Raised standards for recruiting foreign students come amid continued visa abuse. Student asylum claims already down 30% as government action delivers results
Universities will be stripped of the right to recruit international students if too many drop out, as the government tightens the screws on visa abuse.
New sponsorship rules will introduce a sliding scale of penalties for higher education institutions that fail to recruit responsibly.
It comes after asylum claims from work, study and tourist visas more than tripled under the previous government – reaching 37% of all claims, with foreign students accounting for the largest share.
Asylum claims by students have since fallen by 30% in the past year alone following tough action taken in partnership with the sector.
The Home Secretary has also imposed a first-of-its-kind visa brake on study visas for nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan following a surge in asylum claims.
These reforms build on that progress, raising the pass marks of the annual test used to monitor visa sponsors – across all three of its metrics:
Minister for Migration and Citizenship Mike Tapp said:
High drop-out rates can indicate students have entered the illegal working economy rather than studied whilst high visa rejection rates or low enrolment figures suggest some institutions have not done enough due diligence on applicants. But from summer 2027, a new traffic light rating system will make clear to regulators, and the public, which institutions are recruiting responsibly.
Those rated red will face restrictions on the number of students they can recruit and must fund a 12-month action plan to fix failing practices.
Those that don’t improve face losing international student recruitment rights altogether.
The changes were announced during a visit to Manchester Metropolitan University by Home Office Minister Mike Tapp, hosted by Vice-Chancellor Professor Malcolm Press and Universities UK.
Professor Malcolm Press CBE DL, President of Universities UK said:
The Home Office is actively exploring new ways to share data with the education sector, within a robust data protection framework.
Education institutions also hold valuable data of their own, and the government continues to urge them to work together to share intelligence across the sector and crack down on abuse wherever it occurs.
Since last summer, the Home Office has contacted 306,000 students whose visas are due to expire – warning that meritless asylum claims will be swiftly refused and those without the right to remain must leave or face removal.
These measures form part of the government’s broader drive to restore order and control to the immigration system - under which net migration has now fallen by 74%.
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