Lenders concerned about education loans as US tightens curbs on student visas

Mint

a day ago

US president Donald Trump administration's tough stance on international student visas are worrying lenders, as they are seeing a sharp fall in the number of customers opting for education loans to study in America. Disbursal of loan amounts may also get impacted if visas are cancelled or delayed, the banks warned.
'Banks have seen a 25% reduction in education loans to students applying to US and Canada last fiscal and the growth in education loans will dip further now. More students are now looking at European colleges for admission," said a senior official at one of India's largest public sector banks.
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The banks' warnings comes on the back of the US government directing its embassies to stop scheduling new interviews for international student visas. Prior to this, the US embassy in India has cautioned students that skipping classes or leaving the program without informing authorities will lead to visa revocation, as the Trump administration mounts scrutiny of overseas students.
'Demand for US student loans have halved as of now post the Trump decision. We are expecting business to slow down drastically, also due to the delay in US visa applications. However, we expect the situation to improve by February-March next year," said Nilanjan Chattoraj, head, credit and product, education loans, InCred Finance.
'So far we are not seeing stress in the education loan portfolio. However, we have put in place structures and teams in place if some of the students face job losses. We will work with them to chart out a repayment plan and seek regulatory flexibility in classifying these loans," said Chattoraj.
Loan disbursal risks worry lenders
Typically, the loan amount gets sanctioned and then the student applies for the requisite visas. But lenders are worried that if visas get cancelled or delayed, then there will be an issue during the time of disbursal, which is sought by the college when the academic session starts.
'55-60% of our loan applicants are for higher education to the US and we expect a dip because of the visa issues, but this should be a temporary one. However, US-focussed education consultants who link the students with us have seen up to 50% drop in demand for US," Ankit Mehra, co-founder and chief executive officer of non-banking financial company GyanDhan, said.
For non-bank lenders, the average ticket size for a loan to the US is ₹40 lakh, and the other geographies that are next in queue include the UK, Canada and Australia.
Tighter visa rules dent student traffic
A degree in these colleges can set one back by $55,000-$100,000 a year for a four-year undergraduate course. Over the past few weeks, there has been a stiff battle between Ivy League universities like Harvard with the Trump-led government. Last week, The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) revoked Harvard's certification to admit foreign students for the 2025-26 academic year.
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The university sued the US administration in the district court of Massachusetts, which blocked the order, providing temporary relief. The Trump administration has already ended Federal grants worth more than $2 billion to Harvard. It also aims to cancel remaining contracts, The New York Times reported.
'We typically send around 500 students to the US each year. Earlier this month, visa slots opened for Indian students, and most of our applicants secured their visas during this period. However, around 20% are currently facing delays as US Embassies conduct additional scrutiny during visa interviews," said Namita Mehta, president of education consulting firm The Red Pen.
A 2024 report by Crisil noted that India's expenditure on overseas education was estimated at ₹5-5.1 trillion annually in 2023 and projected to swell to ₹10.5-11.5 trillion by 2028. 'This market is expected to be driven by the increase in the number of students opting for education abroad and the rising cost of attendance," the report stated.
According to data provided by the government in parliament in March, 750,000 Indians were studying abroad in 2022. That number shot up to 892,000 in 2023, but dipped to 759,000 in 2024 in the wake of geopolitical crises and visa curbs.
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In 2023, Australia announced that it would no longer permit international students to enrol in affordable vocational courses immediately upon arrival in the country. In an attempt to clamp down on large-scale immigration, the UK tightened visa rules for international students, making it tougher to bring in dependents. In 2024, Canada, too, tightened visa rules.