THE UK Government has announced significant changes to the visa scheme for international students and their families.
As part of the Tories’ stated ambition to reduce net migration – after figures last week showed record numbers of people adding to the UK’s population – the rules around foreign students bringing their partners and children to Britain will be tightened up.
What will this mean for international students?
The new rules announced last Tuesday by the Home Office and the Department for Education will mean most people who come from abroad to study at British universities will be prevented from bringing their families over with them.
A graduate visa currently allows master’s students to bring their partners and children to the UK and they are allowed to stay for 24 months after the student completes their studies.
The new system, which is expected to come into force next January, will limit these privileges to those on designated research projects. This includes PhD students and those on research-led master’s courses, whose courses generally last between three to five years.
Along with these new restrictions, the Government said it would review how it determines whether overseas students will be able to support themselves financially while in Britain and crack down on international students “who may be supporting inappropriate applications”.
What will be the effect on universities?
Foreign students are a cash cow for Scottish universities because they pay much higher fees than those from the country. They also contribute billions to the Scottish economy, as we revealed on Sunday.
Students from overseas are thought to contribute more than £4 billion to Scotland’s economy – with Glasgow being one of the greatest beneficiaries of these gains.
The move could mean universities having to tighten their belts and could deal a serious blow to the economies of cities across Scotland which welcome thousands of international students per year.
Why is the Government doing this?
The Government says it is committed to bringing down net migration levels, which reached their highest-ever peak last year. One method to do this is limiting the rights of people who come to Britain to study.
By banning students from bringing their families, it could make Britain a less attractive place to study for international students and overall levels of migration are brought down by limiting visas to only those studying on university courses.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman said: “The UK is a top destination for the brightest students to learn at some of the world’s best universities. But we have seen an unprecedented rise in the number of student dependents being brought into the country with visas.
“It is time for us to tighten up this route to ensure we can cut migration numbers and meet the government’s pledge to the British people to cut net migration. This is the fair thing to do to allow us to better protect our public services, while supporting the economy by allowing the students who contribute the most to keep coming here.”
What has been the reaction?
Jo Grady, the general secretary of the University and College Union said the changes were “vindictive”.
She said: “Those who choose to study in the UK, no matter where they are from, bring huge value to our society and deserve the right to live alongside their loved ones. Instead, they are being treated with contempt.”
Madeleine Sumption, director of Oxford University’s Migration Observatory, told The Guardian: “The impacts of restricting family members are likely to be relatively small for the UK as a whole, but will not be evenly distributed.
“The main impact arguably falls on students themselves: some may choose to be separated from their family during their studies, while others will decide not to come to the UK. As a result, the UK is likely become somewhat less attractive to master’s students.”
