A Financial Times analysis found UK study-visa withdrawals rose in January-June 2026, especially for Nigerian and Pakistani applicants; separate sponsor tests tightened from June for UK universities.
The analysis put withdrawn applications at 10.5% overall, compared with 2.3% in January-June 2025. The rate was 40.9% among Pakistani applicants, up from 3%, and 22.7% among Nigerian applicants, up from 4.5%.
A withdrawal is an application ending before a visa decision, not a refusal. The Financial Times reported that universities it interviewed cited institutions revoking offers as a major driver of the increase. Home Office data do not identify why each application was withdrawn, and the figures do not establish that sponsor-rule changes caused the rise.
Under Home Office guidance, assessments submitted from June 1, 2026, require universities to keep their visa-refusal rate below 5%, down from below 10%, and enroll at least 95% of students who receive visas, up from 90%. The course-completion requirement remains 85% until assessments submitted from June 1, 2027, when it rises to 90%. The tests apply to sponsoring institutions generally. A separate Home Office visa brake names Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan.
The Home Office leaves a case out of a sponsor’s refusal-rate tally if the sponsor withdraws the student’s Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) before a visa decision. This may give sponsors an incentive to withdraw a CAS when they expect a refusal, though the data do not establish the reason for any individual withdrawal. After a first red compliance rating, a sponsor receives a final warning and must follow an action plan for at least 12 months; its next CAS allocation is cut by at least 10%. One red rating does not automatically end a sponsor’s licence, but repeated failures or another red rating can lead the Home Office to seek revocation.
Home Office figures show 383,455 sponsored-study visa grants in the year ending June 2026, 11% fewer than a year earlier and 41% below the June 2023 peak. Nigerian nationals received 26,060 grants, the third-highest total by nationality. The Home Office also says grants to dependants were 89% below their June 2023 peak. Since January 2024, most international students on taught courses have been restricted from bringing dependants.
Professor Malcolm Press, president of Universities UK, said declining international-student income had led to substantial cost-cutting and job losses. Press also cited £37 billion in export earnings associated with international students. BusinessDay quoted public affairs analyst Samuel Ugwumsinachi calling for improvements in the quality, funding, infrastructure and international competitiveness of Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.
From Nov. 30, 2026, required maintenance funds rise to £1,570 per month for study in London and £1,203 elsewhere, for up to nine months. The Home Office says the new amounts align with maintenance loans available to home students for the 2026-27 academic year. For applications made on or after Jan. 1, 2027, most bachelor’s and master’s graduates will receive 18 months on the Graduate route instead of two years; PhD graduates remain eligible for three years.
