar regulations) but each institution is expected to make its own assessment. Therefore, there is a possibility that you may receive different fee status classifications from different universities. It is important to be aware that the fee status decision made by other universities will not have any bearing on the decision made by Queen Mary.
Queen Mary's fee status assessment will remain in place throughout the duration of your programme of studies. There are some limited circumstances in which a student could be considered for home fees after starting their course. Please refer to the UKCISA guidance for full information. If you believe you now meet one of the UKCISA categories for consideration please complete our fee status questionnaire and email adm-mgrs@qmul.ac.uk with your supporting documents no later than:
September entrants: appeals must be submitted no later than the 31st of October of the year you are enrolling on
January entrants: appeals must be submitted no later than the 28th of February of the year you are enrolling on
If you subsequently become eligible and have your fee status reassessed after the above deadlines or during the main academic cycle whilst studying, any change in fees will be from the start of your next academic year, and not from the start of your programme.
You will always pay the tuition fee which relates to your year of entry, not your year of application. If you have chosen to defer your place until the next academic year, your tuition fees will be in line with that entry point.
