Privacy Policy

AST (Abroad Study and Travel) ("AST", "we", "us", or "our") is an overseas education and travel consultancy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website, book a free consultation, or use any of our counselling, university placement, visa assistance, or travel support services.

By using our website or engaging our services, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. If you do not agree, please do not use our website or services.

Information you provide directly, such as when you book a consultation, submit a contact form, or speak with one of our counsellors:

• Full name, email address, and phone number
• Preferred study destination, study level (undergraduate, postgraduate, etc.), and course or field of interest
• Preferred consultation date and time
• Messages, questions, or additional details you share with us
• Academic records, passport and identification details, financial documents, and other supporting documents you submit during university applications or visa processing

Information collected automatically when you browse our website:

• IP address, browser type, and device information
• Pages visited, time spent on the site, and referring pages
• General location information inferred from your IP address

We use the information we collect to:

• Respond to consultation bookings and enquiries
• Provide counselling, university selection, application, visa, accommodation, and travel support services
• Prepare and submit applications to partner universities and relevant immigration authorities on your behalf, with your consent
• Communicate with you about your application status, upcoming appointments, and important updates
• Improve our website, services, and understand how visitors use our site
• Comply with legal obligations and protect against fraud

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to remember your preferences and understand how visitors interact with our site. You can control or disable cookies through your browser settings; however, doing so may affect certain features of the website.

We do not sell your personal information. We may share your information with:

• Partner universities and institutions, solely to process your application and admission
• Visa, immigration, and embassy authorities, where required to process your visa application
• Trusted service providers who assist us with travel bookings, accommodation arrangements, and IT or communication services, bound by confidentiality obligations
• Authorities where disclosure is required by law or to protect the rights, property, or safety of AST, our students, or others

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. However, no method of transmission or storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

We retain personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services, maintain accurate academic and immigration records, comply with legal or regulatory obligations, and resolve disputes. When information is no longer needed, we take reasonable steps to delete or anonymize it.

You may contact us at any time to:

• Request access to the personal information we hold about you
• Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information
• Request deletion of your personal information, subject to legal or contractual retention requirements
• Withdraw consent to marketing communications

To exercise any of these rights, please reach out using the contact details in the Contact Us section below.

Many prospective students we assist are under the age of 18. Where a student is a minor, we require the involvement, consent, and supporting documentation of a parent or legal guardian before proceeding with counselling, applications, or visa processing on the student's behalf.

Our website may contain links to third-party websites, including partner universities and social media platforms. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those third-party sites. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

As part of arranging overseas education and travel, your information may be transferred to, and processed in, countries outside your country of residence, including the destination country of your chosen university. We take reasonable steps to ensure such transfers are handled securely and only as necessary to provide our services.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for legal, operational, or regulatory reasons. The updated policy will be posted on this page with a revised "Last updated" date.

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal information, please contact us:

• Email: [email protected]
• Phone: +94 76 034 4695
• Address: Chankanai East, Chankanai, Jaffna, Sri Lanka

You may also reach us through our Contact page.