Number Of Work Visas To Foreign Nationals Plunged Drastically – UK Home Office

The number of visas granted to foreign individuals entering the UK for purposes such as work, education, family reunification, or humanitarian reasons has significantly decreased, primarily due to a substantial reduction in applications related to employment.

According to Home Office statistics, 834,977 entry visas were issued in the 12 months ending June 2025, a 32 percent decrease from the 1.23 million issued in the prior year. This represents the lowest total for any 12-month period since September 2021, when 802,415 visas were recorded.

The most notable drop occurred in work-related visas, which nearly halved, declining 48 percent from 545,855 to 286,071. Study visas saw an 18 percent reduction from 530,312 to 435,891, while family visas decreased by 15 percent from 83,912 to 70,961.

In humanitarian and resettlement categories, 14,216 visas were granted under the Ukraine schemes (a 48 percent year-on-year decline), 11,804 to British National Overseas status holders from Hong Kong (down 47 percent), and 9,357 under the EU Settlement Scheme (down 34 percent). Additionally, 3,640 visas were issued to dependants joining or accompanying others, and 3,037 under other settlement programs.

This decline is attributed to migration policy changes implemented early last year by the previous Conservative government, which included restrictions on international students bringing family members and a prohibition on overseas care workers bringing dependants.

Visas issued to health and care workers and their families plummeted, dropping 77 percent from 267,348 in the year to June 2024 to 61,901 in the most recent 12 months. Student dependant visas experienced the sharpest percentage decline, falling 81 percent from 94,204 to 17,804.

Dr Ben Brindle, a researcher at the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, noted that the significant decline was feasible because migration levels had previously hit record highs. “It’s possible we’ll see further declines in the coming months – though probably smaller ones – as the data catches up with more recent restrictions like the closure of the care worker route to overseas recruitment,” he said.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper stated that the Government was “bringing legal migration back under control,” adding that “stronger visa controls and higher skill requirements introduced through our White Paper are expected to bring those overall numbers down further.”

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