Immigration policy in the UK restricts migrants' eligibility to some services and benefits, including in the sphere of education. Compulsory education is available to all, but many migrants face restrictions based on residency and immigration status, which affect fee rates and entitlement to financial support for further and higher education. The article draws on two studies of (i) family migrants and (ii) young precarious migrants to explore how both groups experience bordering in education. We expose how immigration status operates as a category to produce inequalities in educational opportunities. In particular, we show how it intersects with gender and life course, becoming significant unexpectedly at particular moments in time and impacting on migrants' structural and affective integration. In light of this evidence, the article considers the logics behind the funding restrictions, questioning their counterproductive nature for those who are long-term resident and/or likely to remain in the UK.