The United Kingdom Department for Education has excluded teachers trained in Nigeria, Ghana and India from using the route to apply for Qualified Teacher Status in England.

The change took effect on September 9, 2026, according to updated guidance posted by the DfE and sighted by PUNCH Online on Tuesday.

QTS is the professional teaching qualification for teachers in England and a status recognised by many schools in the country.

The department said teachers trained to teach in Ghana, India or Nigeria would no longer be eligible to use the “Apply for QTS in England” service from September 9.

The latest decision followed the release of data on applications for QTS from overseas-trained teachers for the 2024-2025 academic year.

The data, released on August 27, showed that Nigeria recorded 1,076 applications, of which 364 resulted in QTS, while 599 applications were declined, representing 95 per cent rejection.

Ghana recorded 1,067 applications, with 196 resulting in QTS and 749 (97 per cent) declined.

DfE said the eligibility requirements had been updated to ensure that countries covered by the service had a national regulator capable of confirming a teacher’s professional standing and could provide references that met its requirements.

It said India was excluded because it “does not have a national regulator that can confirm professional standing.”

On Nigeria and Ghana, the department said, “Our data shows that more than 70% of applications from teachers in Ghana and Nigeria include work history references that use public email addresses, such as Gmail or Hotmail, rather than a school’s official email domain.”

It added that this meant assessors spent “additional time and resources trying to verify information provided in applications.”

The department said it must be confident that information provided by applicants was genuine to ensure that overseas teachers awarded QTS had the skills and experience required to teach in English schools.

“Teachers who are not eligible to apply for QTS in England service can explore other routes into teaching,” it said.

To apply for QTS, overseas-trained teachers must have a valid passport, an undergraduate degree equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree and professional recognition as a teacher in the country where they trained.

Applicants must also have completed any mandatory induction requirements needed for full teacher registration in their country of qualification.

They are required to demonstrate that they are qualified to teach children aged between five and 16 and have at least nine months of teaching experience gained after qualifying as a teacher.

Applicants must also provide employment references that verify their work history and use an email address linked to the school’s official domain.

Depending on the country where a teacher trained, additional requirements may include qualifications to teach pupils aged between 11 and 16 and a specialism in subjects such as mathematics, science, biology, chemistry, physics, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Mandarin, Russian or Spanish.

However, because teachers in England are employed by individual schools rather than the Department for Education, schools may consider alternative routes into teaching.

The department said teachers who are no longer eligible to use the QTS application service can explore other routes into teaching in England.

Nigeria and Ghana removal means South Africa is the only African country on the list.

Countries and regions that remain eligible for the service include Australia, Canada, the European Economic Area, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Jersey, New Zealand, Switzerland, Ukraine and the USA.

Teachers qualified in Jamaica, Singapore and South Africa could also apply under specified conditions, including additional subject and age requirements where applicable.