The Prime Minister announced on 17 November 2009 that a review of tier 4, the student tier of the points based system, would be conducted by a joint team from the UK Border Agency and the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills. The review team have been asked to assess whether the current tier 4 policy strikes the appropriate balance between facilitating access of genuine students to education in the UK and preventing abuse by economic migrants.
The review is looking at evidence gathered from the early stages of tier 4, which was launched in March this year, to look at the case for or against any policy changes. The review will consider all of the available data and evidence, including the potential financial impact of the proposals on the different parts of the education sector such as the English language sector.