Difference between student visa & post work visa

Hello,

I've looked through a few threads, and I don't think this exact question has been asked before. If it has, I do apologize.

First,
Is there a difference between getting an extension on your student visa and applying for a post work study visa? They both sound like the same type of thing.

Also, if you were to marry or become engaged to someone while on a study visa-Is there no way to switch to a fiancee visa without leaving the country?

Why would you need to switch to the fiance visa? I was on a student visa and got married (in the US, maybe that makes a difference) and switched to my FLR(m) after we got married, before my student visa expired. They were not happy I waited to switch but legally I did nothing wrong and I did get my FLR(m).

First,
Is there a difference between getting an extension on your student visa and applying for a post work study visa? They both sound like the same type of thing.

Er...no, they are completely different.  The Tier 1 PSW entitles you to work full time for two years and has completely different qualifying criteria to extending a student visa (Tier 4).  Completely different. 

Also, if you were to marry or become engaged to someone while on a study visa-Is there no way to switch to a fiancee visa without leaving the country?

If you marry in the UK or the US you can switch to spousal visa.

Vicky

That's for clearing that up. Can I ask though, why would you need a fiance visa if you could just obtain a spousal visa upon marriage?

That's for clearing that up. Can I ask though, why would you need a fiance visa if you could just obtain a spousal visa upon marriage?

It depends on your situation.

A fiance visa is for people currently living outside the UK who wish to marry in the UK and then settle there with their British spouse. In order to marry in the UK, they will need a fiance visa, which lasts for 6 months and is applied for outside the UK (you cannot get one from within the UK) - they must marry within those 6 months and then switch to a spousal visa after the wedding. However, if they get married outside the UK first, they can just apply for a spousal visa from their home country and bypass the fiance visa altogether.

If you are already in the UK on a student or work visa, then you don't need to get a fiance visa to come to the UK (because you are already here). However, if you wish to marry in the UK while on that student/work visa, you will need to get a CoA (Certificate of Approval) to do so. Once you are married, you can then switch to a spousal visa, without having to get a fiance visa first.