us4now

Hello,
We are looking at returning to the UK for uni for our two teens.
We are aware of the 3 year residency rule, but unsure as to whether the
residency is required of just the child (ie boarding school) or the entire family. In the worst case, if OH can not get a job back in UK when the time comes, could I return with the prospective student 3 years before she is due to go to uni? Or does my husband, as principal taxpayer, have to reside in the UK also? This would not be an ideal situation obviously to split the family but if OH cannot get a job for a while, we may look at doing this.
My daughter hopes to study medicine so obviously better for her to do this in the UK (cheaper at least) And we always said we would like to come home when eldest started uni.

Thanks.

JAJ

Read through the information and links here:
http://britishexpats.com/wiki/UK_Uni...Residence_Rule

us4now

Thanks for link, I had read this already but it is not specific enough as to
WHO needs to be resident, ie student or parent or both.

I was hoping to get some input from someone who has practical knowledge of the rules. Failing that I will contact one or two of the unis and ask them.

Sally Redux

I believe it is the student who must be resident.

I know a British person now in her 30s who went to school in the US and went back to live with relatives at 15 in order to get home rates (I think it may still have been free at that point).

It is a good idea to speak directly with the university though, as from what I've read on here, people have had different experiences with different institutions, although you are thinking ahead and they will probably only give a decision based on an actual case.

JAJ

If you read the article again and click on the links for more information, you should get what you need.

Ask a university - fine, but unless they are willing to put the advice in writing, it's meaningless.

dunroving

To be honest, I'm not sure if contacting a university to ask this "what if?" question will yield useful information, for a couple of reasons: a) as with a lot of returning to the UK questions, people in offices don't care to answer these hypothetical questions 3 years ahead of time, for people who do not currently live in the UK, and b) we have no idea what could change in the intervening 3 or more years.

Having said that, from the experience I had with my postgrad student's application for home fees status, if a potential university student lived in the UK for 3 years with one, either, or both parents, most universities would consider that the applicant has satisfied the home fees requirements.

Not sure if you read my thread, but I pasted several sections from the home fees assessment form that applies to your question. I think if a child returned by him/herself, attends school, and then applies to uni, they may fall foul of the clauses I pasted in my thread (though people have posted some individual cases where this worked), but if a parent is living in the country also, I think this clearly meets the requirements of the home fees status requirements.

Although Sally is correct in that the applicant's residency is the focus, the parent's residency does play a role in the decision, because it reflects on the reason why the "child" is in the country, which is indirectly considered in the home fees status decision.

Here's the link to my previous thread, if you hadn't seen it:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=672934