Since March 2026, the United Kingdom has stopped processing student visa applications from travellers who are nationals of four countries. These are Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan. According to the Home Secretary, there has been fraud committed by travellers from these countries.
Attempt to reduce the number of asylum applications
Applicants holding an Afghan, Cameroonian, Myanmarese or Sudanese passport can no longer apply for a student visa. In addition, the UK Home Office is no longer processing applications for Skilled Worker visas from Afghans. According to the UK government, people from these countries have been travelling to the UK on student visas relatively frequently, only to subsequently apply for asylum. The visa ban is intended to counter this practice.
Apply for an ETA for a short study trip, holiday or business trip.
Are you planning a holiday, a short study trip or a business trip to the United Kingdom? If so, you do not need to apply for a student visa and can travel with a UK ETA. The UK ETA is a travel authorisation for the United Kingdom that can be applied for entirely online. European travellers are eligible for this travel authorisation. On e-Visa.co.uk you can submit an online application.
The UK ETA is valid for up to two years for an unlimited number of trips to the United Kingdom. Each stay may last for a maximum of 6 months. Once you have completed the short application form, you will need to submit a passport photo and a photo of your passport. The UK ETA is usually issued within 3 days. Urgent requests are processed on average within 6 hours.
What are the reasons for tightening the policy?
The UK Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, stated that there was widespread fraud. According to official statistics, people from the aforementioned countries have, relatively speaking, frequently applied for asylum after entering the UK on a student visa. The British government regards this as fraud.
However, a spokesperson for the British government stressed that the United Kingdom will continue to provide assistance to people who are genuinely in need.
War and oppression as grounds for asylum applications
None of the countries mentioned above is currently considered safe. The situation in Afghanistan remains unstable. Armed conflicts occur regularly in the border region with Pakistan. A civil war has been raging in Sudan since 2023, forcing millions of people to flee their homes. Several armed conflicts are also taking place in Cameroon, both between the two English-speaking regions and the French-speaking regions, and between the government and the terrorist organisation Boko Haram. A bloody civil war has broken out in Myanmar following the coup in 2021.
Criticism from within his own party and from students
The Home Secretary’s decision drew widespread criticism, including from within her own party. Forty MPs from the ruling Labour Party expressed concern over the planned legislative change. They argued that this measure would further exacerbate the shortage in the UK labour market. Furthermore, it is unclear whether the asylum applications can actually be considered fraudulent. Under British law, people are guaranteed humanitarian protection if they face a risk of serious harm upon return to their country.
Some students have already announced that they will take legal action against the new measure. They believe that excluding students from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan is racist and discriminatory. Furthermore, women from these four countries could lose access to higher education in the UK, which they do not have in their home countries.