The following information sets out the policy for deposits and refunds for the University of Birmingham PG Taught Programmes.
- International students issued an offer to study a Postgraduate taught programme are required to pay a tuition fee deposit of £3,000 to secure your place. The deposit payment will be deducted from the tuition fee at registration.
- Deposit payments must be received by the deadline date specified in the applicant portal. Failure to pay the deposit by the required date may result in your offer being withdrawn.
- A deposit payment is not required if you are in receipt of a scholarship or financial guarantee and evidence has been provided.
- The deposit is non-transferable and non-refundable except under the circumstances outlined below in sections A, B, C, D, E and F.
- If you enrol and then withdraw from the programme of study at the University the deposit will not be refunded. Once you have completed online regstration, and your Right to Study Check, you become liable for fees and as such we cannot refund your tuition fee deposit under any circumstances.
- A deposit refund request must be submitted to the Admissions Office by 31 October 2026; requests after this date will not be considered. For programmes that have January start dates, these requests must be made by 2 February 2026. Please note that if your initial request was made by this date and further information or a new request needs to be submitted, this further request will be considered.
- In line with UK money laundering laws, any fee paid will only be refunded to the person or body who paid the fee.
A) Your right to cancel
For the purposes of the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, if this Agreement is a ‘distance contract’ or and ‘off premises contract‘, you have the right to cancel your acceptance of it within a period of 14 days after you have accepted the terms of this Agreement without giving us any reason.
To meet the cancellation deadline, it is sufficient for you to have sent your cancellation to us before the 14-day period has expired.
B) Refusal of a student visa
Refunds will be made if you have been refused a student visa, provided the reason for refusal is not due to a fraudulent application. To request a refund, you must submit a copy of the visa refusal document to the University.
C) University cancels programme
If the University cancels the programme for which you have accepted an offer, then all fees paid will be refunded.
D) You are unable to travel for reasons outside of your control
Refunds will be made if you are unable to travel to the UK for reasons outside of your control. These are unlikely to include, for example, failure to make arrangements to travel, or a visa application, or electing to have a non-urgent medical procedure, in good time to arrive for the start of your programme.
Acceptable reasons for the refund of a deposit may include (but are not limited to):
- Health or medical reasons
- Bereavement involving a close family member (e.g. Parent, sibling, guardian)
- Health or medical reasons affecting a close family member
- Travel restrictions imposed by a local or national government
In all such cases supporting evidence (accompanied by a translation in to English) must be provided to demonstrate that you were genuinely unable to travel to the UK. Refund requests which are not supported by appropriate evidence cannot be considered.
E) The qualifications you obtain to meet the academic conditions of your offer are not accepted for admission
If you have applied for a PG taught programme, paid the tuition fee deposit and the qualifications you obtain (including academic qualifications or English test) are not accepted by the University to meet the conditions of your offer, the deposit will be refunded.
You must provide evidence of the qualifications you have obtained.
If your documents are accepted by the University to confirm your admission (including where qualifications are accepted with grades below those stated in your offer) we cannot approve your refund request under this section.
If your application is made unsuccessful, or an offer is withdrawn, on the basis of the submission of fraudulent information or documents a deposit refund request will not be considered.
F) Deferral to later session
If you have not yet arrived and notify the University that you wish to defer to a later session, the deposit may be carried forward for one year. Should you choose to defer for a second year the deposit will be forfeited and treated as a withdrawal. You will then need to apply again for the later programme and pay a new deposit at the new rate for the course and will be liable for the full fees for that new programme. UK Visas and Immigration will be notified that you are not studying at the University.
Please note if you arrive and wish to defer to a later session, this is treated as a failure to attend the course you have been accepted for. The deposit will be forfeited and treated as a withdrawal. You will then need to apply again for the later programme and pay a new deposit at the new rate for the course and will be liable for the full fees for that new programme. UK Visas and Immigration will be notified that you are not studying at the University. This policy will only be varied if you produce evidence of genuine grounds for deferral acceptable to the University; this will include the late issue of the visa.
Deposit refunds
If you wish to request a refund of your £3000 deposit please fill in the deposit request form. Please note, this form should only be used by applicants requesting a Postgraduate Taught Deposit £3000 refund and all other refunds should be requested through Accounts Receivable here.