A Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) report suggests that the potential reduction in international student intake across universities could cost English institutions over £600 million a year.
The institutions facing the largest cuts in revenue are major metropolitan universities, including University College London (UCL) (42 million), the University of Manchester (27 million), and Kings College London (22 million).
The government has been prompted to introduce greater restrictions on overseas students due to the growing political pressure to reduce migration.
In 2024, the conservative government banned international students from bringing dependents in an attempt to curb perceived abuses of the student visa system.
On Monday, May 12, the government unveiled it’s immigration white paper titled “Restoring control over the Immigration System”. Chapter three of the report, “Skilled Students”, details new plans for international students.
The two main areas subject to change are graduate visas and changes to how universities manage the intake of international students and their fees.
The University of Manchester Students’ Union has since published a response expressing concerns that this may be “perpetuating a harmful rhetoric about immigration and threatening our wonderful, diverse student community here in Manchester”.
Student migration doubled in number between 2018 to 2022 with a peak of 484,000 sponsored study visas being issued in 2022.
International tuition fees are not subject to the government-mandated cap on domestic fees, so they are substantially higher than what domestic students pay. There have been concerns about the reliance of British universities on revenue from international students. Between 2022 and 2023, international students contributed £12 billion in tuition fees.
The white paper says that currently, “too many graduates allowed to stay in the UK following the successful completion of their studies are not moving into the graduate level roles for which the graduate visa route was created”.
This prompted the proposal of a reduced grace period following study completion to find work. The graduate route launched in 2021 allowed graduate students to stay 2 years after graduation, this is intended to be lowered to 18 months.
According to the government report, less than one-third of international graduates go on to work in positions that require a degree-level qualification or equivalent.
The white paper also details plans to change how universities manage international students. These plans include exploring the introduction of a six percent levy on higher education income from international students, which would be reinvested into higher education and skills systems.
With the introduction of a international student levies, the government hopes that this would raise standards and encourage universities to recruit students “responsibly” and award places to “genuine students”.
The white paper details that “Unfortunately, the evidence suggests that at present, in some cases, the integrity of the UK’s student visa system is being undermined, both by individuals from overseas seeking to exploit it, and by education providers in this country failing to protect it”. This is referring to students who use study visas as a means by which to gain access to the country, not to study.
Nick Hillman OBE, The Director of the HEPI, said: “The levy is designed to raise more money for the government’s educational priorities but it is not clear if all the money will come back out of the Treasury, nor how it will be spent if it does”.
The BCA (Basic Compliance Assessment), the Home Office’s mechanism that assesses how universities are complying with immigration requirements is set to become stricter. Currently, a university needs a 90% enrolment rate to pass the BCA, this is planned to be changed to 95%. If a university does not meet this requirement, the white paper proposes placing a limit on their international student intake.
This aims to ensure universities “recruit responsibly”. The paper concludes that “we are setting out reforms which recognise the benefits that international students bring to the UK, help to share out these benefits, but which raise standards and compliance to prevent visa misuse and strengthen the requirements to work and contribute for those graduates who stay on after their courses have been completed”.
It’s currently estimated that international students make up around 10% of the current Greater Manchester student population, and contribute around 63% of the University of Manchester’s revenue from tuition fees.
Vivienne Stern MBE, the Chief Executive of Universities UK in her response to the white paper said: “We would urge government to think carefully about the impact that a levy on international student fees will have on universities and the attractiveness of the UK as a study destination”.
