Tier 4 Review
Below is an open letter from the UK Border Agency to Tier 4 Sponsors in the UK, detailing the recent review of the visa system and the changes due to be implemented on 3 March 2010.
As you may know, the Prime Minister announced a review of Tier 4 on 12 November 2009. The review was prompted by the rise in student applications in parts of the world, particularly in China and South Asia.
The review team, which comprised officials from both UKBA and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, were asked to look at whether the current design of Tier 4 strikes the right balance between facilitating access of genuine students and preventing abuse by economic migrants.
The review looked at the case for and against any policy changes, and specifically:
o the potential impact of raising the minimum level of study an adult may undertake in the UK;
o introducing an English language test for those coming to the UK to study below degree level;
o restricting access to vocational courses (courses with work-placements); and
o the work entitlements of students.
Some of you have fed back to us directly and via your representative bodies during the review process, and we listened carefully to your suggestions. We have taken this feedback, as well as that from our UK and international frontline staff into account, to formulate the review recommendations.
The Home Secretary has today laid a Written Ministerial Statement before Parliament to announce the targeted and measured package of changes we will be making to Tier 4 in the coming weeks and months. I enclose a copy for ease of reference.
As you will see, there are a number of important changes and we will be talking to your representative bodies in particular as we develop our proposals for putting them into practice. Therefore I will concentrate my remarks in this letter on those that are being made immediately so that you can be clear about their consequences.
A Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules has been laid before Parliament today and will come into force on 3 March 2010. The changes will:
• halve the amount of time students studying below degree level (except students on foundation degrees) can work during term time from 20 to 10 hours a week;
• ban students who are studying on courses of six months or less from bringing their dependants with them to the UK; and
• ban the dependants of students studying below degree level (except foundation degree students) from working unless they qualify in their own right under Tier 1 (General) as a highly skilled migrant or as a skilled worker under Tier 2 General, Sportsperson or Minister of Religion.
As these changes will come into force on 3 March 2010, all Tier 4 applications submitted on or after this date will be subject to the new restrictions.
In addition, on 3 March 2010 we will also make changes to our Tier 4 Sponsor guidance to raise the bar for English language studies from level A2 (beginner) on the Common European Framework for Reference (CEFR) to B2 (intermediate), and require such students to be at level B1 to qualify to enter under Tier 4. Beginners will of course continue to be permitted to come here outside the points based system as student visitors where they can come to the UK for up to six months, without any entitlement to work. We will also make special provision in our guidance for those students on pre-sessional English language courses as preparation for full degree courses to continue to pursue these, at any level, where their progression to their main course is unconditional. And we will also permit overseas Government-sponsored students, given their low risk, to study English at any level under Tier 4.
The guidance will also be changed to require the sponsors of students studying below degree-level (except students on foundation degrees) to demonstrate that they have tested the student’s English language ability, and that they are satisfied that it is a minimum level of B1. This is to ensure such students have the ability to follow a course in this country delivered in English and although our requirement will be a minimum level of B1, it will still be open to sponsors to set higher levels where they deem this appropriate for a particular course. By early summer we expect to have selected a number of English language test providers and from then onwards we will require all these students to demonstrate their level of English via an approved secure test.
As a consequence of these changes, sponsors are being made aware today, that any Confirmations of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) issued from today onwards for English language courses below B2, or to students wishing to undertake other courses who have not demonstrated an English language proficiency at level B1, and who will not make their application for a student entry clearance until 3 March 2010 or after, will fall to have their applications refused. Any applications we receive before this date, even if no decision has been made on them by 3 March 2010, will be decided according to the Rules and guidance in place on 2 March 2010.
There is much more work to be done to establish the new category of Highly Trusted Sponsor and I do not underestimate the challenging timescales we have been set.
We believe that taken together, these changes represent a balanced and targeted package of measures which will improve the robustness of the system while at the same time continuing to safeguard the ability of genuine international students to come to the UK to benefit from our world class education system.
Kind regards
Jeremy Oppenheim
National Lead for Temporary Migration
Education is certainly a vital field, because every thing in civilization depends upon education. I saw that on a website someplace — a non-profit organization in the Philippines. Teachers bust their tail at their craft (many of them, anyway). But there are a few who seem to have a gift to inspire. My high school world history teacher was one particular. She had lived in China as a growing up. When she taught in Rockville, Maryland, you could possibly feel the wisdom of all her experience. She didn’t have us memorize dates. That had been the first truly great thing I had heard from a history teacher. What she said next took the subject several magnitudes higher in value. She wanted us to be aware of the motivations of history — the deeply visceral, human issues with what can somewhat be a deadly dry subject. Jaime Escalante of “Stand and Deliver” fame, dared to dream big. Calculus for the typically dropout crowd? Pushing them to go on to college? Wow. And I’ve this publication called, “Calculus Made Easy,” by Sylvanus P. Thompson, first published in 1910. It’s been through lots of printings all to make a simple subject simple. What are we able to do to create more tutors who inspire world-changing quality? Einstein once asserted that imagination is much more important than knowledge. Knowledge can provide you with the foundation. Imagination usually takes you to the stars. Don’t our children ought to get better?
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Have you considered the possible “risks” of students coming to the UK for six-months?
You are again opening the door to the possible entry of “students” who come here to work or for terrorist purposes.
Have we not yet learned our lesson?
There MUST be a mandatory rule for IELTS 6 in all four skills.
Students below this level must FIRST get English skills and knowledge in their own countries – through the British Council or other genuine colleges.
PLEASE listen to those of us at the coalface.
Would it not be helpful if you CONSULTED
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with all educational stakeholders BEFORE making rules?
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As of my understanding, students wishing to undertake below degree-level (except students on foundation degrees) have to demonstrated an English language proficiency at level B1.
What about English proficiency requirements for those students who wish to study degree-level courses ? Also does the degree-level courses mean NQF level-4 onwards qualifications leading to recognised UK Universities degrees ?
lwvc.org.uk
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