Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules

A new statement of changes to the Immigration Rules was published on 13 July 2015.  This latest statement mainly affects Tier 4 Student Migrants. Tier 4:

• Amendments have been made to the maintenance requirements for Tier 4 Migrants, increasing the amounts required
• All students must show they have sufficient funds to support themselves throughout the duration of their remaining study, or for up to nine months
• The length of time a Tier 4 (General) Student may spend studying further education courses will be reduced from 3 to 2 years.
• Tier 4 (General) Students at colleges are being prevented from extending their stay in Tier 4 or switching into any other points-based route, unless they are studying at a college recognised by the Home Office as an embedded college offering pathway programmes designed to prepare students for entry to a higher education course
• Students at other colleges, who wish to go on to study in a UK university, will have to leave the UK and apply for leave to enter from outside the UK
• New students applying to study at publicly-funded education colleges will lose rights to work

Tier 4 dependents will no longer be able to take low or unskilled jobs, from the autumn they will only be able to take part-time or full-time skilled work.