By Nkiruka Nnorom, with agency reports

As part of efforts to reform its immigration system, the United Kingdom would soon restrict visa applications from nationalities whose citizens are most likely to overstay their approved stays.

First reported by the Times, the Home Office listed the affected countries as Pakistan, Nigeria and Sri Lanka.

The report noted that nationals from these countries overstay their visas and later seek asylum and successful asylum requests allow the applicants to permanently remain in the country.

As a consequence, the Home Office said they might face tougher restrictions when applying to work or study in the UK.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “Our upcoming Immigration White Paper will set out a comprehensive plan to restore order to our broken immigration system.

“To tackle abuse by foreign nationals who arrive on work and study visas and go on to claim asylum, we are building intelligence on the profile of these individuals to identify them earlier and faster.

“We keep the visa system under constant review and where we detect trends, which may undermine our immigration rules, we will not hesitate to take action.

“Under our plan for change, our upcoming Immigration White Paper will set out a comprehensive plan to restore order to our broken immigration system,’’

Full details of the government’s plans are due to be published in the said paper later this month.

Nigerians have been significantly affected by the UK’s immigration reform plans over the past two years, especially in the areas of student visas, work permits and visa approvals.

Following tighter rules on dependents and post-study work opportunities introduced by former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, international student applications to the UK have dropped drastically.

Many Nigerians have now turned to the US as a choice destination but even that option has now proven unsustainable.

A 2024 report showed how Nigerian visa rejection rates to the UK rose from about 1 in 31 applications in late 2022 to 1 in 8 by late 2023.

African economists and development experts have urged nationals of developing nations not to seek greener pastures abroad but stay back and contribute to the development of their countries.

This resulted in a 63 per cent decrease in visas issued to Nigerians, compared to the previous year.

The financial burden of non-refundable fees, combined with higher rejection rates, have intensified pressure on Nigerian applicants.

Recall that the British government earned over N40 billion processing visas for Nigerian nationals between June 2023 to June 2024.

US President Donald Trump has also increased tighter restrictions, warning that even students with valid visas could be deported if the US believed they did not serve her best interest.