“Some people may have been wrongly accused and in some cases, unfairly removed from the UK”: this is the verdict of the UK’s National Audit Office which has assessed the case of international students who were accused of cheating in TOIEC exams needed to gain the right to study in the country.

The UK Home Office is being investigated on its handling of the so-called TOEIC cheating scandal, following fresh media attention on the plight of the "English language test victims" who had their studies curtailed due to concerns over fraud.

In an unexpected ministerial statement, the UK's Universities and Science minister Greg Clark says he will set up a 'Rapid Response Team' to investigate fraud allegations among alternative providers and will require APs to register any student before making a claim for tuition fee support.

UKBA has been criticised for ushering in the new Tier 4 visa system before it had gained complete control of sponsors (education institutions). The National Audit Office (NAO) suggested up to 50,000 students might have been actually seeking access to the jobs market in Tier 4's first year of operation.