UK Immigration News

The UK parliament's Commons Public Accounts Committee published a report entitled 'Immigration: Points based System Student Route' today, 4th September 2012. The report is fiercely critical of the UK immigration authorities. The report finds that UK immigration authorities were wrong to introduce the new Tier 4 student visa, which is part of the UK's points-based visa system, in 2009. Margaret Hodge, the Chair of the Committee, said at a Westminster press conference this morning that management failures by the UK border Agency had resulted in massive abuse of the system.

UK immigration staff are taking longer than usual to process applications for UK visas made in Thailand, according to a statement made by the UK Border Agency. The statement appeared on the UKBA website on 31st August 2012. It warned Thais that the UKBA office in the British Embassy in Bangkok is currently experiencing a very high volume of visa applications and tells Thais that they should be sure to apply early so that their visas arrive before they are due to travel.

The United Kingdom Border Agency (the UKBA) has issued guidance for students from outside the European Economic Area who were intending to study at London Metropolitan in the coming academic year. Last Wednesday, 29th August 2012, the UKBA withdrew LMU's Highly Trusted Sponsor status. This means that non-EEA students can no longer study at LMU; their Tier 4 UK student visas will be revoked unless they can find another education provider to sponsor them. The UKBA placed the guidance on its website on Friday, 31st August 2012.

Richard Lambert, the chancellor of the University of Warwick, has said that the decision of the UK Border Agency to remove London Metropolitan University's (LMU) Highly Trusted Sponsor status was 'disproportionate'. Highly Trusted Sponsor (HTS) status confers the right on a university to recruit and teach students from outside the European Union. Mr Lambert said that the decision would have 'damaging implications for the UK university system as a whole.'

The United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) has stripped London Metropolitan University (LMU) of its Highly Trusted Sponsor Status (HTS). This means that it can no longer provide overseas students with Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies (CAS) certificates. Overseas students need a CAS certificate to obtain a UK Tier 4 student visa. LMU cannot, therefore, accept new students from outside the European Union and all those non-EU students currently studying at LMU will have to leave the United Kingdom within 60 days unless they can find an alternative university that can provide them with a place.

The Canadian government's immigration department, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) says that the Come to Canada Wizard web tool, which it launched last August, has received 1.6m visits in its first year. This compares well to the workpermit.com site which receives over five million unique visitors a year. The tool enables people to judge their eligibility to visit, or work, or study in Canada by asking a series of questions then 'matching users with the federal immigration option that best suits their circumstances'.