Indian visa numbers rise

STUDENTS from India choosing the UK as a higher education destination made up the biggest chunk of migrants to Britain last year, with their figures registering a 136 per cent increase over the previous year, according to latest immigration statistics released last Thursday (21).

Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that 49,844 Indian students were granted study visas for the UK until the year ending March 2020. It marked the largest number of grants to Indian students since the year ending September 2011.

“For the year ending December 2019, non-EU migration was at the highest level we have seen, driven by a rise in students from China and India, while the number of people arriving from EU countries for work has steadily fallen,” said Jay Lindop, director of the Centre for International Migration, ONS.

Indians also continued to dominate the professional Tier 2 visa category.

“Indian nationals account for half (50 per cent) of all Tier 2 visas granted, and the number of grants increased by three per cent to 58,114 in the year ending March 2020,” the ONS statistics revealed.