Over the past few months, I’ve spoken with many university teams who are all grappling with the same challenge: how to strengthen compliance and fraud prevention without slowing down their admissions process.
It’s become a real talking point across the UK sector.
Recent UKVI reviews and media coverage have shone a light on the growing scrutiny universities face when it comes to sponsor compliance and the integrity of international admissions. As The PIE News and BUILA have both noted, institutions are being asked to show clear, consistent, and auditable processes that evidence good governance and robust risk management.
None of this is new, but the level of visibility, accountability and defensibility has stepped up. For universities, it’s a reminder that assurance isn’t just about meeting visa requirements; it’s about protecting reputation, student experience, and institutional trust.
And that’s exactly where Enroly helps.
While some universities are only now beginning to digitise their pre-CAS and visa workflows, CAS Shield has been helping UK institutions build confidence through smarter checks for years, supporting over half of the UK higher education market to streamline operations, reduce risk, and stay compliant with UKVI expectations.
Checks that build confidence, not complexity
Every international student journey involves dozens of small but critical checks: ID, financial evidence, CAS data, visa documents, payments, and more.
Enroly brings all of these into one connected, transparent process, so teams spend less time chasing and more time supporting students.
Here’s how that looks in practice.
1. Document checks that catch issues early
Students upload their passports, financial and academic documents directly to Enroly CAS Shield. Our built-in checklists and validation rules flag anything missing or inconsistent before your team even opens the file.
At Coventry University, this shift away from manual emails and spreadsheets has transformed how their compliance team works. They now manage risk through clear dashboards and automated checklists, eliminating most manual follow-up and reducing repetitive admin, ultimately saving the University over 3,000 staff hours for the May cohort alone.
2. Financial evidence made consistent
Financial checks are one of the most time-consuming, and high-stakes, parts of the process. Enroly CAS Shield standardises these workflows so every student is assessed against the same UKVI-aligned requirements.
At the University of Surrey, this has given staff more confidence in decision-making. Their international admissions team moved to Enroly to replace manual compliance tracking, reporting that it not only cut administrative burden but also improved accuracy in CAS forecasting, reducing error margins from around 30% to 8%.
3. CAS data assurance, built in
CAS Shield automatically cross-checks key data fields such as name, date of birth, nationality and course before CAS issue, catching inconsistencies that could otherwise cause delays or refusals.
At the University of South Wales, moving to Enroly completely eliminated document-related visa refusals, reporting zero cases in the first full cycle after onboarding. They also saw a fivefold improvement in processing speed, with all document transfers moved securely off email servers.
4. Ongoing status and visa tracking
Keeping track of passport expiries, visa renewals and BRP updates can be a full-time job. Enroly automates these checks, providing continuous visibility and alerts when action is needed.
At the University of Greenwich, automation has made a measurable impact: a fivefold improvement in administrative processing time, a 62% reduction in student-staff communication volume, and a 75% drop in enrolment attrition.
5. Confidence in credibility decisions
For universities that conduct credibility interviews, Enroly supports scheduling, recording and storing them alongside the applicant record, bringing structure, consistency, and traceability.
Bangor University now runs its interviews entirely within Enroly, allowing multiple reviewers to access and assess student files securely. This has helped their team spot risks earlier and make faster, fairer decisions, all whilst delivering a 6x faster credibility interview process for applicants.
6. Payment visibility in real time
Through our integration with TransferMate, universities can now see live payment data connected directly to each student’s record. This eliminates fake proof-of-payment uploads and provides instant confirmation of deposit status, giving teams the assurance they need to proceed confidently with CAS issuance.
7. Audit-ready by design
Every action, document and decision in Enroly CAS Shield is automatically logged. So when audit time comes, your team doesn’t have to dig through shared folders or inboxes, you’re already ready.
At the University of Aberdeen, leadership now uses CAS Shield dashboards daily for compliance and operational oversight. Their team reports CAS assessment times that are 81% faster than the industry average, with transparent, auditable records that make internal QA simple.
The results we’re seeing across the sector
- Up to 63% faster document-checking and processing times
- 50% fewer CAS errors and manual interventions
- 30% reduction in late-stage visa refusals
- 100% audit-ready documentation and records
- Enroly now supports over half of UK universities managing international enrolments
These improvements aren’t just about efficiency, they’re about confidence.
When every check, update and decision sits in one connected system, universities gain the clarity to move faster, stay compliant, and make better decisions with certainty.
At Enroly, that’s what we mean by smarter checks.
It’s not more admin, it’s assurance, built in.
