Changes in visa rules won't impact undergrad students, says UK minister

UK's Deputy Foreign Minister Lord Tariq Ahmad was recently in India on a four-day visit, during which he clarified that the changes in the visa rules are not aimed at undergraduate students from India.

In an interview with NDTV, Ahmad said that his government has benefitted from Indian students, further stating that the recent visa curbs are only for students who come for one year of research and doctoral studies.

His comment comes days after UK Home Secretary, Suella Braverman recently announced changes to the existing visa rules, which included disallowing students from bringing dependants into the country.

Braverman also stated, "High migration was the main reason for the announcement." She further added that it aimed to stop "inappropriate applications to sell immigration, not education".

"We have tweaked visa rules for research and PhD students who come only for one year and sometimes don't complete their research", Ahmad told NDTV.

He also added, "Britain benefits from legal immigration and only wants to stop illegal immigration. Most students are from India. We want more students."

Recently, on May 25, the UK posted its official immigration data, which was at an all-time high of 606,000. It also revealed that Indians ranked on top of the skilled worker tally along with the student visas issued last year.

The sporadic increase in the immigration numbers added pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who promised to bring the numbers down.

A previously dated report also revealed that the increase in the numbers was driven by nationals from non-European countries, including refugees under the British government's Ukraine visa schemes and people migrating for work and education, the report added.