The UK Agent Quality Framework commitment 

The UK international education sector is committed to maintaining the highest standards of agent management, ensuring the UK remains a leading study destination for international students.  

All Child Student and Student sponsors using recruitment agents must be able to demonstrate commitment to the key principles of the Agent Quality Framework (AQF):  

  • Empowering student choice and enabling informed decision making.

  • Ensuring good agent governance and professionalism.

  • Promoting ethical agent practices, professional knowledge and competency.

  • Increasing transparency and accountability.   

All Student sponsors using recruitment agents must be able to provide, on request, evidence of how they are managing agents in line with the AQF and the national code of ethical practice for UK education agents, as applicable to the school, further education, pathway, and higher education sectors. 

Core AQF actions and behaviours

The AQF applies to all UK education providers on the register of licensed Student sponsors who use international student recruitment agents.  

In line with the key principles of the AQF, and as applicable to the school, further education, pathway and higher education sectors, licensed student sponsors must: 

  1. Promote the student and parent guide to choosing an education agent on their website and in communications with prospective international students who have asked about education agents. The AQF does not preclude international families applying directly to providers. 

  2. Publish a list of all contracted education agents on their website or signpost to the BSA certified agent scheme database (or other AQF endorsed certified scheme with a publicly accessible database) explaining the policy on agent qualification expectations.  

  3. Provide clear information to families on how they can register a complaint about their chosen education agent.  

  4. In all agency contracts, include a requirement for the agent to comply with the national code of ethical practice for UK education agents. 

  5. In all agency contracts, include a requirement for the agent to complete an appropriate sector-endorsed training programme that focuses on the national code of ethical practice for UK education agents.

  6. Publish a clear statement on their website explaining the commercial relationship between them and their contracted education agents.