“There will not be a levy in Wales. We are not seeking to moderate student demand in this way and indeed we really welcome international students,” education secretary Lynne Neagle told the Welsh Parliament on October 8.
“We want our international students to continue to feel welcomed for the positive social, cultural and economic contributions they make in Wales,” Neagle said.
Chair of Universities Wales professor Elwen Evans hailed the announcement as “welcome news,” noting the significant economic contribution international students bring to Wales, “as well as enriching our courses, campuses and communities,” he said.
The international student levy was initially proposed in the UK government’s immigration white paper in May 2025 and is effectively a tax on the income universities receive from international students.
“The introduction of a levy – effectively an additional tax– would have had detrimental impact on Welsh universities,” said Evans.
“The levy would have increased the financial pressure the sector is under, affecting universities’ capacity to contribute to their local communities and potentially reducing the number of places available for Welsh and UK students.”
“Today’s announcement is a clear message from Welsh Government that international students are welcome to study in Wales,” he added.
Last week, UK education secretary Bridget Phillipson confirmed plans to go ahead with the levy, set to be rolled out across England with funds going towards targeted maintenance grants for disadvantaged domestic students.
We want our international students to continue to feel welcomed for the positive social, cultural and economic contributions they make in Wales
Lynne Neagle, Welsh Parliament
Though more details are expected in the Autumn budget, the UK government has assumed the cost of the levy would be passed on to international students, thus hiking the cost of coming to study in most of the UK.
As the government seeks to implement the reforms laid out in the immigration white paper, most can be enacted through changes to the immigration rules without requiring an act of parliament — the only exception being the levy on international student fees.
Its upcoming implementation has drawn fierce criticism from sector leaders who say the UK could lose up to 77,000 international students within five years as a result of higher international student fees.
According to Public First data, every full-time working adult in the UK is £466 a year better off on average as a result of international student income.
Meanwhile, Welsh institutions generate £1.26bn per year from the contributions of international students and researchers coming to Wales.
