Number of foreign students applying to bring families to UK falls 80% from ... trends now
The number of foreign students applying to bring family members to Britain has plummeted by 80 per cent, new figures show.
In a sign that the Government’s migration shake-up has begun to have an impact, Home Office data reveals that the first three months of this year saw 6,700 applications to bring spouses, children and other relatives here - down from nearly 33,000 in the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the number of foreign students applying for a visa fell from 39,900 to 34,000.
Restrictions which bar most foreign students bringing their dependants into Britain while they study came into force on January 1.
Across three visa categories reformed by the Home Secretary James Cleverly this year, there was a 24 per cent drop in applications overall, the figures showed.
Home Office data reveals that the first three months of this year saw 6,700 applications to bring spouses, children and other relatives here - down from nearly 33,000 last year
Mr Cleverly said: ‘Ever-spiralling numbers were eroding the British people’s confidence in our immigration system, burdening public services and suppressing wages.
‘This data shows a significant fall in numbers on the first of our measures to take effect.’
He added: ‘This does not mark the end of the road in our plan to cut migration, there is more still to come.
‘Over the coming months, we will continue to show the pace of our progress as we deliver the control the public rightly expect.’
However, the data showed there appeared to have been a last-minute rush for visas by relatives of foreign care workers, who were barred from bringing dependants into the UK from March 11.
These figures saw an increase from 44,200 in the first quarter of last year to 49,300
