Nigerian students top list of foreign graduates who stay back in UK

Nigerian students are among the most likely international graduates to remain in the United Kingdom after completing their studies, despite the country’s tightening immigration policies and plans to make permanent settlement more difficult.

A new briefing on international student migration found that around 78% of Nigerians who first arrived on a UK student visa in 2020 still held a valid visa at the end of 2025, the highest proportion among the major nationalities analysed.

By comparison, 58% of Indian students from the same cohort still had valid visas five years later, while students from countries such as China and the United States were far less likely to remain in the UK.

The report said international students have become increasingly likely to stay in the UK after graduation, largely because many switch to the Graduate Visa or other visa categories that allow them to continue living and working in the country.

Among all migrants who were issued an initial UK study visa in 2020, 41% still had permission to stay in the country by the end of 2025. Of those, 26% had moved onto work visas, 6% remained on study visas, while 59% no longer held a valid visa, indicating they had most likely left the UK.

The report noted that only 25% of students who arrived in 2019 still held valid visas five years later, highlighting a growing trend of graduates remaining in Britain.

However, remaining in the UK does not necessarily bring migrants closer to permanent residency.

The report explained that study visas and Graduate Visas do not provide a direct route to settlement, meaning time spent on either visa does not count towards the standard five-year residence period typically required for migrants seeking indefinite leave to remain.

Instead, time spent on these visas counts towards a separate long-residence route, which requires 10 years of lawful and continuous residence before an individual can qualify for settlement.

The pathway could become even more challenging after the UK government announced in November 2025 plans to tighten settlement rules.

The proposals include doubling the standard residence requirement to 10 years, although the report noted that details on how and when the changes would be implemented remained unclear as of June 2026.

Despite the tougher immigration environment, the findings suggest Nigerian graduates continue to be among those most likely to build longer-term lives in the UK after completing their studies, largely by transitioning into other visa routes rather than returning home immediately.