Home Secretary Alan Johnson said 30 per cent of migrants who came into the UK were on student visas and a number were adults taking short courses, not degrees.
Following the confirmation that Farouk AbdulMutallab, the Nigerian accused of attempted bombing of a United States airliner on Christmas Day,was a student in London between 2005 and 2008, the British government had been under severe pressure from opposition parties to tighten visa requirements, especially for students.
With the public's confidence in Nigeria's education system constantly on the decline, thousands of Nigerians annually seek to study in the United Kingdom.
The new rule, however, will not have much effect on Nigerians with the requisite qualification who genuinely intend to study in the UK.
But it could affect those wishing to use the students' visa window to bring their dependants to work in the UK during and after their studies.
According to the British Broadcasting Corporation, under the new rules, effective immediately, successful applicants from outside the EU will have to speak English to a level only just below GCSE near-GCSE (equivalent of Senior Secondary School Certificate) standard, rather than beginner level as at present .
Also, students taking courses below degree level will be allowed to work for only 10 hours a week, instead of 20 as at present.
Those on courses, which last under six months, will not be allowed to bring dependants into the country, while the dependants of students on courses below degree level will not be allowed to work.
Additionally, visas for courses below degree level will also be granted only if the institutions they attend are on a new register, the Highly Trusted Sponsors List.
The Home Office would not confirm reports the changes may cut visas issued this year by tens of thousands.
A spokesman told BBC that a review of student visas had been ordered in November. In 2008/9, about 240,000 student visas were issued by the UK.
News of the new measures comes a week after student visa applications from Nepal, northern India and Bangladesh were suspended amid a big rise in cases.
Last year the UK introduced a system requiring students wishing to enter the country to secure 40 points under its criteria.
However, the government has faced criticism that this has allowed suspected terrorists and other would-be immigrants into the UK, only for them to stay on despite their visas being temporary.
Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, the home secretary denied the system had been lax before.
"We closed down 200 bogus colleges," he said. "By 2011, we will have the most sophisticated system in the world to check people not just coming into the country but to check they have left as well."
He said the UK remains open to those foreign students who want to come to the UK for legitimate study.
Alan Johnson: "If you are coming here for a course that is under six months you can not bring your dependents"
"We are the second most popular location for people going into higher education," he said.
"We have to be careful that we are not damaging a major part of the UK economy, between £5bn and £8bn."
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