The Student Room Group

What does '3 year residence' really mean?

So you need to have lived in the UK (or in my case, Scotland) for at least 3 years beforehand to be eligible for funding, but ONLY if those 3 years were not just for full time education.

My parents are both British and lived abroad, so my return to the U.K. is definitely permanent and I plan to continue living here. However I'm worring that Student Finance might see my past 3-4 years as purely for University studies...

(This is my second degree, which normally you cannot get a loan for but SAAS is considering it if I can prove I've lived in Scotland not just for University studies :s-smilie: )

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Reply 1
Why did you actually come back to Scotland? Was it for a job? Or to join a partner who had a job there? Or to care for a relative?

What - apart from uni - brought you back to Scotland?
Reply 2
At the age of 18? None of those things. I grew up as an expat kid in a foreign country and have always considered UK my home, considering I was born there and returned frequently to visit my grandparents (No Scottish ancestry). But, being a kid, you have to go where the parents go to work.

I chose Scotland because out of all the places I've visited in the UK that was the place I felt most at home at. I was lucky to get into a Scottish Uni for my degree which was self funded. By the time I start my 2015 course I would've lived here for one entire year outside of education, and I plan to continue living here.

In other words, I chose a Scottish Uni because I wanted to make Scotland my home of residence. Not for a job (medical issue), Not for a partner (too young!) and not for a relative (all living as expats abroad).

But I'm guessing that probably is not going to count as an eligible reason :/ I even took Scottish history modules during University to 'do my bit' knowing the country better.
Reply 3
So essentially you came to live permanently in Scotland because you wanted to go to uni here, which will make you permanently ineligible for student funding.

If you want SAAS funding, you need to find a plausible way of explaining your return to Scotland in ways that don't involve mentioning uni. That might be a problem if the only thing you've done since being in the country, is go to uni.
Reply 4
No, I went to Scotland because I wanted to live there, University was just a nice coincidence. I turned down better Universities in England for my course, just to go to Scotland.

It's frustrating because in fact my parents/family all wanted me not to go to Scotland, and wanted to me to apply to only English Universities near them. I even fell out with my own parents for over a year after I left to go to Edinburgh, no contact or support. To this day they still want me to move back to the midlands but I just don't fit in there, heck I didn't even grow up there. I chose Scotland specifically to live there, not for University. It's just a coincidence that every other 18 year old in the country is doing University in this day and age... How am I supposed to differentiate between my desire to live in Scotland and having to go to University?

Thanks for your advice though, it was helpful nonethless and SAAS will probably see it the same way as you described.

Edit: I chatted with SAAS on the phone and the lady sounded quite positive that I could be eligible for a loan after I explained I was a UK citizen growing up abroad, though it sounds like when it's time for applications, I'm going to have to be prepared to battle for approval :/ ..
Sadly, student finance phone jockeys have a habit of being totally wrong with their "advice".
Reply 6
Original post by coffeecakey
So you need to have lived in the UK (or in my case, Scotland) for at least 3 years beforehand to be eligible for funding, but ONLY if those 3 years were not just for full time education.

My parents are both British and lived abroad, so my return to the U.K. is definitely permanent and I plan to continue living here. However I'm worring that Student Finance might see my past 3-4 years as purely for University studies...

(This is my second degree, which normally you cannot get a loan for but SAAS is considering it if I can prove I've lived in Scotland not just for University studies :s-smilie: )


Hi.

I couldn't find a mention in your post of where abroad you lived. Was it in the EU? Because that would probably make a difference. Take a look at post 3 on this thread, which was an answer to a question I asked earlier in the year: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2870689
Now, the question admittedly was in relation to SFE rather than SAAS but the rules for both seem to be fairly consistent, so the lady at SAAS may well be right.

As an ex-pat Scot myself I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you. Good luck. :smile:
Reply 7
Original post by FionaMG
Hi.

I couldn't find a mention in your post of where abroad you lived. Was it in the EU? Because that would probably make a difference. Take a look at post 3 on this thread, which was an answer to a question I asked earlier in the year: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2870689
Now, the question admittedly was in relation to SFE rather than SAAS but the rules for both seem to be fairly consistent, so the lady at SAAS may well be right.

As an ex-pat Scot myself I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you. Good luck. :smile:


Unfortunately my country isn't on the list for EU countries. However I have a UK passport & I was born in London.

I will certainly look into this.
Thanks again Fiona!
Original post by coffeecakey
Unfortunately my country isn't on the list for EU countries. However I have a UK passport & I was born in London.

I will certainly look into this.
Thanks again Fiona!


Unfortunatley your passport and location of birth are irrelevant.
hey im wondering about this too, update us if you can :smile:
Reply 10
Original post by CrazyCurls
hey im wondering about this too, update us if you can :smile:


Your situation is very different to some other posters on this thread, as you're Portuguese and have presumably been living in Portugal for at least three years.

As an EU student, you will automatically get a Tuition Fee Loan which will cover all of your tuition fees. However, to qualify for the full package including Maintenance Loan and Maintenance Grant, you would have to live in the UK for a full three years before the start of your course (and not have moved to the UK only to go to uni).

If you've been living outside the EU, then you won't qualify for any UK student funding until you've been living back in the EU or UK for a full three years before the start of your course.
Original post by Klix88
Your situation is very different to some other posters on this thread, as you're Portuguese and have presumably been living in Portugal for at least three years.

As an EU student, you will automatically get a Tuition Fee Loan which will cover all of your tuition fees. However, to qualify for the full package including Maintenance Loan and Maintenance Grant, you would have to live in the UK for a full three years before the start of your course (and not have moved to the UK only to go to uni).

If you've been living outside the EU, then you won't qualify for any UK student funding until you've been living back in the EU or UK for a full three years before the start of your course.


Thank you so much for the response Klix88, in fact I live in canada( toronto) and i just assumed that since i have a european passport ( and have the ability to work and study in the uk) that i would be able to get at least SOME HELP, it really sucks, maybe i'll look into getting a student loan from the bank if anything but it would be very rare that i would get accepted for one

do you know any other options i can apply for ANY type of help, if so please disclose

Thanks SOO much :smile:
(edited 9 years ago)
last question... if i have a REALLY good reason why i'm heading to the uk ( other than uni) does that help my case?
Reply 13
Original post by CrazyCurls
Thank you so much for the response Klix88, in fact I live in canada( toronto) and i just assumed that since i have a european passport ( and have the ability to work and study in the uk) that i would be able to get at least SOME HELP, it really sucks, maybe i'll look into getting a student loan from the bank if anything but it would be very rare that i would get accepted for one

do you know any other options i can apply for ANY time of help, if so please disclose

Thanks SOO much :smile:


Sorry, but residency is key rather than nationality or citizenship. As an International student you won't have access to any state student funding in the UK unless you can build up that all-important three years of residency without making it look like your intention is ultimately to go to uni.

There's only one commercial UK bank loan available for study - the Professional and Career Development Loan - and as a non-resident you won't be eligible to apply for it. You may be able to find something like that in Canada which covers overseas study?

Some universities might have scholarships or bursaries for your chosen subject which are available to International students, but there's no central point of information about these. You just need to trawl uni websites and check out what's on offer. "Full ride" scholarships are extremely rare and fearsomely competitive, especially those available to international applicants.
Reply 14
Original post by CrazyCurls
last question... if i have a REALLY good reason why i'm heading to the uk ( other than uni) does that help my case?


Yes. If you come to the UK for reasons other than education, then once you've been here for a full three years before the start of your course, you would qualify to be assessed for the full Student Finance package. State funding favours those who are likely to have paid into the tax system which supports the loans and grants (or those whose parents probably have).

However as a side note, you should be aware that UK Student Finance isn't hugely generous. It will guarantee to cover your tuition fees in full, but most students find that it doesn't cover all of their living costs. Expect to need financial support from another source such as savings, a part-time job while you study, or loans/gifts from parents/relatives. UK Student Finance is intended to be a contribution towards the cost of uni study, rather than covering everything you may need.
Original post by Klix88
Yes. If you come to the UK for reasons other than education, then once you've been here for a full three years before the start of your course, you would qualify to be assessed for the full Student Finance package. State funding favours those who are likely to have paid into the tax system which supports the loans and grants (or those whose parents probably have).

However as a side note, you should be aware that UK Student Finance isn't hugely generous. It will guarantee to cover your tuition fees in full, but most students find that it doesn't cover all of their living costs. Expect to need financial support from another source such as savings, a part-time job while you study, or loans/gifts from parents/relatives. UK Student Finance is intended to be a contribution towards the cost of uni study, rather than covering everything you may need.


Yes, i completely understand about the uk student finance but , hey any help is good help
a little clarity, so no matter WHAT ,you NEED to have lived in the uk 3 years prior to your first day of school in order to receive any type of loan or grant no matter your nationality, so whats the reason for? ( so what i understand is that if you have a good reason why you moved to the UK(and have lived there for less than 3 years) that is unrelated to schooling then you might be granted the loans/grants)

just want to know if im correct :smile:

thanks in advance
(edited 9 years ago)
There are all sorts of ifs and buts depending on your circumstances. That was why I asked coffeecakey about country of residence, because rules are different if you're an expat-UK, or family member of, living in the EU.

My daughter has dual nationality, UK and Portuguese, but she is classed as an EU student (i.e. she gets tuition fee loan but no support) not only because she has lived in Portugal all her life but because she was actually born in Portugal. If she had been born in the UK and then moved to Portugal, she would still have dual nationality but would be classed as a home student and would be entitled to both tuition fee loan and support. And if, prior to starting uni, she went over to the UK and got herself a part-time job, she would then be classified as a migrant worker and would be entitled to tuition fee loan and support...

Which all goes to show just how complicated the whole business can be but I'm afraid it doesn't help you much either CrazyCurls. Sorry. :frown:
Reply 17
Original post by CrazyCurls
a little clarity, so no matter WHAT ,you NEED to have lived in the uk 3 years prior to your first day of school in order to receive any type of loan or grant no matter your nationality, so whats the reason for?

In your situation, yes. As other posters have said there are exceptions, but you're not one of them

(so what i understand is that if you have a good reason why you moved to the UK(and have lived there for less than 3 years) that is unrelated to schooling then you might be granted the loans/grants)

Only in the circumstances outlined by the above posters. So not in your situation.
Thank you so much for everyones input and information. I wish I had known sooner anyhow I have circumstance that is personal so I won't disclose, that i hope the government might help me out or else i'm screwed as i don't have the means to pay the international fee whatsoever :frown:

Good luck everyone on their Loans & Grants
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by FionaMG
There are all sorts of ifs and buts depending on your circumstances. That was why I asked coffeecakey about country of residence, because rules are different if you're an expat-UK, or family member of, living in the EU.

My daughter has dual nationality, UK and Portuguese, but she is classed as an EU student (i.e. she gets tuition fee loan but no support) not only because she has lived in Portugal all her life but because she was actually born in Portugal. If she had been born in the UK and then moved to Portugal, she would still have dual nationality but would be classed as a home student and would be entitled to both tuition fee loan and support. And if, prior to starting uni, she went over to the UK and got herself a part-time job, she would then be classified as a migrant worker and would be entitled to tuition fee loan and support...

Which all goes to show just how complicated the whole business can be but I'm afraid it doesn't help you much either CrazyCurls. Sorry. :frown:


Ahh thank you so much for all of this, so about this migrant worker, is there a certain time frame that you have to be working in order to be entitled to the support/loans?? I'm currently doing a gap year so maybe getting a job in the UK would be definitely help my case

Hope to hear from you soon :smile:

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