80% of Students Cannot Apply for UK Spouse Visas Anymore

The UK’s recent immigration laws are significantly changing the environment for immigrants and overseas students. The first effects of these rules are starting to show, with the Home Office releasing new data this week that indicates a significant shift in the patterns of immigration and visa applications.

Effects on Foreign Students

The goal of the UK government’s revisions to immigration and international student enrollment regulations is to lower the net migration rate. Tighter limits on student-dependent visas are a key adjustment that was implemented in January 2024. As a result, applications for these visas have dropped by an astounding 80% when compared to the same period in 2023. This is because students are no longer able to apply for spouse visas.

Dependent and Student Visas

UK universities are placing more stringent restrictions on the issuance of dependant visas in light of the revised immigration policy. Enrolling family members or dependents in government-subsidized postgraduate research programmes is currently restricted for international students.

Furthermore, laws that forbid changing visas before finishing a course are meant to stop universities from taking advantage of immigration loopholes rather than focusing on delivering high-quality instruction.

Visa for Health and Care

The information also reveals a noteworthy difference between primary applicants and dependents for the Health and Care visa. Although healthcare workers, nurses, and doctors are still permitted to bring dependents, the government has recently taken steps to reduce the excessive and unmanageable number of dependents in this group.

Strikes Against Worker Exploitation

Care providers in England are now required to register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) if they act as sponsors for migrants, as part of an initiative to combat worker exploitation and abuse within the industry.

Concerns about cases where visas were given to care workers on false pretences have been raised by the government, which emphasizes the need for regulations to protect both foreign workers and British citizens.

Salary Ceiling and Upcoming Changes

In addition, future migration figures will be impacted by the recent increase in the wage criteria for skilled worker visas, which went from £26,200 to £38,700.

In order to guard against misuse and maintain the calibre of UK higher education, the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has also been entrusted with examining the Graduate route for overseas students. The goal of replacing the Shortage Occupation List with an Immigration Salary List is to guarantee that immigrants in shortage occupations receive wages comparable to those of UK workers.

Although these preliminary findings are encouraging, the administration recognises the need for additional analysis. Future data releases will give us a better idea of how these revisions will affect things in the long run.