Latest statistics by the Home Office reveals that skilled professionals and students from India received a majority of UK visas in 2018. Professionals including doctors and software engineers have dominated Britain's Tier-2 skilled visa category for some time, accounting for 54 per cent of all such visas granted in 2018. In its latest analysis, the Home office said the Indian nationals marked the largest increase in the grant of Tier 2 visas, up by six per cent at 3023 more visas compared to the previous year.
The analysis also noted a hike in the number of student visas granted to Indians last year, up 35 per cent to hit 19,505, with Chinese students dominating that segment at 99,723 visas but marking only a 13 per cent hike. The tourist visa lead was claimed by China, with 56,095 or 11 per cent more visitor visas granted to Chinese nationals last year compared to an increase of 43,771, or 10 per cent for Indian nationals. The HO said, “Chinese and Indian nationals together accounted for just under half, 48 per cent, of all visitor visas granted.”
Statistics also show that 261,000 more non-EU citizens from countries like India came to the UK, the highest since 2004. Jay Lindop, director of the Centre for International Migration at the UK's Office of National Statistics (ONS), “Different patterns for EU and non-EU migration have emerged since mid-2016 when the EU referendum vote took place. Due to increasing numbers arriving for work and study, non-EU net migration is now at the highest level since 2004.”
She added, “In contrast, EU net migration, while still adding to the population as a whole, has fallen to a level last seen in 2009. We are also now seeing more EU9 citizens, those from Central and Eastern European countries, for example, Poland leaving the UK than arriving.” The ONS said that overall, net migration, immigration and emigration figures have remained broadly stable since the end of 2016. A total of 627,000 people moved to the UK and 345,000 people left to the UK resulting in an annual net migration figure of 283,000.
Migration as an issue continues to be of high priority for the British government with control over borders to end free movement of people from EU member-countries having played a crucial part in the campaign for leaving the EU in the June 2016 referendum.
