Accredited official statistics

Summary of latest statistics

Published 25 November 2021

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1. How many people come to the UK each year (including visitors)?

There were an estimated 21 million passenger arrivals in the year ending September 2021 (including returning UK residents), a 69% (46.3 million) decrease compared with the previous year. This was due to the travel restrictions imposed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There were 1,115,155 visas granted in the year ending September 2021, 19% fewer than the previous year and 64% fewer than the year before as a result of the global pandemic. Of the visas granted in this last 12 months, 39% were for study, 23% were to visit, 18% were to work, 4% were for family, and 15% for other reasons.

There were 24,000 applications for the BN(O) route in Q3 of 2021, with 21,037 out of country applications, and 2,900 in country applications. There have been a total of 88,800 applications for the BN(O) route since its introduction on 31st January up to 30th September 2021.

For further details see ʻHow many people come to the UK each year (including visitors)?’.

2. Why do people come to the UK?

2.1 Work

There were 205,528 work-related visas granted in the year ending September 2021 (including dependants). This was a 55% increase on the year ending September 2020, and 9% higher than in the year ending September 2019.

Skilled work, which accounts for 61% of work-related visas granted, saw the largest increase in visa numbers, up 45,866 or 57%. High value, Skilled worker, Temporary worker and Other work visas and exemptions routes all increased compared to the previous year. These increases will in part reflect recovery from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, but Skilled work and Temporary work visas are now higher than the numbers in the year ending September 2019.

The new Skilled worker routes introduced in late 2020 (Skilled work, Skilled worker Health and Care, and Intra-company transfer) accounted for 101,712 or 49% of the total work-related visas granted, and made up 81% of all Skilled work grants.

‘Seasonal Workers’ made up over half (53%) of all Temporary Work grants, and saw a large increase, up from 6,451 in the previous year to 24,661 (+282%). This route came into effect in Q1 2019, and the growth in this route reflect the quota increases for the Seasonal Worker visa, which increased from 2,500 in 2019 to a current quota of 30,000 visas.

For further details see ʻWhy do people come to the UK? To work’.

2.2 Study

In the year ending September 2021, there were 428,428 Sponsored study visas granted (including dependants), 143% (252,327) more than the previous year and 55% (152,077) higher than the year ending September 2019.

Chinese nationals were the most common nationality granted Sponsored study visas in the year ending September 2021, accounting for 32% of the total. The number of grants to Chinese nationals (135,457) was 13% higher than the year ending September 2019. Chinese nationals represented around the same proportion of Sponsored study visas granted in the year ending September 2021 as the year ending September 2020, but that proportion is lower than the peak of 43% granted in the year ending September 2019. COVID-19 restrictions were implemented early in China, from January 2020, and may have disproportionately affected Chinese students.

Nigerian nationals continue to see an increase in Sponsored Study grants compared to the previous year, increasing to a record high of 36,783, the highest number of visas granted in a single year period to Nigerian nationals in this route.

For further details see ʻWhy do people come to the UK? To study’.

2.3 Family

There were 263,415 visas and permits granted for family reasons in the year ending September 2021, 79% more than the year ending September 2020. A sharp fall in grants was seen in April to June 2020 due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the number of grants of visas and permits has begun to recover to pre-pandemic levels.

There were 144,944 grants of visas to dependants of people coming to the UK on other types of visas, up 127% in the last year and up 87% since the year ending September 2019; there were particularly large increases in grants to dependants of Sponsored study visa holders (up 29,540 to 44,605), and dependants of Skilled workers (up 24,481 to 60,385). The increase also partly reflects the introduction of the BN(O) route, the dependants of which account for 23,880 visas granted in the year ending September 2021.

There were 58,530 EUSS family permits issued to non-EEA close family members of those granted settled or pre-settled status through the EU Settlement Scheme (up 238%). This is likely to be linked to publicisation of the EU Settlement Scheme deadline of 30 June 2021 for EEA citizens and their family members resident in the UK before the end of the transition period at 11pm on 31 December 2020.

For further details see ʻWhy do people come to the UK? For family reasons’.

3. How many people do we grant asylum or protection to?

The UK offered protection to 13,210 people (including dependants) in the year ending September 2021, in the form of asylum, humanitarian protection, alternative forms of leave and resettlement. Resettlement accounted for 1,171 of those people (9%); this does not include those resettled via the Afghanistan Citizens Resettlement Scheme, which will be included in future releases. The number of people offered protection was 2% higher than the previous year, though it remains below pre-pandemic levels. The 2% rise is accounted for by an increased number of people granted protection at initial decision.

There were 37,562 asylum applications (main applicants only) in the UK in the year ending September 2021, 18% more than the previous year. This is higher than at the peak of the European Migration crisis in 2015-16 (36,546 applications) and the highest number of applications since the year ending June 2004.

In the year ending September 2021, there were 14,758 initial decisions made on asylum applications. Almost two thirds (64%) of these were grants (of asylum, humanitarian protection or alternative forms of leave), up from the previous year (49%).

For further details see ʻHow many people do we grant asylum or protection to?’.

4. How many people continue their stay in the UK or apply to stay permanently?

4.1 Extension of temporary stay in the UK

Excluding extensions granted to individuals who were unable to leave the UK because of travel restrictions or self-isolation related to COVID-19, there were 393,038 decisions on applications to extend a person’s stay in the UK (including dependants) in the year ending September 2021, 74% more than a year earlier and 32% more than the year ending September 2019.

4.2 Settlement

There were 115,361 decisions on applications for settlement in the UK in the year ending September 2021, a 43% increase on the previous year and 27% more than the year ending September 2019. Of these, 113,486 (98%) resulted in a grant.

4.3 EEA nationals and their family members

Documents issued under European law are no longer valid as evidence of a right of residence in the UK unless a application to the EUSS was made on or before 30 June 2021. Applications received before 1 January 2021 are still being processed. More information is available on the relevant visas and immigration pages on GOV.UK.

In the year ending September 2021, there were a total of 19,843 decisions in applications for EEA residence documents, 62% fewer than the previous 12 months. This included 6,363 registration certificates and registration cards issued, and 3,772 documents certifying permanent residence and permanent residence cards issued.

The Home Office publishes updates to headline EU Settlement Scheme numbers on a monthly basis, with more detailed statistical reports published quarterly. The latest data show that 6.3 million applications to the EU Settlement Scheme had been received up to 31 October 2021.

4.4 Citizenship

There were 196,862 applications for British citizenship in the year ending September 2021, 29% more than in the year ending September 2020.

Applications for citizenship by EU nationals rose by 64% compared to the previous year, to 72,191. EU nationals now account for more than a third (37%) of all citizenship applications compared with 12% in 2016. Increases in citizenship applications from EU nationals since 2016 are likely to reflect more people seeking to confirm their status in the UK following the EU referendum and the UK’s exit from the EU.

There were 146,483 grants of British citizenship in the year ending September 2021, 9% more than the previous year. This was due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic response and comes after a period of relative stability since 2014.

For further details see ʻHow many people continue their stay in the UK?’.

5. How many people are detained or returned?

5.1 Immigration detention

The number of people entering detention in year ending September 2021 was 21,365, 24% higher than the previous year. Although in part affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, this continues a general downward trend since 2015 when the number entering detention peaked at over 32,000.

As at 30 September 2021, there were 1,410 people in immigration detention, 42% more than at 30 September 2020 (990) but 14% fewer than at 31 December 2019 (1,637), pre-pandemic.

In the year ending September 2021, 20,878 people left the detention estate (up 15%). Over two-thirds (72%) had been detained for seven days or fewer, compared with 48% in the preceding year. This is in part due to an increasing proportion of detainees being those detained for short periods on arrival to the UK before being bailed, typically while their asylum (or other) application is considered.

5.2 Returns

In the year ending June 2021, enforced returns from the UK decreased to 2,910, less than half the number (44% fewer) in the previous year. The vast majority of enforced returns over the year were of Foreign National Offenders (FNOs). Although the number of enforced returns has been declining since the peak in 2012, as Figure 5 shows, the sharp fall in the latest year was related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. There were just 361 enforced returns in 2020 Q2 (April to June), immediately following the outbreak. Although numbers did increase in Q3 (839) and Q4 (804) they decreased to 423 in 2021 Q1, coinciding with the lockdown imposed in early January 2021. Numbers of enforced returns increased again to 844 in the second quarter of 2021.

In the year ending June 2021, 2,809 FNOs were returned from the UK, 27% fewer than the previous year (3,827). As Figure 7 shows, FNO returns had fallen to 5,128 in 2019, following a steady increase between 2011 and 2016 due to more FNOs from the EU being returned.

FNO figures are a subset of the total returns figures and constitute 37% of enforced and voluntary returns, with the majority being enforced returns.

For further details see ʻHow many people are detained or returned?’.

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