UK net migration near pre-pandemic levels as asylum, visas and small-boat movements diverge in latest data

Net migration to the United Kingdom has fallen to near pre-pandemic levels, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics, even as other metrics show continued movement in asylum applications, visa grants and small-boat crossings.

ONS figures track long-term migration, defined as moves lasting at least 12 months. The net migration figure— arrivals minus departures— is rounded, and may not sum exactly with the total immigration and emigration tallies published by the agency. The ONS releases net migration twice a year, while updates on asylum, visas and hotel accommodation come from the Home Office on a different cadence: small boats entries are updated daily; asylum decisions and returns and visa data are refreshed quarterly. The latest release indicates net migration is close to the level seen before the pandemic.

Visa data reflect approvals rather than actual arrivals. They mark the point at which permission is granted, not whether the individual ultimately travels to the UK. The data cover categories such as work, study, family and other routes. The work category includes subgroups such as seasonal visas and health and care workers; study visas cover sponsored students; family visas enable spouses, partners, children and other relatives to come or stay; the Other category encompasses humanitarian schemes such as the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme and the British National (Overseas) route.

Asylum statistics and contingency accommodation: Home Office figures for asylum seekers include those in hotels as part of contingency accommodation, as well as people in other forms of accommodation. The government notes that the backlog of asylum decisions remains, with a separate tally for open appeals held by the courts.

Small boats and irregular arrivals: The Home Office's daily timeseries provides the number of small-boat crossings and the average number of people per boat. The International Organization for Migration also tracks deaths and missing migrants related to crossing routes, but those figures are recognized as an undercount due to gaps in official reporting.

UK migration compared with other European countries: The data release includes international comparisons using UNHCR's sea arrivals dashboard alongside Eurostat figures for selected European states. Population baselines come from the UK’s ONS, National Records of Scotland and Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, with European population data drawn from Eurostat as of 2024. When computing net migration and asylum measures for comparability, the UK data are shown alongside European countries with populations above one million and that include asylum seekers in their immigration totals.

Taken together, the latest release shows a nuanced picture of migration in the United Kingdom. Net migration has cooled toward levels seen before the Covid-19 disruption, while asylum flows, visa grants and irregular arrivals continue to move in different directions as policy and global events evolve. The figures illuminate how the country’s population dynamics are shaped by labor market demand, humanitarian pathways and border-management policies.

Policymakers and researchers will continue to monitor the separate streams—net migration, visa grants, asylum decisions, hotel contingency figures and small-boat data—because each reflects different facets of immigration and emigration. The data’s different update schedules and methodological notes mean year-to-year comparisons require careful interpretation.