The UK government has implemented a new policy that makes it illegal for most international students to bring their family members to the country as dependents.
The Home Office announced on Monday that the immigration changes, which were first proposed in May 2023, were now in effect.
“We are fully committed to seeing a decisive cut in migration. From today, new overseas students will no longer be able to bring family members to the UK. Postgraduate research or government-funded scholarships students will be exempt,” the Home Office tweeted on Monday.
The new rules affect students who apply for a study visa under the student route, which covers courses lasting longer than six months. International students pursuing postgraduate courses that are not categorised as research-based will also be denied permission to bring their dependents into the country.
The Home Office explained that the policy was part of its efforts to reduce net migration, which climbed over 500,000 in June 2022, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
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The Home Office also claimed that some students were exploiting the student route as a “backdoor” to work in the UK and that the number of dependants of international students had increased by 750 per cent since 2019, to 136,000 people.
This recent change in international student migration has drawn criticism from student groups and international students, who argue that it will deter talented students from choosing the UK as a study destination and, more importantly, harm the UK economy.
According to some X users, the international student migration channel has helped several UK institutions bridge financing gaps and support university programmes.
According to one user, Dr Andy Palmer, international students contributed £41.9 billion to the UK economy in the 2021/2022 academic year, amounting to £1 million in economic effect for every 11 non-EU students. “I hope someone in The Home Office did the economics on this,” he said.
The Home Office, however, maintained that the policy was in line with the government’s commitment to control the influx of people into the country and ensure that migration to the UK was highly skilled and provided the most benefit.
The Home Office went on to say that the policy will not affect the graduate route, which permits qualifying students to stay and work in the UK for two years after finishing their studies.
