PhD students from Nigeria can still bring dependents to UK, says British High Commissioner

Dr. Richard Montgomery, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, stated that although some international students are prohibited from bringing dependents, those enrolled in PhD programs are still allowed to bring dependents into the country.

Montgomery shared this information during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja.

He mentioned that the policy change, which was implemented earlier this year, prohibits international students in higher education from bringing dependents to the UK.

According to him, this decision was made to address the growing issue of many foreign students bringing dependents.

He noted that the unsustainable pressure on numerous universities due to the influx of dependents led to the introduction of these policy changes.

He pointed out that university Chancellors had raised concerns about the large student populations, specifically noting challenges such as limited accommodation, access to medical services through the National Health Service, and schooling for dependents.

Montgomery explained that the restrictions are not universal, highlighting that those pursuing long-term research degrees, such as PhDs or doctorates, are exempt from these limitations.

• “Those coming to the UK for doctorate can still bring their dependency but if you are coming to the UK with a study visa for an undergraduate degree, or short term master’s degree am afraid the rules have been changed.
• “People need to understand why this change was brought in, and it is a sensible change because we have a large higher education sector and most of these universities are in towns across the country.
• “I really like the demand but there are other factors at play in terms of schooling in the UK , the value of the Naira in the coming months will also determine how easy or hard it will be for many people to afford our education.
• “But I really hope that the number of people who bring dependents in UK may actually not be a majority, but a minority of people have tried to study in the UK so am hoping that the demand will be sustained,” he said.

Backstory

• Earlier in January, Nairametrics reported that The UK government has recently introduced measures to restrict Nigerian and other international students from bringing their families as dependents while studying in the country, except in specific circumstances.
• It stated that these students will no longer be able to bring dependants with them unless they are on postgraduate courses that are currently designated as research programmes.
• The government under the new package said that it also removed the ability for international students to switch out of the student route and into work routes before their studies have been completed “to prevent misuse of the visa system.
• According to Sky News, this was made known by the UK Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, who said that this is part of the mechanism to reduce net migration.

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