KAHMANDU, FEB 08 - Tougher rules have been brought in to stop the abuse of U.K. student visas after the temporary suspension of new student visa applications a week ago in Nepal, Bangladesh and Northern India, reported the BBC news site on Sunday. Four measures have been taken to monitor the student visa applicants to stop illegal stay, which include higher English proficiency levels and lesser work hours for students.

Applicants from outside the EU will now have to speak English to a level just below GCSE standards, rather than a beginner's level of English required at present. Students taking courses below the degree level will now be allowed to work for only 10 hours a week, instead of the 20 at present.

Also, students enrolled in courses with durations less than six months will not be allowed to bring dependents inside the U.K., while dependents of those students enrolled in courses below the degree level will not be allowed to work now.

Additionally, visas for courses below the degree level will be granted only if the institutions they attend are on a new register--the Highly Trusted Sponsors List.

“Many of these students, if they are coming here using this route for illegal migration, will pay thousands of pounds to usually criminal gangs,” Alan Johnson, the U.K. Home Secretary, has been quoted as saying on the news site. “The U.K. remains open to those foreign students who want to come to the UK for legitimate study.

“We are ready to follow this rule,” said Rajendra Baral, General Secretary of Educational Consultancy Association of Nepal, the governing body for educational consultancies. “But we urge the U.K. government to return the drafts of the Nepali students submitted to bogus colleges.”

The U.K. government suspended student visa applications from Nepal, Bangladesh and three centres in North India last week after unusually high visa applications.

Posted on: 2010-02-08 10:00

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