5 Questions Pakistani Parents Should Ask Before Any UK Deposit

Question 1Is the offer real — and what kind of offer is it?

Before money moves, verify three things:

• Source: the offer letter comes from the university’s official domain or applicant portal — not a screenshot, not a WhatsApp forward, not "the agent has it".
• Type: conditional means seats depend on conditions still being met (final results, IELTS); unconditional means the academic decision is made. A deposit paid against a conditional offer has conditions attached — know them before paying.
• Licence: the university appears on GOV.UK’s register of licensed student sponsors. This takes two minutes on the official register and filters out every kind of invented institution.

The sponsor register is public on GOV.UK — checked 1 September 2026.

Question 2Is the deposit refundable if the visa is refused?

This is the question that matters most after the money has left, which is exactly why it belongs before. What university policies typically say — as patterns, not promises:

• Visa refusal: many universities refund the deposit when a visa is refused, with evidence of the refusal — some in full, some minus an administrative charge.
• Withdrawal deadlines: policies usually define a window before the course starts within which withdrawal still earns a (partial) refund; after it, the deposit may be forfeit.
• Conditions attached: some refunds are credited against a deferred intake rather than returned.

The parent rule: get the refund policy in writing from the university’s own pages, read the refusal and deadline clauses specifically, and save the page. "The agent said it’s refundable" is not a policy — the university’s policy is the policy.

Question 3Are you paying the university — or someone’s account?

The rule is short and non-negotiable: university money goes to the university.

• Pay through the university’s own payment portal or the bank details on its official offer/invoice, referencing the student ID.
• An agent collecting the university’s deposit into a personal or company account is a serious red flag — legitimate consultants advise on what to pay; the money path runs direct to the institution.
• Keep the payment receipt that references the student ID and the offer — it becomes evidence for the CAS and for any refund conversation.

If anyone insists on a different arrangement, that insistence itself is the answer.

Question 4When will the CAS actually arrive?

The deposit is not the destination — it is the trigger. After payment, the university issues the CAS: the record your entire visa application is built on. Parents should pin down:

• Expected CAS timing in writing — how long after payment, in weeks, from the university or the consultant handling the file.
• What still stands between you and the CAS — remaining conditions, references, English evidence.
• Why the calendar matters: the CAS fixes your unpaid-tuition figure; the 28-day funds clock runs against it; the visa application window opens on it. A late CAS compresses everything after it — see our CAS guide and the 28-day rule guide.

If the answer is "CAS will come when it comes", the deposit conversation is not finished.

Question 5What are you paying your consultant for — exactly?

Separate the two payments that often get blurred: the university’s deposit (paid to the university) and the consultant’s fee (for guidance services). Then apply the honest-consultant test:

• Scope in writing: what the fee covers — shortlisting, documents, SOP support, visa file preparation — and what it does not.
• Transparent invoicing: a proper invoice, not cash-and-no-paper.
• No outcome promises: anyone guaranteeing admission, scholarships or visas is either lying now or planning to lie later. Decisions rest with universities and UKVI.
• Verifiable claims: figures checked against official pages, shown to you with dates.
• A real office: an address you can visit. Ours is 304 Upper Mall, Lahore — Mondays to Fridays, 11:00 to 19:00.