Universities in England will start paying about $1,200 (£925) for each foreign student they enrol, including those from Nigeria, under a new government levy.
The new levy is a flat fee of £925 per foreign student per year of study, charged to higher education providers in England, and it applies to enrolments from August 2028.
It will apply to all English higher education providers registered with the Office for Students.
The charge applies to every international student, regardless of nationality. Nigerian students, one of the largest overseas groups in the UK, are covered alongside all others.
The policy, first announced in the UK government’s 2025 budget, was reaffirmed by the Education Minister, Josh MacAlister, who asserted that the revenue would support England’s higher education and skills system.
The fresh levy, according to the Department of Education, covers both new and existing students.
MacAlister noted that the government had conducted consultations and published an impact assessment in 2025, with an updated analysis expected shortly.
He maintained that a planned increase in domestic tuition fee caps could generate about £6 billion for providers over five years, compared with the levy’s projected cost of less than £1 billion.
Under the proposal, universities will pay £925 annually for each international student, with the first 220 overseas enrolments exempted.
The Office for Students will oversee implementation using enrolment data. Government projects the levy will generate £445 million ($594 million) in 2028-2029, with the figure rising to £480 million ($641 million) by 2030-2031.
Home Office figures showed that Nigeria received 26,060 sponsored study visas in the year ending June 2026, behind China with 86,368 and India with 82,523. Pakistan recorded 19,600, while Bangladesh got about 8,800.
For Nigerian students, who form one of the UK’s largest international cohorts, the charge could translate to higher tuition.
The Department for Education data further showed that Nigerian students generated £1.7 billion in UK higher education export revenue in 2024, compared with £5.3 billion from India and £4.9 billion from China. Overall, international students generated an estimated £23.9 billion.
The policy will affect universities recruiting from China, India, Nigeria, Pakistan and Bangladesh, alongside African markets such as Ghana, Kenya, Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Home Office figures show that China received 86,368 sponsored study visas in the year ending June 2026, followed by India with 82,523 and Nigeria with 26,060.
Pakistan recorded 19,600 adult student visas, while Bangladesh received about 8,800 over the same period.
According to the Department for Education, students from India generated £5.3 billion in UK higher education export revenue in 2024, compared with £4.9 billion from China and £1.7 billion from Nigeria.
Overall, international higher education students generated an estimated £23.9 billion in export revenue for Britain that year.
Although students will not pay the levy directly, universities could pass on additional costs through higher international tuition fees, adding to the financial requirements already facing overseas applicants.
Birmingham City University has already raised fees for continuing international students by 2% for the 2026–2027 academic year, with a further 3.5% increase planned for 2027–2028.
Meanwhile, the University of Bath has advised overseas students who began their courses in 2026 to budget for annual tuition fee increases of up to 8%.
