Standard Visitors Visa Application

For a lot of people the stress of the visa application is more than the stress of the PLAB exam itself. Here is my guide to the visa application process.

Organise your documents

These are a list of documents that I provided for my application:

1. Cover Letter – That states who you are and the purpose of your trip as well as your entire itinerary during the trip
2. Passport (current and old) – You need to provide the originals
3. Birth Certificate (not necessary)
4. Letter of employment – This should be written by the hospital you are currently working at. If you are doing medical volunteer work you can also provide a letter stating just that. The letter can also state that you have been given leave as well as the duration.
5. Affidavit of financial support – My advice would be; if you are currently not employed, doing a medical volunteer-ship or are employed but do not make enough to support your entire trip, get this letter. It is usually advisable that your financial supporter be a relative and there is proof of transfer of finances from their account to yours. (Should be written and signed by a lawyer)
6. Bank statements – If you will be financially supporting yourself for this trip then you need only provide your bank statements. If you are being supported, you would need to provide your bank statements as well as the bank statements of your financial supporter. Make sure that there has been activity on the bank account for 6 months as you will need to provide 6 months worth of statements.
7. Letter of invitation – Although you are clearly going for an exam, a letter of invitation provides more strength to your application as there is a clear contact in the United Kingdom (I was in fact asked about my family, their contact details and address at the immigration desk in UK). If you have family or friends who are UK residents or British Citizens ask them to provide you with a letter of invitation. I stated that I would be staying with my family in the time before my exam.
8. A provisional ticket to the UK – I used emirates airlines and booked a ticket just one day before my appointment date. On the website you can opt to pay at the office which gives you a 3 day provisional ticket.
9. A hotel booking in Manchester – Since your exam will be held in Manchester I suggest you make a booking for the hotel much in advance it will be much cheaper. I personally stayed at the Premier Inn in Swinton which was a 15 minute taxi drive to the exam venue. There are , however, better and closer options.
10. PLAB 1 results – I provided a printed out copy of the email I received once i passed the PLAB 1
11. PLAB 2 booking confirmation – A printed out copy of the PLAB 2 booking confirmation email sent by the GMC
12. IELTS results
13. Medical degree, internship certificate and medical registration certificate 

You do not need to provide originals of your important documents such as documents 12 and 13. Ensure you provide copies.

You need to provide the ORIGINALS of:
1. Passport,
2. Financial affidavit and
3. Letter of employment ONLY

 

Cover Letter Example

 

Name 
Street
Area, City
Country,
Area Code 
Contact Number 
Email Address

 

 

To Whom It May Concern:

Re: Application for Standard Visitors Visa (Business type)

I, (Name), (passport no.), am applying for a standard visitors visa (business type) in order to visit the United Kingdom. I intend on visiting the United Kingdom for the purpose of attending the PLAB 2 exam, which is scheduled for the (Date)

I am a fully qualified doctor, (Position), who works at (hospital/ clinic) located in (Area, City, Country). 

My (Relationship to financial supporter) is currently my financial supporter and will be sponsoring my trip to the United Kingdom. I have attached her/his personal as well as company bank (if they are an owner of a company) statements for the last six months and an affidavit confirming she/he is my (relationship) and that she/he is supporting me. I have also attached my bank statements; noting that my (Relative) maintains this account. My bank account is maintained in (Location) as my (Relative) resides there and can conveniently deposit money into my account, which I have access to internationally.

I have a relative residing in the United Kingdom. I intend to stay at my (Relationship) house when I land in London on the (date). She/He has attached a letter of invitation and all necessary documents with my visa application. I will study at her accommodation in preparation for my exam, the time will also allow me to get acclimated to the environment prior to my exam. I intend on then travelling to Manchester on the (Date) to stay at a hotel two days before my exam.

My itinerary once I land in UK is as follows:

1.  Land in London on the (date)
2. Go to my (Relative) house (please find all necessary
    documentation attached)
3.  Stay with my (Relative’s) house and prepare for my exam until the (Date of intended travel to manchester)
4. Leave for Manchester on the (Date)
5. Travel to Manchester where I will stay at (Hotel name). Please find the booking confirmation attached.
6. Give my PLAB 2 exam on the (Date)
7. Travel back home on the (Date) “

Note: Write a list of the documents that you provided in your application at the end of your cover letter (as mentioned above). Your cover letter is where you get to explain everything you would like the UKVI to know, therefore use it to explain your purpose your plan and who you are.

 

Volunteer Confirmation Letter Example

Letter Head 

Address and contact details of Hospital/ Clinic

To Whom It May Concern:

Subject: Volunteer Verification Letter for (Name)

This letter is to confirm that (Name) is currently a medical volunteer at (Hospital/ Clinic), working in the position of a (Your position). She/ He commenced work on the (Date) and works in a part-time capacity while studying for her registration exams. She/He works as an unpaid volunteer offering her medical services to the patients of (Hospital/ Clinic) under the supervision of a senior medical practitioner.

If you require any additional information please do not hesitate to contact me.

Warm regards,

My letter did not mention leave as I was in a volunteer position at the time. If you are fully employed make sure to provide a non- objection letter for your leave of absence from work and make sure they mention they duration of leave if you intend on returning. 

 

Letter of invitation Example

 

Street, Area
City, Country (UK)
Postal code
Contact number 
Contact email

Date: 

To Whom It May Concern:

Regarding: Letter of invitation to (Name), D.O.B 01/11/1001, passport number 12345678. Nationality: 

I am writing to confirm that (Name), passport number , is my (Relationship) and I would like to invite her/him to London, England to stay at my accommodation for a short visit. The purpose of her/his trip is to write the PLAB 2 exam.

She/He will be residing with me at my accommodation from the (Date) to the (Date) after which she/he intends on travelling to Manchester (the location of the exam) where she will stay at a hotel until the day of the exam. I have enclosed evidence of my accommodation and the address is as stated above.

Please find enclosed a copy of my British passport and utility bills for you kind information and consideration of her application as accommodation confirmation.*

Should you require any additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours sincerely,”

*Your ‘sponsor’ should provide their utility bills and tax returns to confirm that they are residing in the United Kingdom. 

 

Affidavit of Financial Support

Unfortunately, I do not have a sample of my document. Please check out Omar’s Blog where he shows a very good example of his affidavit.

Provisional Ticket 

After making a booking on Emirates.com I opted for the option to pay at the office which gave me a provisional ticket for 3 days I was emailed this ticket, I printed it out and added it to my application.

Hotel booking confirmation

I did not use this booking nor did I stay at this hotel, however I made a provisional booking which i did not need to pay for. You will get a printable copy of your booking which you can print and add to your application.

Source: Booking.com

The online application

My biggest advice is that you take your time to fill out this application form. Having said that, it is not as stressful as it appears to be.

Make sure to pick these three choices in the beginning of your application.
Type of visa: Business
Purpose of application: Visit
Type of Application: Clinical attachment, dental observations and PLAB/OSCE test

The most complicated section is often the financial section in the application. Here is a screen shot of my application.

Q60. If you have a financial supporter then answer this question as ‘NIL’ as you are not personally financing your trip.

Q61. I would advise mentioning at least a portion (60- 80%) of the amount you have in your account (I personally got my financial supporter to transfer the funds directly to my account). You do not need to use the money as long as you have it available to you. They would just like to know you will not become dependent on UK government finances.

Q67. I added the costs of Q61 – 64.

Q70. If you are doing a course I have heard it is not advisable to mention that, however I cannot be sure. I mentioned that I would be staying with my Aunt.

Q78 – 80. Big NO’s for all these questions. As your main purpose is the Exam and Registration.

Last Bit of Advise

• Cover Letter
  Use your cover letter to your advantage. As you will not be able to speak to the UKVI directly make sure you get all your information across in your cover letter
• Be very transparent
  Ensure that you are being truthful, as anything that seems suspicious could affect your application
• Plan ahead
  Ensure that you or your financial supporter have a consistent bank account with constant activity for at least 6 months. Also, ensure that there is sufficient funds to finance your trip
• Always ask
  If you are not sure of something just post it on one of the facebook forums
• Don’t stress too much
  I’m pretty sure I spent a month worrying about my visa application, It is a lot less stressful than I expected.

 

BEST OF LUCK!