Overall trend
UK immigration trends have shown a marked increase in immigration after the UK left the EU at the end of January 2021. Before then, since 1991, immigration had grown at a much slower pace (see Figure 6.3 from the Migration Observatory).
Please note that the ONS statistics on immigration are subject to uncertainty.
Figure 6.3: Immigration to the UK 1991 – 2025
Looking in more detail at the period 2012 to 2025, key features of the long-term trend (see Figure 6.4) in overall immigration and emigration were:
- from 2012 to 2016, there was a slow increase in annual net migration with gradually increasing immigration and flat emigration;
- net migration peaked at just over 300k in 2016
- from 2016 to early 2020, as the Withdrawal Agreement was being negotiated, net migration declined slowly as immigration was broadly flat and emigration increased;
- there was then a Covid dip in net migration followed by a rebound;
- in 2021, annual net migration began to rise and increased steeply in 2022 and 2023, as immigration grew fast while emigration stayed flat;
- immigration peaked at just under 1.5 million for the year to June 2023
- net migration peaked at just over 900k
- key driver in the growth in visas issued from 2019 to mid-2022 was not Brexit-related but the ‘bespoke humanitarian routes’ for people fleeing Hong Kong and Ukraine;
- in 2024 and 2025, net migration fell sharply to 200k, as immigration dipped steeply to 900k and emigration rose to 700k.
Note that the ONS introduced new methods to assess migration from July 2021 onwards. This means that it’s not possible to compare figures before (solid lines) and after that date (broken lines), because the methodologies are different. However, the trend within either method remains valid.
The ‘P’ against 2025 indicates that the figures are provisional and may change. For a full table of the annual statistics, please see Table H.1 in Appendix H.
Figure 6.4: Long-term migration 2012 – 2025
Source: ONS, Long-term international immigration, emigration and net migration flows, provisional, 27 November 2025
EU and non-EU trends
Behind the overall migration trends, there is a marked difference between the EU and non-EU trends (see Figure 6.5):
- EU citizens made up a majority of immigration and net migration before the 2016 EU referendum.
- After 2016, there was a steady fall in EU net migration from a peak of 300k in 2016 to about zero in 2022 and, thereafter, there was annual EU net emigration, which rose to about 70k in 2025.
- Non-EU net migration steadily rose from 60k in 2016 to 240k in 2021. It then climbed steeply to over 1 million in 2023, before falling to just under 400k in 2025.
- Since 2012, there has been net annual British emigration, which has risen slowly to about 100k in 2025. The emigrants are likely to include foreign-born British citizens.
As the Migration Observatory points out, the sharp rise in post-Brexit net migration followed policy liberalisations by the Conservative government. For example, the government:
- reintroduced a post-study work route – making the UK more attractive to international students;
- opened new humanitarian visa routes for Ukrainians and Hong Kongers;
- made care and senior care workers eligible for work visas.
At the same time:
- UK universities recruited students overseas more actively as their financial situation deteriorated;
- social care providers hired migrant workers to fill vacancies caused by low pay and poor working conditions in a sector with limited funding.
However, net migration fell sharply in 2024, after the Conservative government took steps to reduce immigration, which included:
- visa restrictions on the family members of care workers and most international students;
- closer Home Office scrutiny of applications to sponsor migrant care workers.
Figure 6.5: EU and non-EU net migration 2012 – 2025
Source: ONS, Long-term international immigration, emigration and net migration flows, provisional, 27 November 2025
Reasons for immigration
In the year to March 2025, the Home Office issued 852,000 visas for non-visit reasons. The Home Office also issued 2,160,000 visitor visas, which do not appear in the immigration statistics.
The majority (85%) of non-visit visas were for study and work:
- 436,000 (51%) for study
- 286,000 (34%) for work
- 71,000 (8%) for family reasons
- 33,000 (4%) for humanitarian reasons (safe and legal routes)
In addition, 38,000 (a further 4.5%) arrived in small boats. Most of these arrivals applied for asylum: 99% of all crossings in 2024 either applied for asylum or were named as a dependant on an application.
A similar visa distribution can be seen in the reasons for non-EU immigration.
However there was a sharp fall in visas issued for work in the year to June 2025, due to various factors, including:
- increase in skill level for skilled-worker applicants
- limiting the ability of care workers and senior care workers to bring dependents
- restrictions to the student visa route, prohibiting bringing dependent family members to the UK
- higher minimum salary thresholds for skilled workers
The Labour Government proposed further restrictions in 2025. For details see ‘Post-Brexit system’.
Figure 6.6: Non-EU immigration by purpose
