The United Kingdom has experienced a significant 35% decrease in visa applications over the past year, a trend largely attributed to the implementation of more stringent immigration policies aimed at reducing the number of foreign nationals entering the country.
According to official data released by the Home Office on Thursday, August 8, 2024, the number of visa applications dropped from 141,000 to 91,000 after new immigration rules took effect in January 2024.
The revised policies, introduced in December 2023, specifically target international students, limiting their ability to bring dependants unless they are enrolled in postgraduate research courses or government-funded scholarship programs.
This policy shift is part of the government’s broader initiative to curb immigration, which hit a record high of 1.22 million last year.
The education sector has felt the impact of these changes most acutely. Between January and July 2024, the number of study visa applications decreased by 16% compared to the same period in 2023.
Even more striking is the 81% drop in visa applications from the dependants of students, underscoring the substantial effect of the new regulations.
The healthcare sector has also been heavily impacted. Applications for Health and Care Worker visas have plunged by 80% during the same period.
This follows a previous surge in applications after care workers were added to the skilled worker visa category in 2022. However, since August 2023, the number of applications has sharply declined, reaching just 2,900 in July 2024.
“Monthly Health and Care Worker visa applications from main applicants increased from 4,100 to 18,300 between February 2022 and August 2023, following the addition of care workers to the skilled worker visa.
Applications have decreased since August 2023, falling to 2,900 in July 2024,” the report stated.
Nadra Ahmed, Executive Co-Chairman of the National Care Association, expressed concern that many healthcare workers are now choosing to relocate to countries with more lenient immigration policies.
Despite these challenges, the UK government remains committed to its goal of controlling immigration while also prioritizing the development of a “homegrown workforce” to address the nation’s skilled labor shortages.
