“When it comes to international recruitment, London Met has always been led by the data,” Davies told The PIE News.
“We paused recruitment from Bangladesh because at the time the risks were too high, and we’re resuming recruitment because our data now supports doing that.”
Davies said the university had “strengthened admissions, enhanced compliance oversight and maintained a relentless focus on student success”, giving it confidence to recruit responsibly while meeting UK sponsor requirements.
Under tightened BCA rules introduced in June 2026, UK universities must keep visa refusal rates below 5%, down from 10%, while maintaining enrolment rates of at least 95%, up from 90%.
The course completion threshold remains at 85% until June 2027, when it will rise to 90%.
The changes have prompted universities to reassess recruitment from markets perceived as higher risk, amid concerns over the potential impact on their sponsor status.
Davies delivered a warning about the impact of shifting Home Office expectations on the wider sector.
“It is fair to say that is extremely difficult in an era of moving goal posts from UKVI,” he said, referring to the sector’s continued “quality-first model of international recruitment”.
I remain concerned that with the actions UKVI are taking they are turning an extremely compliant sector into one that looks like it is wildly non-compliant
Gary Davies, London Met
“I remain concerned that with the actions UKVI are taking they are turning an extremely compliant sector into one that looks like it is wildly non-compliant.”
Davies warned that “undecipherable actions in key markets” were doing “irreparable harm to the UK brand”.
