So, I was supposed to write about the UK as a study destination today, why people chose the UK and why the UK has become a top priority for Nigerians as their JAPA country. But unfortunately, I won't be writing about this though I will still be writing about the UK.
In my LETTER TO YOU for this week, I will be shedding some light on the recent news you may have heard or seen about the UK adding Nigeria to the red list.
Now, a lot of you may not have heard about this before now or do not even know what the red list means.
Oya, grab some guguru (popcorn) with a juice (not soda) relax, read and enjoy as I unfold this for you in detail.
Many of you may not know or may not have heard, but sometime in June 2021, the UK created three (3) different lists to categorize countries with their COVID19 status and to state the different arrangements for people traveling from these countries, this list is tagged; 1. Green List 2. Amber List 3. Red List.
Now, let me explain this better for you in a short explanatory form
The Green List
The countries under this list are free to enter the UK without being quarantined, conduct any test or have a restricted movement. So, it means whoever is traveling from this country to the UK could travel freely with no restriction whatsoever. It is assumed that such a person is free of COVID19 and they (the UK) have no reason to be afraid. YOU GET?
Amber List
Now for amber, the countries in this list could also travel to the UK but with some restrictions. Whoever is coming to the UK from any country from this list must;
- Book a covid19 text to be taken after you arrive in England - You book this right from your country
- Complete a passenger locator form – to be completed in the 48 hours before you arrive in England. This form is needed to locate you and check if you are quarantined at the address you provided or not. If not, believe me, you will be deported immediately. People have been deported due to this.
- You must quarantine in your home or the place you are staying. You are required to do a self-isolation kind of quarantine for 10 days. However, if you have gone for your test and your result came out negative, you can end the quarantine and starts walking freely in the UK.
Nigeria was on this list before the announcement which would begin today.
Red List
Now the final List, is where we (Nigeria) are now. Countries on this list are a different story entirely. The countries under this list are classified as COVID19 country's destinations. Meaning, this countries still have COVID19 on a rampage that is yet to be curtailed. Whoever that is coming from these countries would be treated differently. However, this does not mean they cannot travel to the UK, just that there are restrictions here and there which is more than that of the Amber list.
Although, according to the UKVI website, if you are from or you have been in a red list countries in the past 10 days, you would only be allowed to enter the UK if you;
- Are a British or Irish National
- Have residence rights in the UK
When you checked, nothing was said about students or skilled workers or something. Yes, this thing requires one to be smart, you get?
We all know that the UK needs workers and they need money. Do you know how much students are bringing for them? Do you know how much work is available with no personnel to fill them?
So they have to be smart.
According to the statement released by the British High Commission on UK visa, whilst identifying Nigeria as a red list country, some specific visas would not be issue henceforth, the visas are:
- Tourism
- Visiting family and friends
- Undertaking short-term business activities (for example, attending meetings).
- Undertaking short-term studies (under 6 months).
- Taking part in research or exchange programmes as an academic
- Medical reasons (for example, receiving private medical treatment)
- Take a COVID-19 test – you must take the test in the 3 days before you travel to England
- Book a quarantine hotel package, including 2 COVID-19 tests - Below is what you would be paying for this. Another way of making money for the UK. The difference between this and the amber is that here you could only quarantine at specifically approved hotels and you will pay as seen below while for the amber list, you would choose where you want to quarantine without making any payment.
| 1 adult in 1 room for 10 days (11 nights) | £2,285 |
|---|---|
| Additional rate for 1 adult (or child over 11) | £1,430 |
| Additional rate for a child aged 5 to 11 | £325 |
All these must be done before coming to the UK, you can read more about it here
Now, you can see that this does not just start, it has been in existence since June 2021.
One may asked why is Nigeria being moved to the Red list.
If you have been in the news lately, the Federal government announced and declare that Nigeria has recorded two cases of the new variant of COVID19 (Omicron). Seriously if you ask me, I do not know how we come about this, but it has been announced and here we are.
Just in case you do not know, Canada has already banned traveling from Nigeria due to this.
So, for now, it is not entirely clear that the UK is restricting students coming for master's or undergraduates studies, what is clear is that students coming for courses under 6 months would not be issued a visa.
Meanwhile, I understand a lot of you may be so concerned about the quarantine/hotel fee and all. £2,285 that is about N1.3m kilode!! where I wan see am!! (more like where would I get money)
I have good news for you, so far, some UK schools are willing to refund part of this money back to the students as support for these expenses while few are willing to refund the full amount of £2,285 to the students.
One of the schools that I am so 100% sure of is the University of Lincoln. The school would refund the money back to you in 100%. I would write more about the amazing things this school does in my soon to come "LETTER TO YOU"
While discussing with friends, I was informed that Aston University and Robert Gordon University also refund the full amount back to students.
Some schools are willing to refund like £1,750.
I'd advise you to take your time to go through your chosen school website and read their policy on the COVID19 before paying your tuition fee. Believe me, N1.3m is not small money for so many
Meanwhile, for me, I think this covid19 and its restriction on Nigeria would be over soon. This decision came as a result of the new covid19 variant discovered in the country.
So, I will advise you to not be discouraged and continue with your applications to the UK for your masters or undergraduate studies, you would still be allowed to travel. Also, you can discuss with your chosen school by sending them a mail on what their take is on the new policy by the UK government.
Ask them if they would issue you a CAS or not before making a deposit.
Do have a fruitful week ahead - Sammy wishes you the complement of the season.
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