Travel policy

  • Your Chevening Award will meet the cost of air travel from your nearest airport to that nearest to your home university in the United Kingdom, where this is possible and practical. Please note that it can be much more difficult to arrange flights to small regional airports in the UK than for you to arrive at a large airport (often near London) and to travel to your university from there by train, bus or coach.
  • Fares must be booked through our nominated travel agent, Diversity Travel.
  • Chevening cannot be responsible for tickets booked through other routes unless there are exceptional circumstances for which permission has been obtained from your programme officer in advance.
  • Flights offered will be one-way at the most economical rate available. Diversity Travel are not required to offer flights based on preferred airlines or higher baggage allowances.
  • Diversity Travel will find the best fare available based on your requirements and the Chevening travel policy, so please be flexible.
  • We are unable to guarantee that your flight will be direct but Diversity Travel will try to achieve this where possible.
  • You are responsible for any costs in excess of the normal ticketed price, including paying for extra baggage. You are paid an arrival allowance and a departure allowance which you can use towards this cost if you wish. Please check your final award letter to find out whether these payments are covered by your award.
  • Diversity Travel is only able to invoice the Secretariat for flights booked for those in receipt of a Chevening award. Additional flights for any other persons travelling with you will need to be paid for by you at the time of booking.
  • It is your responsibility to organise any transit visas that may be required when travelling through other countries. Diversity may be able to assist, but the responsibility lies with the traveller and not the travel provider.
  • Flights should be booked to reach the UK without long stopovers in a different country. A stopover any longer than the specified airline stopover will not be permitted.
  • Scholars typically arrive in the UK within one or two weeks prior to their scheduled course start date. You must not arrive in the UK before the start date of your Tier 4/Student visa.