The UK government has begun directly contacting tens of thousands of international students with a warning: leave the country when your visa expires or face removal, the BBC reported on Tuesday.
The Home Office launched the initiative in response to what it describes as an “alarming” rise in student visa holders attempting to remain in the UK by applying for asylum after their studies end. For the first time, students are receiving formal warnings via text and email about the consequences of overstaying.
“If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you don’t, we will remove you,” the messages read, according to the BBC. Around 10,000 students whose visas are nearing expiry have already been contacted, with a further 130,000 students and their families expected to receive warnings in the coming months, coinciding with the busy autumn intake period.
Home Office data indicates that roughly 15 per cent of asylum applications last year—about 16,000—were submitted by individuals who initially arrived on student visas. While it is unclear how many of these claims were made after visa expiration, officials say the pattern is sufficient to justify the crackdown.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC that some students are “claiming asylum even when things have not changed in their home country.” She emphasized that while the UK will continue to support genuine refugees, “if nothing has changed in their country, people should not be claiming asylum at the end of a student course.” Cooper also noted that the rising number of student asylum claims is adding pressure on already overstretched accommodation and hotel services for asylum seekers.
The messages sent to students warn:
- Asylum claims that lack merit will be swiftly refused.
- Requests for asylum support will be assessed against destitution criteria, and those who do not meet them will not receive assistance.
- Individuals with no legal right to remain must leave or face removal.
The crackdown is part of a broader tightening of immigration rules under the Labour government. In May, the Home Office announced stricter thresholds for universities on visa refusals and course completion rates to maintain their ability to sponsor international students.
While media attention has largely focused on small boat crossings across the Channel, ministers are increasingly concerned about legal entrants, including students, who later switch to the asylum system. Of the 108,000 asylum applications made in the UK last year, around 40,000 were submitted by legal entrants, including those on work, study, or visitor visas, compared with about 35,000 from small boat arrivals. Among legal entrants, student visa holders represented the largest group seeking asylum, with numbers nearly six times higher than in 2020. Although there has been a slight decline, the Home Office is aiming for further reductions.
Cooper acknowledged that student visa asylum claims account for just over 10 per cent of total applications but stressed that “to fix the system, we must tackle every single bit of it.” The government has also reduced the period overseas graduates can remain in the UK after completing their courses from two years to 18 months, and successful asylum claims from skilled worker visa holders have also declined, according to Home Office figures.
