BREAKING: Perish the idea of bringing your family over, UK govt tells Nigerian students
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Rishi Sunak, UK prime minister
The government of United Kingdom has put in place a new law that will stop Nigerian students and others studying in the UK from bringing their family as dependents except “under specific circumstances.”
International students will no longer be able to bring dependants with them unless they are on postgraduate courses that are currently designated as research programmes.
Under the new rule according to Sky News report, the UK will remove the ability for international students to switch out of the student route and into work routes before their studies have been completed to prevent misuse of the visa system.
The media outlet also report that “there will also be a review of the maintenance requirement for students and dependents and a crackdown on “unscrupulous” education agents “who make use of inappropriate applications to sell immigration, not education”.
This change takes effect in January 2024 to allow students starting courses in the UK time to plan to adapt to the new policy.
In a written ministerial statement published on Tuesday and obtained by Sky News, Home Secretary Suella Braverman said recent immigration figures had shown an “unexpected rise” in the number of dependants coming to the UK alongside international students.
