The UK government is to double the number of globally leading universities whose graduates can apply for a high potential individual (HPI) visa.

In one of few moves to loosen visa rules in the government¡¯s immigration White Paper, , the 51¹ú²úÊÓƵ Office says it is ¡°looking to double the number of qualifying institutions¡± in what it called a ¡°targeted and capped expansion of the HPI route¡± opened in May 2022.

Under the current scheme, alumni from ¨C including Columbia, Cornell and Harvard universities in the US, the 51¹ú²úÊÓƵ of Melbourne in Australia, Kyoto and Tokyo universities in Japan and Peking and Tsinghua universities in China ¨C are able to apply for at least a two-year visa within five years of graduation.

The scheme was, however, criticised as too geographically restricted when it was unveiled in 2022 amid concerns that none of the selected universities were from Africa, Latin America or South 51¹ú²úÊÓƵ. Subsequent updates to the list have included Chinese universities, although the criteria (inclusion in the top 50 of two of the top three global university rankings: Times Higher Education, QS and the Academic Ranking of World Universities, known as the Shanghai Ranking) have been questioned as arbitrary given the impact of small changes in an institution¡¯s ranking position.

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A new report ?by the 51¹ú²úÊÓƵ Office on 12 May also highlights the limited take-up of the HPI visa, which was used by roughly 4,500 main applicants and 620 dependants between May 2022 and June 2024 ¨C about 200 a month.

In contrast, about 2.4 million people arrived in the UK in the two years up to June 2024 ¨C about 100,000 a month, meaning HPI-related immigration accounted for 0.2 per cent of monthly immigration.

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According to the study, 26 per cent of HPI visa holders came from the US, 17 per cent from India and 12 per cent from China ¨C with the majority of applicants attending a US university (55 per cent), and with 53 per cent holding at least a master¡¯s degree (53 per cent) and 9 per cent having a PhD. Some 95 per cent of HPI visa holders were under the age of 40 and 63 per cent under 29.

Drawing on responses from 656 people, the report finds the vast majority (85 per cent) had a positive experience applying for the visa, with 78 per cent stating the process was easy.

But many described their difficulty in getting a job, given their visa lasted only two years. While 78 per cent were employed, of whom almost half (46 per cent) were earning more than ?40,000 a year, most respondents (94 per cent) said they were not doing what they had originally planned primarily?because of employment challenges.

Some 47 per cent had struggled to find a job, 34 per cent had found something on lower pay than expected and 33 per cent were working at a lower level of skill than they had hoped.

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Obtaining a job when your visa is limited to two years put migrants at a disadvantage, said many visa holders who had often used the visa route because it did not require a job offer.

One visa holder explained that ¡°employers don¡¯t want to even speak to you because they¡¯re like, well, you only have a year left here. They don¡¯t really want to sponsor you. They¡¯d rather not waste the money.¡±

¡°I did almost 30 pre-screening interviews and the reason for not proceeding was always my visa status and the need to offer sponsorship after 2 years,¡± said another.

The cost of the visa ¨C which includes an ?880 application fee and annual health surcharge of more than ?1,000 ¨C was also raised as an issue by some respondents, with one describing the HPI as ¡°ridiculously expensive¡±.

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The high cost of rental accommodation and the cost of living were also raised as barriers to staying in the UK. ¡°It¡¯s super-impractical to come over [to the UK] if you don¡¯t have savings or family backup.¡±

jack.grove@timeshighereducation.com