UK Excludes Nigerian, Ghanaian Teachers From Qualified Teacher Status

The United Kingdom Department for Education has removed teachers trained in Nigeria and Ghana from the list of professionals eligible to apply directly for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).

The policy change took effect on September 9, 2026, revoking the pathway required for teaching in state-funded schools in England.

According to the UK government, the decision followed an assessment of national regulators and qualification verification processes. The department reported that over 70 per cent of applications from Nigeria and Ghana submitted work history references using public email domains such as Gmail and Hotmail rather than official school email addresses.

The department stated that the lack of official domain references created verification challenges and failed to meet the authentication standards required to confirm a teacher’s professional standing.