Universities will be stripped of the right to recruit international students if too many drop out from their courses over fears they are being exploited for visa abuse.
In a bid to bring down asylum claims from students further, the Home Office unveiled the reforms on Thursday, saying they would “tighten the screws” on those using universities as a way to enter Britain on false pretences.
The number of students who go on to claim asylum is already decreasing, prompted by the fall in study visas granted following restrictions on family members coming to the UK.
According to Home Office data published last month, 10,835 people on a study visa went on to claim asylum in the UK in the year up to March 2026. Hundreds of thousands of people are granted student visas each year, and there were some 498,626 grants in the peak year ending June 2023.
There were 409,954 sponsored study visas granted in the year up to March 2026, the latest figures show.
The Home Office has said that new sponsorship rules for universities would introduce a sliding scale of penalties for higher education institutions. For universities to be allowed to sponsor study visas, they must now have a course completion rate for students of at least 90 per cent – up from 85 per cent previously.
Their course enrolment rate must also reach at least 95 per cent, up from 90 per cent previously.
A new traffic light rating system will be introduced from summer 2027 for universities. Those rated red will face restrictions on the number of students they can recruit and must fund a 12-month action plan to fix failing practices.
Those judged as not improving will have their sponsorship rights stripped altogether, the Home Office said.
Minister for Migration and Citizenship Mike Tapp promised that “the UK will always welcome genuine international students, and our universities are rightly admired around the world”, but pledged “our visa system must not be used as a backdoor to asylum and illegal working”.
He added: “Student asylum claims are down 30 per cent in the last year. I thank the sector for their co-operation in achieving this, but we must go further.
“Those seeking to game the system should know we are watching – and won’t hesitate to act.”
The most common nationalities claiming asylum in the year up to March 2026 were Pakistani, with the vast majority arriving in Britain on legal visas, and Eritreans, most of whom have arrived illegally. This was followed by Iran and Afghanistan, with majority of these nationals also arriving irregularly, such as via small boat crossings.
Professor Malcolm Press CBE DL, president of Universities UK which represents institutions, said: “International students bring significant economic and soft power benefits, contributing £37 billion in export earnings. We want the UK to remain open and welcoming, but that depends on responding quickly to any risks of abuse.
“What universities need from government is policy stability, transparent visa decision-making, and real-time data to act on emerging concerns. The sector relies on international student income, and recent sharp declines have led to substantial cost-cutting and job losses. It is essential that we build a fair, stable, and transparent system that works in the national interest.”