International University Transfer Guide

Quick answer

To move to another university you apply again as a transfer applicant, have your credits assessed, and, if you hold a student visa or permit, complete that country's step for changing institution before you leave the course you are on. In the right order, you keep your status and as much credit as the new university will accept.

The 7 steps, in order

1. Decide what you are changing. A course at the same university, a university in the same country and a new country are three different processes: see changing course, the switch and transfer routes and switching country.
2. Read your country's rule before you apply. It decides whether you need a release, a new permit or a new visa, and when; the rules by country are below.
3. Get your credits assessed. The university you move to decides what counts, course by course, from your transcript and course descriptions. How credit transfer works explains what it checks; ask for the result in writing before you accept.
4. Apply as a transfer applicant. Expect to send transcripts, course descriptions and a short account of why you are moving: see how to explain a course change. If you are changing country, the new visa asks for proof of funds again; what a fresh start costs lists each country's figure.
5. Check the money at both ends before you pay. Read your current university's refund terms and the new one's deposit terms: questions to ask before paying a deposit.
6. Time the move. The date you may leave is set by the rules, not by the new offer: how soon you can move, by country.
7. Keep studying until the new permission is in place. Leaving early can cost you your status. In Italy, formally withdrawing revokes your study permit (2026-27 circular for international students), and New Zealand tells students not to leave a course before a change is approved (Immigration New Zealand).

Where to start, by country

The step each of these 6 countries requires when you change institution, from the official rules. Each page links its source.

• USA: your current school releases your SEVIS record on an agreed date, then your new school issues a transfer I-20. F-1 transfer guide
• Canada: since November 2024 you need a new study permit, usually with a new PAL or TAL, before you start at a different post-secondary DLI. Changing DLI in Canada
• UK: a new CAS and a new visa application before you start at another university. Changing course or sponsor in the UK
• Australia: in the first 6 months of your main course, a new provider can enrol you only if your current provider releases you or an exception applies. Changing provider in Australia
• Germany: get admitted to the new course, then apply to your Ausländerbehörde for a new permit. Changing university in Germany
• UAE: your current university cancels your student residence and the new one sponsors a new one. Changing university in the UAE

For the other destinations, changing course or university, country by country sets out the rule for all 16 this site covers.

If your case is harder

• After a visa refusal: the grounds each country's rules name.
• With a low GPA: where weak results can cost you your permit.
• With failed subjects: can you transfer with failed subjects.
• Unsure whether to move at all: switch university or finish the degree.

Transfer checklist

• An offer from the new university for a named start date.
• A written credit assessment: which courses count, and the year of entry it gives you.
• Official transcripts and course descriptions from every institution you attended.
• Your country's release or transfer step, done in order: a SEVIS release in the USA, a provider's release in Australia's first six months, a new CAS in the UK, a new permit in Canada or Germany.
• Proof of funds for the new visa or permit, if you need one.
• Refund and deposit terms from both universities, in writing.
• A last day of attendance that falls after the new permission is in place.

Next step

Put your own case through the transfer eligibility checker. It shows the rule for your country with its official source, and the questions to ask each university.

Country rules summarised from the official pages checked on 24 September 2026 and linked on each route page. They change: confirm on the linked page before you act.