STUDYING IN THE UK: Changes to Visa Policies

The changes to the student visa (Tier 4) and the graduate work visa (part of the Tier 1 visa) are claimed by the UK to further improve the quality of international student intake and ensure that only the best students can study and work in the UK. However, these changes show that studying in the UK is becoming increasingly difficult and the opportunity to stay and work after graduation is quite fragile.

Increased financial proof STUDY IN THE UK

The immediate difficulty is that the requirement for financial proof has increased. When applying for a student visa, applicants need to prove that they can financially support their study life in the UK. Currently, the cost of living and prices in the UK are increasing at a high rate, so international students must prove that they have a minimum amount of money available to cover their living expenses here during their studies.

Accordingly, to cover living expenses for each month of the course with the longest duration of up to nine months, international students studying at schools in London need to prove that they have at least £1,000/month (previously £800); for international students studying in areas other than London, the amount to prove is £800/month (previously £600). In addition, the required amount for dependents and for cases applying for Tier 4 visas (Tier 4 “Child student”) has also increased.

Controlling study time

With a Tier 4 visa, international students can only stay in the UK for a maximum of 5 years to study a degree program. In addition, the study period will be extended beyond five years in the following exceptional cases: If the undergraduate course lasts four or five years and the international student wants to continue to study a postgraduate or doctoral course (at accredited institutions or public schools); if studying a professional course lasting more than three years in architecture, medicine, dentistry, science and veterinary medicine, law, music (at a music academy).

The UK Border Agency said that many undergraduate courses are completed within three years and many master's courses take only one year to complete. So most international students will study courses that are within the five-year limit. The exception is students studying a master's degree after completing a bachelor's degree, the extension period is six years; and for a doctorate, it is limited to eight years. Under this calculation, international students are limited in their study time, are not allowed to fail multiple times while studying, which means they cannot stay in the UK for longer.

Tightening regulations on internship time

Many international students studying in the UK, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland want to work during their studies to gain additional financial support, gain work experience and learn more about the local community. And for some students, internships are also part of the course. Thus, with a Tier 4 visa, international students are entitled to work in the UK in parallel with their studies, full-time during holidays and part-time during the week.

However, in this reform of student visa regulations, international students are also subject to tighter regulations on internship time. Instead of being able to do an internship for a maximum of half the duration of the course as before, international students below university level or studying at a non-university unit, the internship time is now reduced to 1/3 of the total duration of a course; International students at undergraduate level or above can still undertake an internship for up to 50% of their course duration.

It is not easy to work in the UK after graduation

From 6 April 2012, the post-study work programme (a benefit of the Tier 1 visa) will no longer be available to new applications. This means that the 2-year post-study work permit for international students will no longer be available.

If international students want to work in England, Wales or Northern Ireland after completing their studies, they will need to apply for a Tier 2 (general) visa. A Tier 2 visa is granted to students who have recently graduated with a bachelor's, master's, doctoral, certificate or postgraduate diploma in education (PGCE and PGDE) from an institution or educational institution recognised by the UK Border Agency. However, obtaining this visa to stay in the UK to work for 2-3 years is extremely difficult.

Firstly, graduates can only apply for this visa if they have been recruited into a professional job by a company or organization recognized by the UK Border Agency. Next, this job must also meet certain salary criteria. If the annual salary is below £150,000, the UK will only issue a maximum of 20,700 visas of this type between 6 April 2012 and 5 April 2013. If the annual salary is £150,000 or more, there is no limit to the number of visas issued. This regulation replaces the previous post-study work regulation, which allowed students to stay in non-professional jobs.