Tougher times for foreign students as UK issues new visa directives

Tens of thousands of foreign students in the United Kingdom (UK) are now facing tougher measures as the government rolls out new directives on overstaying visas.

The Home Office confirmed it has begun sending text and email warnings to students whose visas are nearing expiry, a move officials say is in response to an “alarming” rise in study visa holders switching to asylum claims after their courses end.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC that many of the asylum claims being made are “baseless.”

“Some are claiming asylum even when things haven’t changed in their home country,” she said. “That leaves people stuck in the system for years and puts pressure on asylum accommodation and hotels.”

Figures show that 13% of asylum applications in the year to June, about 14,800 cases, came from people who entered on study visas, almost six times the number recorded in 2020. While the figure has recently dropped by 10%, ministers insist more needs to be done.

According to the Home Office, 10,000 students with visas due to expire have already been contacted, with tens of thousands more set to receive the same warning this autumn.

The message reads: “If you submit an asylum claim that lacks merit, it will be swiftly and robustly refused… If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you don’t, we will remove you.”

The government has also tightened visa rules for universities, warning they could lose their sponsorship licences if students fail to complete courses. Earlier this year, the post-study work period for overseas graduates was cut from two years to 18 months.

As Parliament resumed on Monday, Cooper further announced a temporary suspension of new refugee family reunion applications, adding that the first migrant returns under the UK’s new “one in, one out” deal with France will begin later this month.