Tens of thousands of international students are being told by the UK government that they could be removed from the country if they overstay their visas.
The Home Office has launched a direct messaging campaign, sending texts and emails to students whose visas are close to expiring. For the first time, students are being contacted personally rather than through their universities. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the move follows what she described as an “alarming” rise in the number of students switching to asylum claims after their visas expire.
Government figures show that in the year to June, about 14,800 asylum applications – 13% of the total – came from people who first entered the UK on student visas. Most of these were from Pakistan, followed by India, Bangladesh and Nigeria. The Home Office says the figure is nearly six times higher than in 2020, though lower than last year.
The new messages warn students that if they remain in the UK without legal permission, they face removal. Around 10,000 people have already been contacted, with many more expected to receive warnings in the autumn.
The text includes a blunt message: “If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you do not, we will remove you.” The government has also tightened rules for universities, raising the standards they must meet to keep their visa sponsorship licences.
Speaking, Cooper said some students were using asylum claims to stay longer, putting pressure on already full asylum accommodation. “We will always support genuine refugees,” she said, “but if nothing has changed in their country, people should not be claiming asylum at the end of a student course.”
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