Nearly 935,000 visas were issued in 2024 to people coming to the UK for work, study or family reasons, or through one of the Government’s settlement schemes, according to new Home Office data.
The figure, which covers main applicants and dependants, is down by a third (33%) from just under 1.4 million in 2023.
The fall has been driven by a steep drop in the number of people issued with work-related visas, which was down 40% from 613,627 in 2023 to 369,419 last year.
The number of study visas fell year-on-year by 31% from 604,253 to 419,312.
By contrast, there was a small rise in family visas, up 7% from 80,083 to 86,049.
Among the resettlement categories, 19,346 visas were issued under the Ukraine schemes (down 52% year-on-year), 19,273 were granted to British National Overseas status holders from Hong Kong (down 32%), and 13,869 were under the EU Settlement Scheme (down 20%).
In addition, 3,864 were for dependants joining or accompanying others and 3,426 were under other settlement schemes.
The total number of visas issued across all these categories last year, 934,558, is down sharply from 1,393,079 in 2023.
It is also the lowest total for any 12-month period since the year to December 2021, when the figure stood at 858,766.
The drop is likely to reflect changes in legal migration rules introduced since January 2024 by the previous Conservative government, including a ban on overseas care workers and students bringing family dependants, and a steep rise in the salary threshold for skilled workers to £38,700.
Visas issued for health and care workers and their families have tumbled from 348,157 in 2023 to 110,833 last year – a fall of 68% – while the number of student dependants saw an even larger percentage drop, down 85% year-on-year from 143,267 to 21,976.
Dr Ben Brindle, researcher at the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said: “The past few years have seen a ‘boom and bust’ in some visa categories, particularly students’ family members and health and care visas.
“The large declines in visa grants have been possible primarily because the number of visas previously being issued in the post-Brexit immigration system was so high.
“Despite the declines, overall visa grants to non-EU citizens remain well above pre-Brexit levels.”
Christina McAnea, general secretary of the public service union Unison, described the drop in health and care worker visas as “worrying”, adding: “Without the support of workers from overseas, the social care sector would have collapsed long ago.
“Pay rates remain low so care employers are struggling to fill many thousands of vacancies.
“Hostile words and actions from the previous government, notably the ban on dependants, undoubtedly put off many overseas care staff from coming to work in the UK.
“Other care workers will have been deterred by the many horror stories of the abuse and exploitation of migrants at the hands of cowboy care operators.”
Meanwhile, the director of think tank British Future, Sunder Katwala, said the politics of immigration have yet to “catch up” with the new reality of falling numbers coming to the UK, particularly in health and social care.
“Keir Starmer’s government should not compete in a public auction with the Conservatives or Reform on who can call for the lowest number,” Mr Katwala said.
“He is constrained by the fact that the Government has to deliver, not just make promises.”
Mr Katwala called for the Government’s upcoming Immigration White Paper to clarify Labour’s aims, and include a yearly plan “which reflects voters’ desire for control of immigration with public recognition of the contribution it can make to much-needed economic growth”.
Home Office minister Dame Angela Eagle said the Government is ensuring legal migration “continues to come down” and that action has been taken to reverse some “loosening” of visa requirements previously introduced, where “evidence of abuse” was found.
“Under the Plan for Change our Immigration White Paper will set out a comprehensive plan to restore order to our broken immigration system,” the minister added.