By Opeyemi Adelakun
Nigerian students seeking to study in the United Kingdom have been affected by universities’ withdrawal of admission offers amid a tightening of the country’s student visa process.
A report by the Financial Times, said universities had revoked offers made mainly to Nigerian and Pakistani applicants during the first half of 2026 as the UK Home Office increased scrutiny of international student visa applications.
The report put the proportion of withdrawn UK study visa applications at 10.5 per cent in the period, compared with 2.3 per cent in the first half of 2025 and 0.4 per cent in 2023.
For Nigerian applicants, the withdrawal rate reportedly climbed to 22.7 per cent from 4.5 per cent in the corresponding period of 2025.
The report said universities were concerned that high visa refusal rates could put their international recruitment activities at risk. It added that the increase in refusals was partly linked to government concerns that some applicants were seeking asylum through the student visa route.
Figures from visa processing firm Enroly showed that nearly half of UK universities had refusal rates exceeding five per cent, a threshold that could trigger restrictions on recruiting international students.
The implications extend beyond prospective students. Sir David Bell, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sunderland, said some institutions had begun withdrawing from international markets where visa applications were facing tougher scrutiny.
“This has involved pulling back from international markets where a tougher approach is being taken to visa applications,” he said.
Vanessa Wilson, chief executive of University Alliance, warned that universities could respond to the pressure with organisational changes that affect staff and students.
“This is going to result in restructures, which inevitably result in job losses, course closures, campus closures,” Wilson said.
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