UK to Tighten Visa Rules for International Students

As part of larger efforts to reduce net migration, the UK government is considering significant changes to its graduate visa program, which has reportedly caused friction between the Department for Education and the Home Office. The Financial Times claims that in order for international students to stay in the UK after completing their studies, the proposed revisions would need them to land a graduate-level job.

According to reports, the Home Office is angry over what it perceives as opposition from the education department, which it says has prompted Universities UK, the primary representative organisation for the industry, to openly oppose the changes.
A Home Office official told FT that it was “really frustrating” that the education department had “lobbied Universities UK to go out and fight this,” adding that “we’re working to deliver that.” The prime minister has given us the objective of reducing net migration.
The current graduate visa, which was introduced in 2021, permits international students to remain in the UK for a maximum of two years upon graduation, irrespective of their job position. But after a year, more than 60% of graduates on the programme were making less than £30,000, which is below the average graduate income criteria, according to information from the Migration Advisory Committee.

However, the Department of Education has expressed worries that restricting this immigration pathway could negatively impact already financially burdened universities. Reducing the program would be “madness,” according to Vivienne Stern, Chief Executive of Universities UK, who pointed out that one group of overseas students brings in £40 billion to the UK economy each year. She underlined that students had time to obtain experience and secure work within the two-year visa period.
The Home Office used data demonstrating that in 2024, 40,000 asylum claims were made by people who had previously held UK visas, with almost 40% of those claims being from former student visa holders, to support their reform campaign. Some of these cases, according to officials, involve deception, with people switching from graduate and student visas to asylum requests and ending up in government-provided housing.
Next month, the Labour government, led by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, is anticipated to publish a white paper on migration policy, with modifications to the graduate visa program probably taking front stage.

The new plans might impose more stringent regulations than the previous Conservative administration under Rishi Sunak, who chose to make only minor adjustments because of worries about the effects on higher education.

In order to prevent dependency on immigration at the expense of domestic talent, a government spokeswoman said, “The Home Office and Department for Education are working closely to ensure an evidence-based approach that aligns migration policy with education and skills.” “As an essential component of our top-notch higher education system, we will continue to welcome international students,” they continued.
The education department, meanwhile, claimed that it “did not recognise” any difference with the Home Office on the suggested modifications.