Thousands of legitimate students have been affected by UK's suspension of student visas according to the president of the Education Consultants Association of Nepal.

Uttam Prasad Pan said that Nepalese students may have been directly affected by the recent suspension of visas from North India, Bangladesh and Nepal.

"The UK government's decision to stop accepting student visa applications temporarily under points-based System - Tier 4 has also put the tuition fees of 4,000 students at risk," said Mr Uttam.

The United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) has also suspended the recognition to more than 100 colleges in the UK alongside the visas.

A report from the civil liberties group, Manifesto Club, claims that the continued restrictions on student visa applications, classified as Tier 4 visas, has stopped thousands of genuine students from coming to study in the UK.

Peter Brady, head of the International Office at Edinburgh Napier University, told The Journal that the suspension has not affected many of the university's students.

“Our term started prior to the visa suspension and should not affect us as a university; it may cause problems for one or two research PhDs.”

Mr Brady stressed that the visa suspension was not aimed at universities but at 'dodgy' colleges, saying: “It is unlikely that this if for UK universities.

"The UK Border Agency has stated its reasons for the suspension to private colleges and not to universities.”

The new system has forced colleges to register with the UK Border Agency.

Failure to meet the new criteria has resulted in the closure of colleges and the withdrawal of licences to recruit foreign students.

Michael Russell, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning for the Scottish Government said:

“We have been and will remain in close contact with the UK Government with regards to delivery of the new points-based system.

“These office closures are very concerning and the Scottish Government is making strong representations to the UK Government on this decision.

“This could have a negative impact on Scotland as an attractive destination for international students while having an adverse affect on the international competitiveness of our colleges and universities and we will certainly be making this point in our representations to the UK Government.”

The recent suspensions by the UKBA have been part of a growing concern over the role of private colleges in the immigration of overseas students.

The suspension of visa applications comes following a surge in the number of visa applications from 1,800 to 13,500 from the same period last year.

Jeremy Oppenheim, head of the points-based system at the UK Border Agency, said: “The points-based system gives us the flexibility to act to maintain the integrity of the visa system, while processing legitimate applications fairly, thoroughly and as quickly as possible.”

The reasons for the suspension of visa applications were outlined by Mr Oppenheim: “We continually check and monitor all student applications and education providers to ensure that they meet the required standards set by the points-based system.

“As a result of this routine monitoring and an increase in applications, we have temporarily stopped accepting new applications from North India, Bangladesh and Nepal while we carry out an investigation to ensure they are all genuine. We will take tough action against those who attempt to abuse the system.”