Total long-term immigration was estimated at around 1.2 million in 2022, and emigration was 557,000, which means migration continues to add to the population with net migration at 606,000; most people arriving to the UK in 2022 were non-EU nationals (925,000), followed by EU (151,000) and British (88,000).
People coming to the UK from non-EU countries for work, study, and for humanitarian purposes, including unique events such as those arriving from Ukraine and Hong Kong, have contributed towards relatively high levels of immigration over the past 18 months; however, growth has slowed over recent quarters, potentially demonstrating the temporary nature of these impacts.
The composition of non-EU immigration changed in 2022, with 39% of people arriving for study related reasons, down from 47% in 2021; those arriving on humanitarian routes (including Ukrainian schemes) increased from 9% to 19% over the same period.
Evidence suggests that students typically stay for shorter periods than other migrants and that the majority leave at the end of their study; the latest data shows that those who arrived for study reasons in 2021 are now starting to leave, driving an increase in total emigration from 454,000 in 2021 to 557,000 in 2022.
Both a slowing of immigration and rising of emigration means that levels of net migration have levelled off in recent quarters; an estimated 606,000 more people arrived long-term to the UK than departed in YE December 2022, 118,000 higher than a year previously, but comparable to levels in YE June 2022.
The improvement in methods means the previously published immigration estimate for YE June 2022 is revised upwards by 45,000 to 1,109,000, emigration downwards by negative 57,000 to 503,000, and net migration revised by 102,000 to 606,000.
Statistician’s comment
“A series of unprecedented world events throughout 2022 and the lifting of restrictions following the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic led to record levels of international immigration to the UK.
“The main drivers of the increase were people coming to the UK from non-EU countries for work, study and for humanitarian purposes, including those arriving from Ukraine and Hong Kong. For the first time since using our new methods to measure migration, we have also included asylum seekers in our estimates, with around 1 in 12 non-EU migrants coming via this route”, Jay Lindop, Director of the Centre for International Migration, Office for National Statistics.
“There are some signs that the underlying drivers behind these high levels of migration are changing. As lockdown restrictions were lifted in 2021, we saw a sharp increase in students arriving. Recent data suggests that those arriving in 2021 are now leaving the country, with the overall share of non-EU immigration for students falling in 2022. In contrast, those arriving on humanitarian routes increased over the 12 months. Evidence also suggests immigration has slowed in recent months, potentially demonstrating the temporary nature of these events.”
In 2022, long-term immigration into the UK was an estimated 1.2 million. This is an estimated increase of 221,000 compared with 2021 (942,000). This 2021 figure has been revised upwards (from 895,000 to 942,000). This upwards revision results from methodological improvements and the inclusion of asylum seekers, who were not covered by the migration estimates published in November 2022.
The increase in long-term immigration since 2021 was driven by non-EU nationals, accounting for an estimated 80% of total immigration. Non-EU immigration was estimated at around 925,000 for 2022, an increase of 287,000 compared with 2021. This increase in non-EU immigration is attributed to by people arriving in the UK for work related reasons, as well as on protection routes.
Immigration of EU nationals was an estimated 151,000 for December 2022, a decrease of 45,000 compared with 2021. This group accounted for 13% of total immigration in 2022, down from the pre-pandemic levels of 52% and 42% in 2018 and 2019, respectively. From January 2021, EU nationals have required a visa to enter the UK. However, a proportion of EU migrants with settled status can continue to travel to the UK without a visa.
The provisional estimate of the number of people emigrating out of the UK long-term in 2022 was approximately 557,000. This is similar to pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic levels, with 2018 estimated to be 493,000. In 2022, non-EU nationals accounted for 263,000 (47%) of this total, EU nationals accounted for 202,000 (36%), and British nationals 92,000 (17%).
Levels of emigration have increased over the last year, driven by non-EU nationals, particularly those who initially arrived on a study visa. Evidence suggests that a significant proportion of arrivals in the UK only leave after 2 to 3 years, particularly students. Therefore, emigration may continue to rise following the increase in non-EU immigration over the past two years.
Work related visas made up 25% of non-EU long-term immigration in 2022, with an estimated 235,000 arrivals compared with 137,000 in 2021. This is driven by both main applicants and dependants.
People arriving on work dependant visas made up 12% of non-EU immigration, with an estimated 108,000 in 2022. This was an increase from 61,000 in 2021. The remaining 13% are those arriving as work visa main applicants (127,000 in 2022).
Study visas
In 2022, 361,000 people arrived on study-related visas, an increase from 301,000 in 2021. This increase is mainly attributed to dependants (from 41,000 in 2021 to 85,000 in 2022). The Home Office’s Why do people come to the UK? To study article suggests this is driven by an increase in the number of visas granted to dependents from Nigeria and India.
Despite the increase in the levels of people arriving for study-related reasons, their overall share of total non-EU immigration declined from 47% to 39% between 2021 and 2022. This is because of the faster growth of other types of visa routes, including those arriving on humanitarian routes (including Ukrainian schemes), up from 9% to 19% over the same period.
With the lifting of travel restrictions in 2021, we saw a substantial increase in students arriving in the UK long-term between September and December 2021, after studying remotely during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Meanwhile, evidence suggests that students typically stay for shorter periods than other migrants and that the majority leave at the end of their study; the latest data shows that those who arrived for study reasons in 2021 are now starting to leave.
Asylum
People arriving for asylum made up 8% of non-EU immigration at an estimated 76,000 in 2022. This was an increase from 53,000 in 2021.
Family visas
Family accounted for 6% of non-EU long-term immigration in 2022, with an estimated 51,000 arriving for family compared with 62,000 in 2021.
“Other” visas
People arriving on “other” visas accounted for 3% of non-EU immigration at an estimated 29,000 in 2022.
Work visas
Work-related visas made up 21% of non-EU long-term emigration in 2022, with an estimated 56,000 leaving compared with 39,000 in 2021. This is driven by both main applicants and dependants.
People who initially arrived on a work visa made up 11% of non-EU long-term emigration in 2022, at an estimated 29,000 compared with 23,000 in 2021.
Those arriving on work dependant visas made up 10% of non-EU emigration, at an estimated 27,000 in 2022. This was an increase from 16,000 in 2021.
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