UK eVisa and UKVI Account for Students: Nepal Guide

If you get a UK Student visa now, you will not receive a BRP card or a visa sticker. Instead, you get a UK eVisa. For students, as for everyone, the eVisa is a digital record of your immigration status that you see through a free UKVI account. You use that UKVI account to prove your status with a share code, to link the passport you travel on, and to update your details when your passport changes.

Last checked: 19 October 2026.

UK eVisa for students: key facts

From BRP to eVisa: what changed

Older Nepali students in the UK will remember the biometric residence permit (BRP), a plastic card collected after arrival. That system has ended. The GOV.UK BRP page now says all BRPs have expired and have been replaced by eVisas. An expired BRP can still be used, for a limited time, to sign in to view your eVisa, get a share code, create a UKVI account, and apply to extend your permission. That window is 24 months after the expiry date printed on the card or until 31 December 2026, whichever comes first. For anything else, including proving your status to an employer or landlord, use your eVisa.

The 90-day entry sticker in the passport is also gone for new applicants. The GOV.UK guidance for people applying from overseas notes that vignettes are no longer issued from 1 July 2026. If you already hold a vignette, the GOV.UK eVisa guide says it stays valid until it expires.

So for a Nepali student applying for a September 2027 or January 2027 course, the whole visa lives online. Your decision email or letter explains how to access it.

How to create a UKVI account (step by step)

First, check whether you already have one. GOV.UK says you may already have a UKVI account if you used the UK Immigration: ID Check app during a visa application, received a “UKVI account confirmation” email, replaced a physical document with an eVisa, or applied to the EU Settlement Scheme. If you already have an account, do not create a second one.

1. Get your details ready. You need a phone number and an email address that you will be able to use every time you sign in. Choose ones you will keep after you move to the UK, not a number you will cancel when you leave Nepal.
2. Have your identity document and reference. GOV.UK lists a valid passport plus your visa application number (the GWF number or UAN), a valid passport plus your BRP number, or an expired BRP within its allowed period.
3. Create the account using the official “Create a UKVI account” link on GOV.UK. Never use a link sent by an agent or a social media page.
4. Confirm your identity and link the account to your eVisa. You need a smartphone to install an app for this step. GOV.UK says there is another way to confirm your identity if you cannot use a smartphone or the app, or do not have a valid passport.
5. Open your eVisa. Access is usually immediate once it is linked, but it can take up to 24 hours.

There is no fee. GOV.UK says you do not need to pay to set up a UKVI account or access your eVisa. If anyone in Kathmandu charges you for “eVisa activation”, that is not a government fee.

Dependants: a husband, wife or child who comes with you needs their own UKVI account. A parent or helper can create an account for someone they act for, such as a child, but the details should be changed to the person’s own email and phone when they can manage it themselves or turn 18.

Proving your status with a share code

Once you are in the UK, people will ask you to prove you are allowed to be there: a landlord, a part-time employer, sometimes a bank. You do this with a share code from the View and prove your immigration status service.

• To sign in you need one of: your passport, a national identity card, a biometric residence card, an expired BRP, or your UKVI customer number, plus access to the phone or email on your account.
• A share code lasts 90 days. You can use it as many times as you need before it expires, and you can get a new one at any time.
• The checker needs your date of birth as well as the code. You do not need to show them your eVisa itself, and GOV.UK tells you what they will see before you share it.

You will need this in your first weeks for renting and opening a bank account. Some banks ask for the share code in branch. See our guide to your first weeks in the UK: bank account, GP and NI number.

Travelling with an eVisa

This is where Nepali students most often get caught out, especially when flying home for Dashain or Tihar and back. The GOV.UK travel with your eVisa page is clear on the rules:

• Travel with the passport linked to your account. You must travel with a valid passport that you have added to your UKVI account.
• Details must match exactly. Your UKVI account details must exactly match the passenger information you give the airline. If they are wrong, the airline may not let you board, and you may be delayed at the border.
• Where it is checked. Your eVisa is checked when the airline checks you in for a flight to the UK, and by a border officer or at the eGates when you leave and enter the UK.
• Carry a travel share code as back-up. If the airline or a border official asks for more proof, you can show a share code. A travel share code is valid for 90 days, so you can generate it before you fly.
• Don’t fly before approval. GOV.UK guidance for overseas applicants says you must not travel to the UK before your visa application is approved.

Also check when you are allowed to arrive. The GOV.UK Student visa page says you can travel up to 1 week before your course if it lasts 6 months or less, and up to 1 month before if it lasts more than 6 months.

Updating your passport and other details

Passports expire, and a three- or four-year degree plus a Graduate visa can outlast yours. The moment you have a new passport, update your UKVI account. GOV.UK says that if you renew your passport while abroad, you must update your account, or ask UKVI to, before you return.

• Online updates: you can update your passport or travel document, name, mobile number, email address, home address and postal address. You can also add a second passport.
• Biometric passport: you can update the passport number, expiry date, name or nationality online.
• Non-biometric passport: you can only update the passport number and expiry date online. For other changes, ask UKVI; you may need to give fingerprints and a photo at a visa application centre.
• Name, date of birth or nationality changes need an identity document that shows the change.
• Waiting for a decision? GOV.UK says you cannot change your name or passport while a visa application is waiting for a decision.

GOV.UK warns that an out-of-date account can cause delays when you travel or while you wait for a visa decision, for example when you later apply for a Graduate or Skilled Worker visa.

Nepal-specific tips

• Use your own email and phone. Consultancies often fill in applications using their office email. Make sure the UKVI account uses your email and a number you will keep. GOV.UK says if you only have access because you helped someone apply, you cannot update their details for them.
• Keep your Nepali SIM active or switch carefully. You need the phone or email on your account to sign in. If you plan to change to a UK number, update it in the account first.
• Names must match. If your passport, CAS and bank documents spell your name differently, sort it out before you apply. The airline and border checks compare the details exactly.
• Screenshots are not proof. A screenshot of your eVisa is not a share code. Get a proper code when someone needs to check your status.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Creating a second UKVI account when you already have one from the application.
• Flying on a new passport that is not yet linked to the account.
• Paying a third party to “activate” an eVisa. The service is free on GOV.UK.
• Letting your account’s email or phone lapse, then being unable to sign in.
• Waiting until the airport to generate a share code with no internet.

If you cannot sign in, GOV.UK offers account recovery. If the details on your eVisa are wrong, use the official “report an error with your eVisa” service. For other questions, UKVI offers webchat and eVisa support videos.

What to do next

1. When you apply, use your own email and a phone number you will keep.
2. When the decision arrives, follow the email to access your eVisa and check every detail.
3. Make sure the passport you will fly on is linked.
4. Generate a travel share code before you leave Nepal.
5. After arrival, use share codes for renting, work and banking.

Still at the application stage? Read how to apply for a UK Student visa from Nepal and our full guide to studying in the UK from Nepal. Working part-time? Check the part-time work rules.

Frequently asked questions

Do UK students still get a BRP card in 2026?
No. GOV.UK says all BRPs have now expired and have been replaced by eVisas. New students get an eVisa, which they access through a UKVI account.

Will I get a visa sticker in my Nepali passport?
No. GOV.UK guidance for overseas applicants says vignettes are no longer issued from 1 July 2026. Your permission is your eVisa.

Is the UKVI account free?
Yes. GOV.UK says you do not need to pay to set up a UKVI account or access your eVisa.

How long is a UK eVisa share code valid?
90 days. You can use it as many times as you need in that time and get a new one whenever you need it.

I renewed my passport. What do I do before flying back to the UK?
Update your UKVI account with the new passport, or ask UKVI to, before you travel. With a biometric passport you can do this online.

Can I still use my expired BRP?
Only to sign in, view your eVisa, get a share code, create a UKVI account or apply to extend, for 24 months after expiry or until 31 December 2026, whichever comes first.

Related guides

• UK January vs September Intake: What Nepali Students Should Know
• First Weeks in the UK: Bank Account, GP and NI Number
• How to Apply for a UK Student Visa from Nepal (Step by Step)
• UK CAS and Credibility Interview: Guide for Nepali Students
• UK TB Test for Nepali Students: Clinics, Fees, Validity

Sources

• eVisas: what an eVisa is – GOV.UK
• Set up a UKVI account to access your eVisa – GOV.UK
• View your eVisa and get a share code – GOV.UK
• Travel with your eVisa – GOV.UK
• Update your details in your UKVI account – GOV.UK
• Biometric residence permits (BRPs) – GOV.UK
• Living in the UK: applying from overseas – GOV.UK
• Student visa overview – GOV.UK

Last checked: 19 October 2026. This is general information, not legal or immigration advice. Always follow the instructions in your own decision email and on GOV.UK.