The Westminster government has been urged to lift restrictions on dependants after new figures showed a further decline in the number of international students coming to the UK.
The Home Office received just 2,400 sponsored study visa applications from dependants in August – when applications tend to peak across the whole year – which was 90 per cent less than the same month in 2023.
The drop shows the continued effects of a ban on students bringing dependants unless they are on postgraduate research courses, which began in January under the previous Conservative government.
Just 15,500 dependants have submitted applications since the start of the year – 83 per cent less than the 93,200 between January and August 2023.
The problem for the current Labour administration is that the dependants ban is affecting main applicant numbers.
A total of 121,900 main applicants submitted sponsored study visa applications in August, which was 17 per cent less than the same month in 2023. Across the year to date, applications are also 17 per cent down.
With the sector becoming become increasingly reliant on international student fee income in recent years, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that the drop will be important for universities’ finances.
With the least selective universities receiving fewer domestic applications this year, the IFS warned lower international recruitment intake will cause them even bigger financial issues – something recent data does suggest is happening.
Kate Ogden, senior research economist at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said UK universities may no longer be able to rely on recruiting ever-increasing numbers of international students to make up for real-terms falls in the value of tuition fees.
“Much of the sector is in reasonable financial health and should be able to adjust,” she added.
“But for some less-selective providers which rely heavily on international student fees and are facing greater competition for domestic students from more-selective competitors, the next academic year could be a difficult one.”
Elected over two months ago, the Labour government has yet to make any announcements on the dependants ban.
Jo Grady, general secretary of the University and College Union, said the visa restrictions deterred international students from coming to the UK, damaging university finances, local economies and Britain’s global standing.
“Labour has repeatedly offered words of welcome to international students since taking office, and that is an important shift from open Tory hostility,” she added.
“But we need action: Labour must lift Tory visa restrictions as a first step towards stabilising our universities and rebuilding Britain.”
RSM, a leading audit, tax and consulting firm, agreed that medium- and lower-tariff universities will “feel the pinch the most” if international students are unable to plug their gaps in domestic recruitment.
“Particularly, as international students pay higher fees, and with 57,000 fewer applicants this equates to a significant potential loss of income for the sector,” added Louise Tweedie, partner and higher education specialist at RSM UK.
The Home Office was approached for comment.
