Britain Toughens Student Visa Rules

The British government has introduced stringent new student visa rules, effective immediately, the BBC and The Guardian reported. The new measures will require students to demonstrate above-beginner-level proficiency in English and will bar those studying for less than six months from bringing dependents with them. A new register of institutions recognized by the government for providing below-degree-level courses will be created to better control student work placements. The Home Secretary issued a statement saying that the country remains “open to those foreign students who want to come to the U.K. for legitimate study.” But he also cautioned that “those who are not seriously interested in coming here to study but come primarily to work, they should be in no doubt that we will come down hard on those that flout the rules.”