Immigration Solicitors

Conservative peer Lord Heseltine is calling for overseas students to be made exempt from cuts to migrant numbers in Britain.

BBC News reports that Lord Heseltine is calling for students from non-EU countries to be excluded from the Conservative Party’s attempts to cut net migration to the UK from around 200,000 every year to “tens of thousands”.

Speaking to the BBC, he added that overseas students from non-EU countries were “not the sort of people that are causing the anxiety about immigration”.

Prime Minister David Cameron has previously tried to encourage more students from India and China to come to the UK to study.

Technology entrepreneur Sir James Dyson has also called for talented engineering graduates to be handed work visas at graduation ceremonies, to help the UK retain the most talented engineers it has trained.

However, there have been controversies over the number of overseas students who may remain in the UK after their student visas expire, as well as students registering at bogus colleges in the UK.

The Home Office has also said that the number of non-EU students in Britain will be factored into its migration figures, as overseas students have an impact on Britain’s public services and communities.

Lord Heseltine says that this policy risks damaging Britain’s reputation abroad – as well as impacting on universities and the UK’s finances. He added that students who come to the UK to study from non-EU countries went on to become “ambassadors” for the UK.

“In talking about tens of thousands of people, the government will have to recognise that there are very large numbers of students in this country – in our universities, in our business schools – who are a great asset financially and educationally,” Lord Heseltine told the BBC.

In the year to March 2014, study-visas to the UK had increased by 6% to more than 219,000.

Figures show that study-related sponsored visa applications had also increased by 1% to March 2014, with more than 209,000 applications made.

There was also a 7% increase in sponsored visa applications for the university sector, with a total of 168,075 applications for sponsored university visa applications made to March 2014.

The Home Office said that it was “building an immigration system that is fair to British citizens and legitimate migrants – and tough on those who flout the rules”.

The rise in applications from international students for UK student visas has mainly come from students in China, Brazil and Malaysia wishing to come to Britain to study.

A Home Office spokesman added:

“While our reforms are cracking down on the abuse of student visas – which was allowed to continue for too long – we have seen applications to study at UK universities go up by 7% last year; and by even more for our world-leading Russell Group universities.”

The Russell Group comprises 24 leading UK universities considered to have the best research facilities and teaching standards for both UK and international students.

Duncan Lewis Immigration Lawyers – International Student Visa Applications

Duncan Lewis immigration lawyers can advise EU migrants and non-EU migrants on a wide range of immigration matters, including student visa applications, right to work in the UK – and spouse or partner visa applications for UK immigration.

Duncan Lewis immigration lawyers can also advise on:

• Asylum in the UK
• Asylum appeals
• British citizenship
• Fast-track detention process
• Housing benefit
• Illegal entry to the UK
• Marriage in the UK
• Visa overstays.

For expert legal advice on international student study-visas to the UK, contact Duncan Lewis immigration lawyers on 020 7923 4020.