Overview

• The Home Office has begun texting and emailing up to about 130,000 students and family members, with roughly 10,000 whose visas expire soon already contacted.
• Messages state that asylum claims lacking merit will be refused, support will be assessed against destitution criteria, and those without a right to remain must leave or face removal.
• Official data show 14,800 people who originally arrived on study visas claimed asylum in the year to June 2025, down from 16,500 a year earlier after sharp increases since 2021.
• Students accounted for 13% of all asylum claims in that period, compared with 39% from small‑boat arrivals, with smaller shares from work and visitor visa holders.
• Universities face tighter sponsorship and course‑completion requirements, while reactions split between criticism from the University and College Union and reassurance from the National Indian Students and Alumni Union.