UK Issues Warnings to International Students Over Visa Overstays

By: Aremu Toyeebaht

The United Kingdom government has begun directly contacting tens of thousands of international students with a stark warning to leave the country once their visas expire or face removal.

The unprecedented campaign, launched by the Home Office, follows what officials describe as an “alarming” increase in students attempting to remain in the UK by applying for asylum after their studies.

For the first time, students are receiving text and email messages spelling out the consequences of overstaying. “If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you don’t, we will remove you,” the warnings read, according to the BBC.

Home Office data show that about 15 per cent of asylum applications filed last year—roughly 16,000 cases—came from people who originally entered on student visas. Although the figures do not specify how many were lodged after visas expired, officials say the trend is clear enough to justify urgent action.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC that some students were “claiming asylum even when things have not changed in their home country.”

The new messages also caution that asylum applications deemed without merit will be “swiftly and robustly refused,” while requests for support will only be granted if applicants meet strict destitution criteria.

The move underscores mounting concern in Whitehall about misuse of the asylum system and signals a tougher stance on immigration enforcement targeting overstaying students.