Scottish universities to take part in international student visa pilot

More than 20 additional universities will take part in a pilot scheme making it easier for international masters students to study at UK universities.

For the first time, institutions in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be involved in the scheme.

Under the programme, universities are given responsibility for eligibility checks, meaning that students can submit fewer documents alongside their visa applications. The universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Bath and Imperial Col- 0 Alasdair Allan has welcomed the development lege London are currently taking part in the Tier 4 visa pilot, but 23 further institutions will now take part in 2018-19.

Scottish Government Minister for International Development and Europe Alasdair Allan said: “We are pleased that the UK government has recognised the need to broaden the Tier 4 pilot scheme to include two universities in Scotland, although it is disappointing that it has taken over a year for the pilot to be expanded. We urge the UK government to roll out these modest changes to the Tier 4 route to all universities as soon as possible.

“We remain concerned at the UK government’s emphasis on visa refusal rates as the basis for including institutions in the pilot, as this can unfairly discriminate against smaller or more specialist institutions.”