The issue of delays in UK visas for Pakistani students is expected to see progress after British High Commissioner Jane Marriott assured full cooperation and necessary steps to address the matter.
British High Commissioner Jane Marriott met Federal Minister for Law, Justice and Human Rights Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar, where they discussed Pakistan-UK bilateral relations, educational ties and other matters of mutual interest.
Hundreds of Pakistani students affected by visa delays
During the meeting, Tarar raised the issue of delays in UK visas for Pakistani students, informing the British High Commissioner of the government’s concerns.
The federal minister said hundreds of Pakistani students were facing difficulties due to visa delays and expressed concern that delays in visa issuance could cause several students to miss or lose their academic year.
Tarar stressed the need to remove unnecessary hurdles affecting Pakistani students seeking higher education opportunities abroad.
Committee working on students’ issues
Tarar informed the British High Commissioner that, on the prime minister’s directives, a committee under his leadership was working to improve the legal and institutional framework concerning Pakistani students studying abroad.
According to the federal minister, the committee has already finalised its recommendations, while efforts are continuing to make the legal and institutional system for overseas education more effective.
British envoy assures cooperation
Jane Marriott assured cooperation and necessary measures to help resolve the issue of visa delays faced by Pakistani students.
The two sides also discussed strengthening educational ties between Pakistan and the UK, as well as enhancing cooperation and institutional links between the two countries.
Minister of State for Law, Justice and Human Rights Barrister Aqeel Malik also attended the meeting.
It is pertinent to mention here that the United Kingdom (UK) earned an estimated 9.2 million pounds in non-refundable visa application fees from Pakistani visa applications.
The embassies later rejected the visitor visa requests of Pakistani citizens. This dual standard of the UK is a question mark and has raised many questions that need to be answered.
Overall, the UK rejected more than 585,000 visitor visa applications worldwide during the same period. With the standard visitor visa application fee set at 127 pounds, the total amount retained from unsuccessful applications is estimated at approximately 74 million pounds.
Pakistani applicants accounted for more than 72,000 of those refusals. Based on the current application fee, unsuccessful applicants from Pakistan paid an estimated 9.2 million pounds (more than PKR 3 billion) in non-refundable fees despite not receiving visas.
Also read: Pakistani passport August update: New visa-free, e-visa countries
