by International students studying in the UK will no longer be able to bring dependents with them on their UK student visas beginning Monday, January 1, 2024, with the exception of those on research postgraduate programmes.
In a written statement issued in May 2023, home secretary Suella Braverman stated that the government is “removing the right for international students to bring dependents unless they are on postgraduate courses currently designated as research programs.”.
According to Home Office statistics, approximately 136,000 visas were granted to dependents of sponsored students in the fiscal year ending December 2022, up more than eightfold from 16,000 in 2019.The statement also stated that the government would eliminate the ability for students to switch from a student visa to a working visa before completing their studies.
This announcement is part of a series of changes made by the government to reduce migration to the UK while remaining committed to hosting 600,000 international students studying in the UK annually by 2030. The two-year post-study work visa has remained unchanged, which has been welcomed by the university sector. However, in December 2023, the UK government announced a review of post-study work visas as part of new measures to reduce migration to the UK.