Overseas Students
(asked on 17th July 2024) - View Source
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many migrants who have arrived in the UK in the past three years for which figures are available are (1) overseas students who are taking (a) undergraduate degrees, (b) post-graduate degrees, and (c) other courses, and (2) the families or dependents of overseas students; what proportion of legal migrants each of those categories represents; and what arrangements are in place for monitoring their departure.
Table: Sponsored study visas by visa routes, applicant type, and course level
| Year ending March 2022 | Year ending March 2023 | Year ending March 2024 | Total (last 3 years) |
Student visas (of which): | 451,467 | 611,685 | 544,231 | 1,607,383 |
Main applicants (of which): | 379,542 | 463,365 | 432,750 | 1,275,657 |
Bachelors level | 100,996 | 107,819 | 106,545 | 315,360 |
Below bachelors level | 19,102 | 22,711 | 22,193 | 64,006 |
Doctoral level | 10,434 | 10,085 | 10,347 | 30,866 |
Masters level | 233,857 | 313,670 | 283,595 | 831,122 |
Other and unknown2 | 15,153 | 9,080 | 10,070 | 34,303 |
Dependants | 71,925 | 148,320 | 111,481 | 331,726 |
Child student visas | 13,248 | 13,158 | 14,174 | 40,580 |
Total - sponsored study visas | 464,715 | 624,843 | 558,405 | 1,647,963 |
There were 3,646,179 visas granted on routes that typically enable migrants to come to the UK ‘long-term’1 between Q2 2021 and Q1 2024, with sponsored study (both for main applicants and dependants) representing 45% of these.
Footnotes:
- To distinguish ‘migrants’ from people coming to the UK short-term, the data excludes visitor, transit, short-term study, and temporary worker visas (except Youth Mobility Scheme). The figure includes visas that typically enable a migrant to come to the UK for a year or more. However, some may be for less than a year. Not everyone issued a visa will arrive or stay in the UK for the entire period allowed by their visa. This total will also exclude those who do not require a visa to come to the UK (for example those with Settled Status under the EU Settlement Scheme).
- ‘Other and unknown’ refers to pre-sessional English language courses and visas with courses unable to be identified.
Departures from the UK are recorded for most journeys. However, there are instances in which a departure may not be recorded, for example those who travel via the Common Travel Area. Those who do remain in the UK after their permission has expired will be considered as overstayers and will be liable for detention and enforced removal.