In comparison to the same period in 2018–2019, the British High Commission granted 1.27 lakh student visas to Indians between September 2021–2022, up 273%.
ThePrint has learned that the strong demand for the UK Graduate visa as well as a backlog of applications because of the epidemic are the causes of this unusual spike.
The number of student visa applications from India could be five to six times higher than the number of visas that were issued, or between 6.3 lakh and 7.6 lakh applications, according to experts and educationists, even though the British High Commission does not publish real-time data on visa applications.
Due to prolonged delays in visa processing during this year’s application season, the High Commission decided to grant students “super priority visas” in August.
British High Commissioner Alex Ellis stated that the increase in student visa requests was a factor in the “record spike” in a video message in October. He added that the Commission is currently on pace to resume processing visas in 15 days as per standard.
“The UK continues to provide overseas students with a top-tier academic environment, cutting-edge teaching methods, and world-class universities. One of the largest international student populations in the UK is made up of Indians, according to a representative of the British High Commission, who also noted that education is “one of the foundations of the unique living bridge.”