UK Study Visa Ban: Students Challenge ‘Visa Brake’

A group of students from Sudan have launched a legal challenge in London’s Royal Court of Justice to overturn the UK Visa Brake policy implemented in March 2026. They are arguing that the policy is unfair, restricts access to visas and disturbs the study plans of genuine applicants.
The three Sudanese women who have filed the case are being represented by Duncan Lewis law firm and it is expected to check the legality of the policy.
According to the policy, ministers are allowed to hold back visas of students from countries like Afghanistan, Cameroon, Sudan and Myanmar, on a temporary basis. The verdict of the hearing can have major impacts for international students looking to study in the UK.

Among the women who have filed the case, two are doctors and one is a pharmacist. She has a master’s degree from Oxford University and University College, London. They mentioned that if the Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, had assessed the applications, she would have known that the applicants are planning to travel to the UK solely to study and had no intentions to remain in the UK after the course.
The Duncan Lewis solicitor argued, “Our clients argued before the High Court last week that the Home Secretary had selected Sudan for the imposition of a blanket ban on an arbitrary basis, without any evidence of visa abuse committed by Sudanese nationals”.

The case alleges that the government failed to consider alternatives for study visas and have completely banned the foreign nationals from entering the UK. The policy stated the ban is being imposed to address the “visa abuse” by foreign nationals claiming asylum but according to the claimants, the Home Secretary did not investigate whether any such actions were taken by the foreign nationals. This allegation was accepted by the Home Secretary.

Mahmood claims that the policy does not work on visa abuse but rather it is aimed to prevent all in-country asylum claims by affected nationals, mentioning that the asylum applications from the countries mentioned has increased to over 470% in just four years. She said, “Britain will always provide refuge to people fleeing war and persecution, but our visa system must not be abused.”

The judgement is expected next week and will be heard alongside another legal challenge put by the students. The argument also mentioned that only 120 Sudanese women applied for asylum in the year till September out of a total of over 1,10,000 claims in the UK. Also, these talented women have good academic records and have secured admission to the top universities around the world. The claimants’ attorney mentioned that this is disappointing to deprive women of such calibre the opportunity to grow in their fields solely because of their nationality.

On accounts of the claimants being successful University College of London has agreed to defer its offer by one year and give the students the time to raise funds for their studies.