Immigration rules slated by uni official

Published on Monday 17 March 2008 09:36

NEW immigration rules which require universities to report overseas students who miss lectures have come under fire from an Edinburgh University official.

Under the new points-based system, the Border and Immigration Agency must be informed if a student from outside the European Union is absent from study for more than ten working days.

The rules, which come into force early next year, also ask universities to keep up-to-date information on students, including mobile phone numbers and copies of passports, and to share these with the agency.

Alan Mackay, international officer at the university, said: "We are very concerned about the lack of detail on the implementation of the rules.

"What if a student does not attend for ill-health reasons and forgets to inform us? What happens during vacation periods? What about PhD students who are writing up?"

Several other institutions have also signalled their concern over the issue. Sir Howard Davies, of the London School of Economics, said the proposals were "unrealistic", while the University of Central Lancashire has employed a full-time administrator to cope with the increased demands.