UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – UK government launches text and email campaign warning overseas students to leave after visas expire, following Channel migrant return plan.
As reported by The Independent, ministers plan to tighten rules on foreign students seeking asylum once visas expire, sources suggest.
How will the UK warn international students about visa rules?
The Home Office launched a new campaign alerting international students and their families to leave if they have no legal right to stay in the UK.
After Home Secretary Yvette Cooper’s Channel migrant update, Britain launched a text and email campaign targeting overseas students. She revealed Channel returns will start this month.
The government plans to contact nearly 130,000 students and their families, warning them,
“If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you don’t, we will remove you.”
The aim of this campaign is to reduce the number of students filing asylum claims.
The Home Office has directly contacted 10,000 overseas students whose visas are expiring, alerting them that they could face deportation.
The full message being sent to overseas students will add,
“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.”
They will state,
“If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you don’t, we will remove you.”
What did Yvette Cooper say about the France deal?
MPs returned to Parliament on 1 September, Monday, amid unrest over ministers’ handling of the small boats crisis.
Addressing MPs, Ms Cooper said the France deal will see initial returns begin before the month’s end.
The UK and France have struck a “one in, one out” deal, allowing Britain to return Channel migrants while taking in approved applicants from France.
The Home Secretary told MPs the refugee family reunion scheme will be suspended this week. She said refugees will now come under the same family migration rules as other applicants until new measures are set.
Ms Cooper confirmed the government intends to reform family reunion rules for asylum seekers.
She said,
“The current rules for family reunion for refugees were designed many years ago to help families separated by war, conflict and persecution, but the way they are now being used has changed. Even just before the pandemic, refugees who applied to bring family to the UK did so on average more than one or two years after they had been granted protection – long enough for them to be able to get jobs or find housing, so they would be able to provide their family with some support.”
The Home Secretary stated,
“In Denmark and Switzerland, currently, those granted humanitarian protection are not able to apply to bring family for at least two years after protection has been granted. But here in the UK now, however, those applications come in, on average, around a month after protection has been granted – often even before a newly granted refugee has left asylum accommodation.”
What did Safe Passage say about Yvette Cooper’s refugee decision?
Gunes Kalkan, head of Safe Passage charity, condemned Yvette Cooper’s suspension of refugee family reunion applications, warning that it leaves children at risk.
He said,
“This blanket suspension on refugee family reunion is simply wrong. This will have disastrous consequences for the unaccompanied children and refugee families we support.”
Mr Kalkan stated,
“Children, having already survived the horrors of war and persecution, belong with their parents. But this decision will leave them stuck alone and in camps, with no way to reach family or safety. We’re talking about children from conflict and high human rights abuse areas, such as Afghanistan, Sudan and Iran, who have been torn apart from family in the chaos.”
He added,
“Without safe options, like family reunion, more people will be pushed into taking dangerous journeys to reach safety and loved ones. Instead of closing down what few safe routes exist, this government should be opening new safe pathways and expanding family reunion for refugees.”
How did Keir Starmer plan to address asylum hotel concerns?
The prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, said he aims to speed up the process of shutting them down. He added he “completely understands” the public anger over the issue.
The Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, has drawn protests and counter-protests in recent weeks. This followed an asylum seeker staying there who was accused of sexually assaulting a teenage girl last month.
Ministers have pledged to shut all migrant hotels by the end of this Parliament, possibly in 2029. However, the Prime Minister hinted that he wanted the process sped up without providing a specific date.
Key facts about asylum seekers in the UK
The UK received 111,000 asylum applications by June 2025, the highest since 2002, up 14% from last year.
The backlog dropped to 71,000 cases, but hotel use rose to 32,059 asylum seekers, up 8%. Top nationalities include Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and Eritrea, with 59% men and 22% children.