136% increase in visa fees for international students
The government is facing criticism over its decision to increase the fees charged for visas to enter the UK, payable by overseas students studying at British universities. Students and visiting academics are currently charged £36, but from July that fee will rise to £85 – a 136% increase.
Both the NUS and Universities UK, the organisation representing vice-chancellors, have expressed anger at the rise, with both having lobbied the government not to go ahead with its plans. They are concerned about falling numbers of applications from non-EU students, which has coincided with rising tuition and visa fees.
In February this year students protested outside Downing Street and the Home Office against an increase in fees for visa renewals, which rose from £155 to £250 for the standard service and £250 to £500 for the "premium" service. Birmingham University set up a £175,000 fund in response to help students affected.
Benson Osawe, the NUS International Students' Officer, said: "This is the latest in a string of attacks on overseas students, who have already seen the rate for extending their visas doubled, who are being stripped of their right to marry whilst in this country and are being denied the right to appeal for leave to remain. On top of this, tuition fees for international students continue to rise way above the rate of inflation."
He added that international students also face problems when banking in this country, with 48% of respondents to an NUS survey saying that they had not been given a chequebook, 27% being left without a debit card and 53% without an overdraft facility.
Universities UK said it was "deeply disappointed" by the increased fees. "This worrying increase has come at a peak time for international student recruitment," said its President, Professor Ivor Crewe. "The announcement appears to have been timed precisely to make maximum impact on international students who are about to apply for university in the UK."
"International students contribute enormously to the UK. Not only do they contribute significantly to the income to higher education institutions but they also contribute to the intellectual life of our universities and the nation as a whole," he continued. "We should be doing everything we can to attract the best and the brightest from around the world to study here."
The Foreign Office said that the changes would "ensure that the full cost of providing services at home and overseas are fully recovered without any claim on public funds and to meet the increasing demand, while maintaining high standards of service".
Opponents, however, say that students should be exempted or pay reduced fees to keep the UK competitive in the international higher education market, and to help them when some are already in difficult financial situations.
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