Some Nigerians in the United Kingdom are seeking legal means to remain in the country as the expiration of their student visas draws near, Sunday PUNCH has learnt.

The moves came amid fresh migration policies and warnings recently issued by the UK government.

The UK government, in an emergency alert published on its website last Sunday, announced that about 10,000 international students had already been contacted to leave the country over the expiration of their visas.

It explained that the move follows a surge in asylum claims from visa holders.

Asylum applications from work, study and tourist visa-holders were said to have more than tripled under the previous government and accounted for 37 per cent (41,400) of overall claims in the year ending June 2025.

International students made up the highest proportion of claimants at 40 per cent, followed by 29 per cent from work visas and 24 per cent from visitors.

To reduce the trend, the government said it launched a direct messaging campaign to remind students their visas were expiring.

According to the BBC, the message sent to student visa holders read, “If you submit an asylum claim that lacks merit, it will be swiftly and robustly refused. Any request for asylum support will be assessed against destitution criteria. If you do not meet the criteria, you will not receive support. If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you don’t, we will remove you.”

In a research briefing dated June 27, 2025, the UK House of Commons Library revealed that about 732,285 overseas students, representing 23 per cent of the total student population, studied at UK universities and colleges during the 2023/24 academic session.

The 2023/24 figure included 428,200 new overseas entrants, a 6.75 per cent drop from the 459,200 recorded in 2022/23.

The top sending countries have shifted in recent years, though Nigeria retained its position as the third largest source with 34,500 students.

Nigerian students panic

Sunday PUNCH gathered that some Nigerians who might be affected by the fresh migration rules were exploring legal options to extend their stay.

A PhD student In Scotland, who would not want to be identified, told our correspondent that the students were panicking.

He said, “Nigerian students are panicking because UK laws keep changing. I know some people on current student visas that received the text and email.”

The student explained that while some had transitioned to skilled worker visas to survive the removal threats, many others faced uncertainty over their future.

“Before, if you finish your Bachelor or Master’s degree, you can stay in the UK on a post-study work visa for two years, now it has been shortened to 18 months; this is part of the UK’s plan to tighten migration,” the doctorate student added.

“As a student, if you are unable to get a certificate of sponsorship from an employer which will enable you to apply for a skilled worker visa or switch to another category of visa, and your visa expires, you automatically become an illegal immigrant in the UK, which is a criminal offence.”

A postgraduate student from the University of Salford, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said the new migration policy was unsettling.

“It is absolutely devastating, because time and money have been spent,” he told Sunday PUNCH.

“With the new laws, fresh student visa holders cannot switch to the skilled worker visa on the shortage occupation list after July 22, 2025, while the post-study work visa has been cut to 18 months.

“Those here are uncertain about next steps, and others are now exploring alternatives to the UK, as seen in the drop in international student numbers.”

The student, who started his programme at Salford in March 2024, disclosed that he had since moved to a skilled worker visa valid until July 2028 after opting out of the postgraduate route recently.

Asked if he would consider returning to Nigeria, the student said, “Hell, no. Not with the crippling inflation,

Crime and lackadaisical attitude of our leaders. Sometimes, if you taste a working system, you cannot look back but rather move on.”

A Nigerian graduate of the University of Cambridge, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said she had already applied for a post-study visa following the expiration of her student visa on August 30, 2025.

She explained that the UK Home Office had accepted her application.

According to her, most of the students she interacted with had either transitioned to the post-study visa or were in the process of doing so.

“For those that haven’t, we have yet to get any message from the UK government,” she noted.

The Cambridge alumnus, who began her studies at the university in October 2024, stressed that she had no intention of returning to Nigeria, having always planned to stay back in the UK for work before pursuing a PhD programme.

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission cautioned citizens living abroad to avoid overstaying their visas.

“The moment your visa expires, it becomes criminalised because it is illegal to stay there,” The NiDCOM’s spokesperson, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, stated.

He urged Nigerians to always be of good behaviour and serve as worthy ambassadors of the country.

Experts divided

The Co-founder of Globalink Pathway College, Lagos, Mr Tolani Jaiyeola, described the recent warning as a reinforcement of existing immigration rules.

Jaiyeola explained that the move reflects the UK government’s broader strategy to reduce net migration, which had reached record highs.

“This move is consistent with the current UK government’s overarching goal to significantly reduce net migration,” Jaiyeola said.

“The graduate visa route, while attractive, has been under scrutiny over concerns it is being misused by some as a backdoor to low-skilled work rather than a launchpad for high-potential careers. The warning is a clear signal that the UK is serious about the temporary nature of student visas and is clamping down on any perceived overstaying or abuse of the system.”

While he acknowledged the UK’s right to regulate immigration, Jaiyeola faulted the delivery of the message, noting that it risked alienating law-abiding students.

On the implications for Nigeria–UK educational ties, Jaiyeola stated that the warning could dampen enthusiasm for UK education among Nigerians, particularly with earlier restrictions on dependants.

A professor of Environmental Sustainability and former Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Osun State University, Prof. Anthony Kola-Olusanya, also criticised the United Kingdom’s approach, describing it as exploitative and damaging to the British reputation.

Kola-Olusanya said while every sovereign nation has the right to set its immigration rules, the UK’s approach raises moral questions.

He said, “You see, the idea that foreign students should return to their country after their studies is not strange, nor is it new. But the morality of the issue, which raises a very big question, is this: are you seeing these students as a commodity that you can exploit and dispense after you’ve taken money from them, with a promissory note that if they graduate from your system, they can get a job in your system and possibly residency? If you now cannot do such, why would you still ask your universities to keep advertising for foreign students from Nigeria and other African countries? That is almost becoming like 419 — take the money, give them a degree, and tell them to leave.”

However, Prof. Francis Egbokhare from the University of Ibadan stressed that visa compliance was non-negotiable.

“I think that every visa has a purpose and the visa itself is a contract between the immigrant and the state. To exceed one’s stay or break the terms of a visa is an exercise in illegality. The UK has a right to demand that immigrants who exceed their lawful stay should return to their homeland. There should be no reason for Nigeria to question this,” he said.

Corroborating this, the Dean, Faculty of Education, University of Lagos, Prof. Bayo Oladipo, noted that the burden lies on Nigeria to fix its internal problems if it wants citizens to willingly return.

Oladipo said the policy was not new and that students were already aware of their obligations when applying to study abroad.

“I want to believe that every individual that applied for admission in the UK filled the form and wrote there that they will go back to their country after the programme.

“I think it’s part of the requirements for the admission and for the immigration process. And so you should be able to stand by your word to say, ‘I will go back to my country after the programme.’ That’s what integrity is all about, that’s what sincerity is all about, and that’s what national consciousness is all about,” he said. (Sunday PUNCH)