Overseas Pakistani Friends

A British High Commission visa officer has been arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency, which is investigating a human smuggling ring, on suspicion of selling sponsorship letters to people hoping to obtain a visa for the UK, the Telegraph reported on Monday.

The authorities have also arrested three other men, including a travel agent; the newspaper quoted a source in the Federal Investigation Agency. A number of passports have also been recovered from a house in Rawalpindi. The detention of the High Commission visa officer will be hugely embarrassing to British officials in Pakistan who have invested a huge amount of time and money in detecting fake documents amid concerns that al-Qaeda operatives could arrive in Britain on visas obtained illegally, the report observed.

The Telegraph said Khurram Shahzad, a junior member of the visa section, seemed to have been arrested after a tip-off. An FIA investigator told the British daily that investigators were now trying to determine the scale of the alleged scam and track down any other suspects also working at the British High Commission. The paper quoted a Foreign Office spokesman in Islamabad as saying: “We can confirm that a member of the British High Commission visa section has been arrested. We are co-operating with the FIA in their investigation.

British High Commission has lost passports of many Pakistanis

By Muhammad Saleh Zaafir

ISALMABAD: Pakistan and the United Kingdom will discuss their strategic relationship during the visit of the British Foreign Secretary David Milliband, who is reaching here today (Saturday) for a day-long stay in the capital. Continue reading »

UK-bound students got a lively pre-departure informational event organized by the British Council and sponsored by Etihad Airways and Gerry’s Travels in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad.

The event was held to brief students on what to expect from their time spent living and studying in the UK as university students, said a statement issued here on Friday. Continue reading »

* Report claims easiest way to obtain student visa to Britain is by
securing letter of admission from British university

LAHORE: Families in the northwestern region of Pakistan have said that there is a growing trend of sending their sons to Britain, largely because of the ease of the gaining admission in obscure colleges there.

According to a report published in The Times, young people living in Pakistan have great incentive to move to Britain as it offers them freedom from family shackles and the prospect of financial gain. The existence in Britain of large Urdu-speaking communities is further incentive, it added, noting that the only barrier used to be the problem of entry. Continue reading »

Noor Aftab
A seminar on ‘New Student Visa Rules and Scholarship Opportunities in the UK’ was held here on Thursday to provide students with complete and updated information about rules and procedures for securing admission in the UK universities.

The seminar was organised by Falcon Education and Consultancy Services (private) Limited (FECS) in which a large number of students, educationists and deans and directors of various institutions participated with great interest. The services of FECS are completely free for all students from Pakistan. These services were recognised by the government when Syed Abidi was awarded Tamgha-i-Imtiaz (Medal of Excellence) by the president of Pakistan in 2008.

While giving a presentation, FECS CEO Syed Abidi explained in detail through power point slides the changes made by the UK Border Agency, especially focusing on TIER 4 Student Visa, which has replaced the old system on March 31, 2009. Continue reading »

The UK Government today announced the go-live date for the student tier of its new points-based system for migration.

From 31st March, students looking to study in the UK can apply for their visa through the new points-based system which will streamline the Student visa application process.

Under the new transparent system, students will need to prove that they have been accepted onto a course run by a UK Border Agency (UKBA) licensed education institution, prove that they have the means to support themselves and supply their biometric details at their local visa application centre. Continue reading »