Zimbabwe January 2005 |
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| Zimbabweans in UK student visa scam, (New Zimbabwe, 2005-01-01):-Thousands of bogus foreign students -- including Zimbabweans and South Africans -- are staying in Britain by extending their visas as part of a major immigration scam. Analysis of official figures suggests that posing as a student is a major back-door entry route into the United Kingdom, and raises questions about the government's control of immigration. It is believed that tens of thousands of people are arriving as ordinary tourists and then enrolling at bogus colleges, paying hundreds of pounds in exchange for the paperwork they need to get a student visa. An investigation earlier last year found that 250 fake colleges were operating as fronts for highly profitable immigration scams. The report, by independent thinktank Migrationwatch, compares figures for student visas granted to new arrivals with the number of extensions granted to foreign nationals already in the UK. The most dramatic example was Jamaica. Last year, 425 Jamaicans were allowed into Britain as students. Government figures showed there were 780 Jamaicans studying in UK higher-educational institutions, yet 13 220 student visa extensions were granted. Figures for Zimbabwe are also striking, with 10 535 extensions granted last year compared to 790 student visas for new arrivals, and an official figure of 2 850 students already in the country. In future, foreigners wanting to switch to student visas will need a place on a university degree course. Most tourist visas only allow foreign nationals to stay in Britain for up to six months, so long as they don't work. Having a student visa means they can stay for up to three years, then apply for repeated extensions and work legally while in the UK. | |
South African Migration Project (SAMP) - Queen's University - http://www.queensu.ca/samp |