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Transport for London

18+ Student

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Apply online

You will need:

  • A digital passport size photo to upload
  • Your Enrolment ID from your education establishment
  • A credit or debit card to pay the £5 fee
  • Apply online

Reminder: using Oyster photocards on buses and trams

You must touch your Oyster photocard on a yellow card reader when you board a bus or at a tram stop before you get on a tram. Make sure you get a green light, which shows your card is valid. If you get a red light, touch your photocard on the yellow reader again. If it is still not accepted, speak to a bus driver or member of staff.

If your Oyster photocard has been stopped, has expired or has insufficient pay as you go credit, you may be asked to pay the cash fare.

What is it?

An 18+ Student Oyster photocard helps you spend less on travel in and around London.

Savings

  • 30 per cent savings on the cost of adult Travelcards and Bus & Tram Pass season tickets valid for seven days, one month or longer periods of up to one year.

    The discount/concession is only valid for up to one academic year and will expire on your course end date or 14 October 2010, whichever is sooner. If your course is longer than one year, you will need to apply for a new card at the beginning of each academic year.

  • We define an academic year as running from 1 September to 14 October
  • The 2009/2010 scheme closes to applications on 31 July 2010

    The scheme has been developed by TfL and National Rail with the support of the University of London Union, the National Union of Students and education establishments in London.

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Am I eligible?

To be eligible for an 18+ Student Oyster photocard, you must be:

  • Aged 18 or over, registered with an education establishment participating in the scheme, and be either:

    • Enrolled on a full-time course made up of at least 15 tuition-led and/or structured learning hours a week over at least 14 weeks, or
    • Receiving NHS bursary money*, either as a full-time or part-time student, or
    • A part-time student enrolled on a part-time course lasting for at least 14 weeks and receiving the full allocation of grant for tuition fees
    • A full-time postgraduate student (for example, studying or writing up for 15 or more hours a week), or
    • A part-time postgraduate student receiving financial help from the Access to Learning Fund*, or 
    • A Sabbatical Officer, or
    • A full-time student as defined above, registered and studying on a higher education course with a university or college not registered on the scheme, but on mandatory placement in London for a minimum period of 14 weeks. More information about how to apply as a placement student

*Proof of such receipt must be provided to your education establishment before to your application is validated by an authorised signatory or online provider.

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Cost of the card

18+ Student Oyster photocard £5

Adult Oyster card£3

If you live near your education establishment or only make a few journeys, you may not need a Travelcard or Bus & Tram Pass season ticket. You may be better off with a standard Oyster card.

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Fares

18+ Student Oyster photocard

Adult Oyster card

Sample Travelcard prices

18+ 7 Day Monthly Annual
Zones 1-2 £18 £69.20 £720
Zones 1-4 £25.70 £98.70 £1028
Zones 1-6 £33.30 £127.90 £1332
Adult 7 Day Monthly Annual
Zones 1-2 £25.80 £99.10 £1032
Zones 1-4 £36.80 £141.40 £1472
Zones 1-6 £47.60 £182.80 £1904

Sample Bus & Tram Pass prices

18+ 7 Day Monthly Annual
  £11.60 £44.60 £464
Adult 7 Day Monthly Annual
  £16.60 £63.80 £664

Sample single fares: Tube, DLR, London Overground and National Rail

18+ Pay as you go Cash
  Peak Off-peak Anytime
Zones 1-2 £2.30 £1.80 £4
Zones 1-4 £3.10 £2.40 £4
Zones 1-6 £4.20 £2.40 £4.50
Adult Pay as you go Cash
  Peak Off-peak Anytime
Zones 1-2 £2.30 £1.80 £4
Zones 1-4 £3.10 £2.40 £4
Zones 1-6 £4.20 £2.40 £4.50

Sample single fares: Bus

18+ Oyster single fare Cash single fare
  £1.20 £2
Adult Oyster single fare Cash single fare
  £1.20 £2

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Should I buy one?

18+ Student Oyster photocard

Adult Oyster card

Usually the best choice if:
  • You travel most days from home to college
  • You also travel regularly at weekends in the same zones as your Travelcard
  • You also travel regularly at weekends using your Bus & Tram Pass
Usually the best choice if:
  • You only travel a few times a week
  • You don't have a regular travel pattern
  • You live within walking distance of you education establishment

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Where can I get one?

18+ Student Oyster photocard

Adult Oyster card

  • Apply online
  • Apply through post if online is not an option
  • Need to allow up to two weeks for your application to be processed
  • You can't apply between 1 and 31 August

Available over the counter at:

  • Tube station ticket offices
  • Oyster Ticket Stops
  • London Overground station ticket offices
  • Some National Rail station ticket offices
  • London Travel Information Centres

Also available within a week from:

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Can I use Oyster online?

18+ Student Oyster photocard

Adult Oyster card

  • No
  • Top up pay as you go credit
  • Set up Auto top-up
  • Buy and renew Travelcard season tickets

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Postal applications

If you can't apply online, you will need to get an 18+ Student Oyster photocard application form from your education establishment.

When completing the form you must:

  • Carefully follow the 'What to do' instructions on the front page
  • Check that your cheque or postal order is correctly completed or that you have entered the correct details for your credit or debit card
  • For problems with payments for postal applications please call 0845 331 9872# between 08:00-20:00 seven days a week except bank holidays

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Lost or stolen

If you lose your 18+ Student Oyster photocard, or it is stolen, you must re-apply to get a replacement. You'll need to pay a further non-refundable fee of £5 GBP. You can re-apply:

  • Online
  • By postal application form via your education establishment - use the same name that you used to register with them
  • By telephone on 0845 331 9872#

To find out if you can get a refund on any ticket product or pay as you go credit held on your lost or stolen 18+ Student Oyster photocard contact:

Oyster Ticketing and Refunds office
55 Broadway,
London.
SW1H 0BD

Tel: 0845 330 9876*

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Help and contacts

  • For general enquiries call the help line on 0845 330 9876*
  • For problems with payments for postal applications please call 0845 331 9872# between 08:00-20:00 seven days a week, except bank holidays
  • If you have applied online and have not received your card within two weeks please log in to your account and check the status of your application.
  • You can also check the status of your application by texting the application reference number to 07624 809 356 (charged at your standard network rate) or by calling 0845 330 9876*

*For BT residential customers, calls to the Oyster helpline will cost no more than 3.5p per minute (current at December 2009). The price from non-BT phone lines may be different.

#Calls from BT landlines will be charged with a minimum fee of 5.9p and then up to 4p per minute. Mobile and other network costs may vary (current at December 2009).

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