The UK government has launched a new campaign targeting international students who overstay their visas, warning that they could face deportation if they remain in the country illegally.
According to the Home Office, tens of thousands of foreign students are being contacted directly by text and email as part of the new initiative.
Around 10,000 international students whose visas are due to expire have already received messages, while over 130,000 are expected to be contacted in the coming months.
“If you submit an asylum claim that lacks merit, it will be swiftly and robustly refused.
Any request for asylum support will be assessed against destitution criteria. If you do not meet the criteria, you will not receive support.
If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave.
If you don’t, we will remove you,” the warning message reads
Rising asylum claims from student visa holders
The campaign comes amid what the government described as an “alarming” rise in asylum applications from international students. Home Office data shows that in the year to June, around 14,800 asylum applications 13% of the total came from individuals who entered the UK on student visas.
Pakistan accounted for the largest share of these applications with 5,700 cases, followed by India, Bangladesh, and Nigeria.
Although the figure is lower than last year, it remains nearly six times higher than in 2020.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC that some students were exploiting the asylum system after their visas expired.
“Some international students are claiming asylum even when things haven’t changed in their home country.
“Students are entering the asylum system and sometimes staying there for years, which causes problems with asylum accommodation and hotels. We obviously will do our bit to support genuine refugees, but if nothing has changed in their country, people should not be claiming asylum at the end of a student course,” she said.
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The Home Office has increasingly focused on curbing the use of study visas as a pathway to asylum. In May, it announced plans to tighten university visa sponsorship requirements by making course completion and visa refusal thresholds stricter.
Earlier this year, the government also reduced the period overseas graduates can remain in the UK after their studies from two years to 18 months.
Alongside this, Cooper announced on Monday that new applications for a refugee family reunion scheme would be suspended, while promising that migrant returns under the UK’s new one in, one out agreement with France would begin later this month.
Universities UK, which represents British universities, acknowledged the government’s concerns but called for closer cooperation.
“To make sure universities can continue to play their part, we need improved, real-time data sharing between Home Office and the sector so that universities can respond proactively to any issues as soon as they are identified,” the group said.
The Refugee Council, however, warned against portraying students who claim asylum as abusers of the system.
Jon Featonby of the Refugee Council argued that not all students applying for asylum are abusing the system.
“It’s wrong to suggest that people who arrive on a visa and then apply for asylum are abusing the system and do not have a genuine need for protection,” he said.
He added that conditions in some countries can worsen suddenly, or applicants may only feel safe to seek protection once in the UK because they fear reprisal or surveillance in their home country.
