(Eagle News) — The Bureau of Immigration has reported a 75-percent drop in the number of foreign students in the country in 2020, an all-time low.
In a statement, the bureau said only 1,254 foreigners applied for student visas last year, compared to the 4,785 in 2019.
Foreign students who renewed their visas also dropped to 7,170, which is 31 percent less than the 10,433 who extended their visas in 2019, the bureau said.
A student visa is issued by the bureau to a foreigner enrolled in college at a school accredited or authorized to admit them.
The bureau student visa section also reported a 74-percent drop in the number of foreign pupils in the elementary and high school levels who applied for special study permits.
The SSP is issued to foreigners taking up short-term courses in the country, and to foreigners enrolled in elementary and high school.
It said there were only 1,962 foreigners who applied for SSPs during the year, compared to the 7,428 who applied for said permits in 2019.
Bureau student visa section chief Anthony Cabrera said as a result of the decline in foreign students, the bureau’s collections from student visa fees also decreased.
Cabrera said revenues generated from foreign students in 2020 amounted to only P151 million, 28 percent lower than the P209 million collected in 2020.
He said many of the foreign students were repatriated to their home countries amid concerns by their parents on the spread of Covid-19.
He added the decreased in economic activity worldwide also resulted in some parents facing economic problems which forced the students to return home.
“Restrictions on the entry of foreigners and suspension of face-to-face classes due to the pandemic naturally caused a decline in the number of alien enrollees in Philippine schools,” bureau chief Jaime Morente added, noting that many who intended to come here and “had no choice but to forego their plans.”
He expressed hope the “renewed confidence in international travel, as well as the roll out of vaccines, would entice international students back to the country” in 2021.
Before the pandemic, the country was a top destination for international students wanting to take English language courses and medicine-related courses.
