In the first half of 2026, 22.7% of UK study visa applications from Nigeria were withdrawn. In a report by the Financial Times, a year earlier it was 4.5% and these figures count withdrawn applications, not refusals alone.
Across all nationalities, 10.5% of UK study visa applications were withdrawn in the first half of this year, up from 2.3% a year earlier and 0.4% in 2023. Pakistan was hit hardest at 40.9%, then Bangladesh at 23.5%. India was at 5.2%.
Since 1 June, universities must keep their visa refusal rate below 5%. Before now, it used to be 10%. If they fail to reach this, they risk losing their license to sponsor international students.
Universities say the Home Office study visa refusals doubled in the first half of 2026, but no figures were given. Sir David Bell of the University of Sunderland said the spike “has prompted pre-emptive action in several universities.” Some have stopped recruiting from certain regions to stay under 5%.
Jamie Arrowsmith of Universities UK International said many refusals “appear to rest on flawed, inconsistent and highly subjective reasoning.” Universities also point to applicants refused for having considered other countries, and PhD applicants questioned on modules that don’t exist.
Professor James Miller of the University of the West of Scotland says many universities could see overseas student numbers fall by more than 20% this year, and that job cuts would be “inevitable” if nothing changes.
The government says the rules make universities recruit responsibly and that the country “remains open to genuine international students.” It cites misuse of student visas, including unauthorised work and asylum claims.
This change comes after the UK granted 30,204 study visas to Nigerians in 2025, up 59% from 2024.
