The government plans to penalize universities with many foreign students whose whereabouts are unknown, it was revealed Thursday.

The move is included in a draft of the government’s response to the issue, which came to light following the recent revelation that about 700 foreign students from Tokyo University of Social Welfare have been missing since April 2018.

According to the draft, the education ministry will hold hearings with or inspect universities with many dropouts among foreign students, if necessary. If the universities fail to meet its instructions for improvement, the ministry will label them as “lacking the proper management of students.”

The education ministry will also report such universities to the Justice Ministry. Following the reports, the Immigration Services Agency will apply tougher standards in screenings of visa applications from the universities’ prospective students.

The agency will also consider shortening the length of visas for the universities’ students to one year. Normally student visas are valid for four years and three months.