- The UK Home Office has indicated that the Graduate Route, initially intended to allow international graduates to stay in the UK for two years after their studies to gain work experience, is now perceived as susceptible to exploitation.
Nigerian students enrolled in the United Kingdom are among the many international students impacted by the recent UK government policy that shortens the Graduate Route visa duration from two years to 18 months.
This change, revealed on Monday as part of the UK government’s new Immigration White Paper, is part of a broader initiative aimed at addressing what officials term ‘systemic abuse and mission drift’ in education, asylum, and family immigration sectors.
The UK Home Office has indicated that the Graduate Route, initially intended to allow international graduates to stay in the UK for two years after their studies to gain work experience, is now perceived as susceptible to exploitation.
The updated policy reduces this period to 18 months and enforces stricter eligibility criteria for skilled work visas, along with tighter limitations on the ability to bring dependents. The policy document asserts, ‘The Graduate Route has not fulfilled its original goals.
“The Graduate Route has not met its original objectives. It has become a loophole for unsponsored work and a magnet for abuse. Migration must be controlled and compliant. Our reforms will close the back doors and shut down abuse across the system,” the policy document stated.
Additionally, the new regulations aim to hold institutions accountable that do not meet compliance standards. Only universities that achieve ‘enhanced compliance standards’ will be permitted to continue attracting international students.
Institutions with low employment progression rates or those found to be engaging in dubious recruitment practices risk losing their licenses for international recruitment.
