By Abishek C P, Leobiss International | Status as of: 23-10-206 — this page will be updated once the Home Office reaches a final decision

The UK Home Office suspended Buckinghamshire New University’s student sponsor licence on 30 September 2026. The university is now off the official Register of licensed sponsors for students.

Are you studying there now? Do you hold an offer? Were you about to apply? Here’s exactly what changes for each case, and what doesn’t.

What Actually Happened

The Home Office cited concerns about the university’s compliance with sponsor duties. These are the obligations every UK institution must meet to sponsor international students.

The university now has 20 working days to respond. If it can’t show the licence should be reinstated, the Home Office will revoke it. Nothing is final yet. This is a suspension under review, not a closed case.

If You’re Already Studying There

You can keep attending. Students already sponsored by the university can continue their studies.

One condition applies: your own visa must stay valid. The suspension doesn’t touch domestic students. It also doesn’t affect anyone whose status doesn’t depend on university sponsorship.

If You Hold an Offer but Haven’t Started Yet

This is where the real risk sits.

A suspended sponsor may be unable to issue new CAS numbers. CAS stands for Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies — it’s the reference you need before you can even apply for your Student visa. No valid CAS usually means your visa application gets held or refused.

Do you hold an offer from this university? Don’t submit a visa application assuming nothing has changed. Confirm your CAS status with the university directly first.

What’s Not Affected

This suspension is specific to student sponsorship only. The university’s Worker and Temporary Worker sponsor licences remain untouched. It also stays on the register for those other licence types. This isn’t a wholesale loss of status — just this one category.

Why This Story Matters Beyond This One University

Sponsor licence suspensions aren’t common. But they’re not rare enough to ignore either.

A university can look completely legitimate. It can be accredited, well-ranked, and actively recruiting. Its sponsorship status can still change with little warning.

This is exactly why the official Register of licensed sponsors matters. Check it at the point of application — not just during your initial research.

What to Do, Depending on Your Situation

Already studying there? Confirm your own visa status is valid. Continue as normal otherwise.

Holding an offer? Contact the university directly. Confirm whether they can still issue a CAS before you apply for a visa.

Still shortlisting UK universities? Check the sponsor register for every institution on your list. Do this before you apply, not after.

Unsure what this means for your timeline? Talk to us before your next step, especially if a visa application is coming up soon.

How Leobiss Tracks This

We monitor Home Office sponsor register changes directly. We do this for every UK university in our active student pipeline, not just at the application stage.

If a shortlisted or offered university gets flagged, we raise it early. We’d rather catch it before it becomes a problem at the visa stage. For the broader UK visa picture, see our guide on the UK student visa maintenance funds update.

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