Confidential documents obtained by the Sunday Tribune show that a major crackdown has been launched after "endemic" fraud and corruption by Chinese students coming to study English here was revealed, including bribery of visa agents and attempted bribery of embassy staff. Widespread use of fraudulent bank records was found.

The private briefing document by the justice department's nationality and immigration service slams unregulated and illegal English-language schools.

"Illegitimate schools are complicit in abuse [of the system and of genuine students]. . . by supplying false letters of attendance to immigration officials for a fee, " the document claims. It says the department supports private English-language teaching here, but "not if the price is to turn a blind eye to fraud".

Among the sample cases were a dozen separate applications made on different dates in which the allegedly different employer of the applicants' parents all had the same phone number. A large number of applications were rejected when it emerged that a single bank official in a Chinese bank had stamped all the applicants' documents.

Chinese visa applicants require a bank certificate to show they can afford to live here independently of any employment. However, department of justice officials sent to Beijing to probe the fraud discovered that Chinese banks were issuing certificates that falsely supported bogus financial statements.

Sources in the garda national immigration bureau (GNIB) told the Sunday Tribune that organised crime gangs and Chinese triads were also lending money to Chinese students so they could obtain a bank certificate. The gangs are then extorting the young people, many of whom are genuine students, to work long hours in the black economy here. Almost 10,000 Chinese students are legally registered to study here.