Recent reports indicate that the United Kingdom has experienced a significant decrease in visa applications following the introduction of stricter immigration policies in December 2023.
These policies were designed to limit international students from bringing dependents unless they were enrolled in postgraduate research courses or government-funded scholarship programs.
According to official figures from the Home Office released over the weekend, visa applications dropped from 141,000 to 91,000, marking a more than 30 percent decline after the new rules took effect in January 2024.
The government’s effort to curb immigration, which hit a record 1.22 million last year, has had a noticeable impact on the education sector.
Between January and July 2024, study visa applications fell by 16 percent compared to the same period in 2023.
Even more drastic was the 81 percent drop in visa applications from the dependents of students, demonstrating the sharp impact of the new regulations.
The healthcare sector has also been heavily affected. Applications for Health and Care Worker visas plummeted by 80 percent during the same period.
This follows an earlier surge in applications after care workers were added to the skilled worker visa category in 2022.
However, the trend reversed after August 2023, with applications falling to just 2,900 in July 2024.
The report noted, “Monthly numbers of 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.”
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