88% of international students affected

The latest information from the British government on May 23 said that from January 2024, only international students studying masters and doctoral programs will be allowed to bring their dependents to the UK. This move could cause 88% of international postgraduate students (including Vietnamese) to no longer have the opportunity to bring their relatives with them, according to The Telegraph .

According to the British Home Office, this decision will help significantly reduce the number of migrants and prevent the abuse of student visas to stay illegally and find work in the UK.

In an article in The Telegraph on May 23, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak noted that the government will also ban international students from switching to work visas before completing their training programs. According to Mr. Sunak, the UK is considering building a system to evaluate the quality of universities, as well as controlling dishonest study abroad companies to end the situation where schools "sell" immigration rights instead of education.

However, Mr Sunak affirmed that the above measures are not aimed at anti-immigration and will not affect the set target of attracting 600,000 international students to study in the UK by 2030.

According to figures from the British Ambassador to Vietnam, there are currently about 12,000 Vietnamese students studying in the UK and Vietnam is one of five priority countries in the UK's international education strategy.

Vietnamese international students are not too worried?

Speaking to Thanh Nien Newspaper reporter, a Vietnamese PhD student in the UK said that the latest decision of the UK government will not have much impact on the Vietnamese student community. The reason is that the majority of Vietnamese people studying for a master's degree do not aim to settle permanently.

"Many Vietnamese people choose to study in the UK because the master's program only lasts one year, instead of two years in some countries like the US and Australia. The actual study period lasts about 7-8 months, then you can return to Vietnam to do your thesis for graduation. This will help save a lot of money and time," this person analyzed.

According to this PhD student, because international students will be granted a 2-year work visa after completing their master's program, their accompanying relatives can also stay in the UK for up to 3 years. In rare cases, if a dependent finds a stable job, he or she can also sponsor the student.

"Personally, I have not seen any Vietnamese friends studying for a master's degree with their relatives. However, this is quite common with international students from some countries. India and Pakistan are two countries with many students coming to the UK with their families," the Vietnamese student added.