Remote learners enrolled in courses at UK institutions will be eligible to access the post-study work visa, the Home Office has announced.
COVID-19 has forced thousands of international students attending UK universities to undertake their courses online from their home countries.
The new announcement means that the UK’s new two-year post-study immigration route will still be open to those who cannot currently travel to the UK due to coronavirus restrictions.
The post-study work visa allows international students to stay and work in the UK for up to two years upon graduation. You can read more about it here.
New guidance states that international students undertaking courses with a duration of over a year will now be allowed to access the scheme, whether they graduate in summer 2021 or later.
Students undertaking a one-year Master’s degree in 2021 will also be eligible to apply for the visa.
In-person teaching is facing major disruption at most UK universities, with all teaching to be moved online except for a few key courses until the end of the current lockdown.
Several universities have announced longer pauses on face-to-face teaching, including the London School of Economics (LSE), who have moved all non-essential teaching online until the end of the academic year.
Vivienne Stern, director of Universities UK International, said that UUKI had been working alongside the Home Office to make these changes to the post-study work visa, and that she was “really grateful to the Home Office for their flexibility and responsiveness”.
