A Nigerian student in the United Kingdom, Enyi Onyinye Grace, has been ordered to leave the country after she reportedly exceeded the 20-hour weekly work limit set for international students.
Grace, who arrived in the UK in 2022 for her studies, shared her ordeal in an emotional TikTok video, describing her experience as “a hell of three years.”
She explained that her troubles began in 2023 after her father, who was her main sponsor, passed away.
“It’s been a hell of three years. I came in 2022, and in 2023, my dad passed away. I still had to work to pay my school fees despite everything I was going through,” she said tearfully.
The student said she could only attend her father’s burial virtually through a video call and had to take up more work hours to cover her tuition and living expenses.
“It was hard. I had to view my dad’s burial on a video call. I was devastated. I had to work to survive and pay my fees, even though I was struggling. I made a mistake, I overworked unknowingly,” she said.
Her extra working hours, however, violated the UK’s student visa rules, which allow international students to work only up to 20 hours per week during term time.
Grace said her plea for leniency was ignored.
“I thought everything was fine, but they didn’t listen to me. They asked me to leave the country with immediate effect, without giving me a chance to complete my studies,” she added.
She revealed that after her sponsorship was withdrawn, she asked her university for permission to complete her studies online from Nigeria, but her request was rejected.
“I asked the university to let me finish my course online, even from home, but they said no,” she said.
Grace has now been instructed to leave the UK immediately.
