Your degree must have been awarded within 5 years of your application date. The clock starts on the award date shown on your certificate — not the ceremony date. Multiple degrees: the most recent qualifying one is used.
The 5-year rule
To qualify for the HPI visa, your degree must have been awarded within the 5 years immediately before you submit your application to the Home Office. The reference date is your visa application date — not the date you start preparing documents, not the Ecctis application date.
The Home Office uses the award date on your degree certificate. This is often different from the ceremony date — graduation ceremonies can happen months after you actually completed your studies. Use the date printed on the certificate itself.
How the 5 years are calculated
The calculation is calendar-based: if you apply on 1 July 2026, your degree must have been awarded on or after 1 July 2021. There is no grace period and no rounding.
- Degree awarded 4 years and 11 months ago — still within window
- PhD completed 2.5 years ago, bachelor's 7 years ago — PhD qualifies
- Master's awarded in November 2021, applying in October 2026 — just within 5 years
- Degree completion date and ceremony date differ — certificate date is what counts
- Degree awarded exactly 5 years and 1 day ago — no longer eligible
- Degree from an approved university but awarded 6 years ago — outside window
- Certificate date is before your university was added to the approved list
- Graduation ceremony was recent but award date on certificate is older than 5 years
Multiple degrees
If you have more than one degree from approved universities, you can use whichever qualifying degree keeps you within the 5-year window. A common scenario: bachelor's from an approved university (7 years ago, outside window) + master's from an approved university (3 years ago, inside window) → use the master's.
You are not required to use your highest degree — just your most recent qualifying one. A PhD from 6 years ago doesn't help if a master's from 3 years ago also qualifies.