Overseas students face ‘unacceptable’ visa costs after outsourcing

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Universities fear chaos in September as private company struggles with workload

International students and staff at British universities are facing “unacceptable” difficulties and costs in applying for visas, after parts of the application process were outsourced to a company charging up to £200 for appointments.

Universities say that the system, run by the French IT services company Sopra Steria, is already struggling to cope with the numbers renewing their student visas within the UK, and fear that it will be chaotic in September when more than 40,000 students are expected to use it.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2YaU8uD

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