UK plans student visa shake-up

LONDON, (Reuters) – Overseas students in Britain  wanting to stay on and look for work after their courses end  will no longer be able to do so under government plans to curb  immigration laid out today.
Hundreds of thousands of overseas students study at British  universities each year, most from China, India and Ireland, with  numbers reaching record levels in 2009.

Damian Green
Damian Green

The government wants to tighten controls on entry visas for  overseas students to address concerns that illegal immigrants  are using them as an easy way to get into the country.
“This government wants high calibre students with the  genuine desire to study to come to our country for temporary  periods, and then return home,” said Immigration Minister Damian  Green.
An overhaul of the student visa system would reduce the  number of people entering Britain to study below degree level,  as well as toughen English language requirements and limit  students’ rights to work.
“Attracting talented students from abroad is vital to the UK  but we must be more selective about who can come here and how  long they can stay,” Green said.
“Too many students coming to study at below degree level  have been coming here to live and work…  We need to stop this  abuse.”
The student route currently accounts for two-thirds of  migrants entering the country each year. If the government’s  proposals are passed, students will have to leave the country  and apply for a new visa to further their studies.