Foreign students would be allowed to work longer hours under plans to boost the economy by plugging vacancies.
Ministers are looking at ways to encourage British and overseas students to take more part-time jobs to deal with shortages in areas such as hospitality and retail.
Britain’s 680,000 overseas students are limited to 20 hours of paid work a week during term time, a limit designed to prevent student visas from being used as backdoor routes to jobs in this country. However, discussions have begun within the government about either raising this cap to 30 hours or removing it entirely.
The idea risks running up against Suella Braverman’s determination to reduce the number of foreign students.
