In 2014 the Home Office revoked 35,000 international student’s visas for allegedly cheating on their English language test after a BBC Panorama documentary.
Many former students believe that they have been falsely accused.
In the documentary, it was found that there was “clear evidence” that students had paid money to ensure they achieved the correct mark, they found 97 per cent of students were suspected of suspicious behaviour.
The aftermath saw 2,500 students deported and 7,200 were warned they would be arrested if they did not leave the country.
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The Educational Testing Service (ETS) subsidiary in the UK that held the exams has been shut down and the Home Office paid a £1.6 million settlement by the ETS Global BV in 2018.
However, it has been found that the Home Office may have falsely accused many students, new evidence finds.
The National Audit Office in 2019 stated that the Home Office “did not have the expertise to validate the results” that were provided by the ETS.
The charity Migrant Voice has been publicly working with students since 2017 to make sure they get compensation for the revoking of their Visas.
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In a petition to the Prime Minister in March 2023, Migrant Voice petitioned for those thought to be wronged to have their names cleared.
Immigration tribunals are still holding court for former students who want the allegation reversed; 3,600 have won appeal.
The Home Office stated that their evidence was sufficient for only a small number of decisions to be found as wrong, but has welcomed appeals.
“Home Office” by focal5 is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.