Why do people come to the UK? For family reasons
Updated 23 September 2022
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Data relate to the year ending June 2022 and all comparisons are with 2019 (unless indicated otherwise), reflecting a comparison with the period prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak as a global pandemic. A range of restrictions were implemented in many parts of the world, and the first UK lockdown measures were announced on 23 March 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the UK immigration system, both in terms of restricting migrant movements to and from the UK and the impact on operational capacity.
Year ending comparisons that follow will reflect the restrictions in place during this period of the pandemic. All data include dependents, unless indicated otherwise.
This section contains data on:
- Family-related Entry clearance visas
- Dependants on other types of visas
- European Economic Area (EEA) family permits
- EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) family permits
1. Immigration for family reasons
There were 303,553 visas and permits granted for all family reasons in the year ending June 2022, 61% more than 2019, largely due to increases in dependants of people coming on work or study visas, and the dependants of the newly introduced British Nationals (Overseas) route. The ‘Family’-related visas however are around one third fewer than the pre-pandemic period.
The year ending June 2022 total included:
- 36,470 family-related visas, 34% fewer than 2019; almost three quarters (71%) of family-related visas granted in the year ending June 2022 were to partners, with the remainder being for children or other dependants.
- 226,443 dependants of people coming to the UK on other types of visas, up 180% since 2019; there were particularly large increases in grants to dependants of Sponsored study visa holders (from 16,047 in the 2019 to 81,089 in the year ending June 2022), and dependants of the ‘Worker’ visa category (up from 49,798 to 99,990), which represents the primary visa category for skilled workers. This number also includes 30,489 dependants of main applicants on the BN(O) route.
- 40,602 EU Settlement Scheme permits were issued in the year ending June 2022 to family members of people from the EU, EEA and Switzerland granted or eligible for settled or pre-settled status through the EU Settlement Scheme on the basis of residence in the UK before the end of the transition period. This is more than 6 times the number that was granted in 2019 (6,611, a 514% increase). A total of 96,588 have been issued since the route opened in March 2019.
Table 1: Family visas and permits granted, by visa type, in the year 2019 and the year ending June 2022
| Visa type | Year 2019 | Year ending June 2022 | Change | Percentage change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Family-related visas | 55,643 | 36,470 | -19,173 | -34% |
| of which: | ||||
| Partners | 40,317 | 25,841 | -14,476 | -36% |
| Children | 7,574 | 5,216 | -2,358 | -31% |
| Other dependants | 7,752 | 5,413 | -2,339 | -30% |
| Dependants on other visas1 | 80,957 | 226,443 | +145,486 | +180% |
| Total family visas | 136,600 | 262,913 | +126,313 | +92% |
| EEA family permits | 45,692 | 38 | -45,654 | -100% |
| EU Settlement Scheme permits2 | 6,611 | 40,602 | N/A | N/A |
| Total family permits | 52,303 | 40,640 | -11,663 | -22% |
| Total family visas and permits | 188,903 | 303,553 | +114,650 | 61% |
Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
Notes:
- This figure includes dependants of main applicants on the BN(O) entry clearance route which was launched on 31 January 2021.
- The EU Settlement Scheme permit is an entry clearance route that launched on 30 March 2019 for certain family members of EEA and Swiss citizens resident in the UK by the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020. Data for 2019 therefore relate to a 9 month period (30 March to 31 December), therefore changes with the year ending June 2022 (a 12 month period) have not been provided in the table. There were 11,361 grants in the first full year of the scheme (year ending March 2020), just over a quarter of the number in the year ending June 2022.
Figure 1 shows that all family related visa and permit routes had been steadily increasing for a number of years prior to the pandemic, before falling sharply in 2020, with the exception being EUSS family permits, which continued to increase, peaking in the year ending December 2021.
In the year ending June 2022, grants for family-related visas and family permits decreased compared to recent years. In contrast, there has been a sharp rise in dependants on other visas, whose number has increased to above pre-pandemic levels to 226,443. This was driven by three key factors. Primarily, a large spike above pre-pandemic levels of dependants connected to sponsored study visas, but also dependants on ‘Worker’ visa routes which saw a return to pre-pandemic levels and growth above what was seen in 2019, and finally the addition of the BN(O) route, which opened on 31 January 2021 (see below).
Figure 1: Family-related visas and permits granted1, by visa type, year ending June 2013 to year ending June 2022
Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
Notes:
- The EU Settlement Scheme family permit is an entry clearance route that launched on 30 March 2019 for certain family members of EEA and Swiss citizens resident in the UK by the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020. It can also be used by certain family members of certain British citizens returning from the EEA or Switzerland. It is not an application to the EU Settlement Scheme. A successful applicant can, if they wish, make an application to the EU Settlement Scheme once in the UK.
1.1 Family-related visas by nationality
Family-related visa grants were one third (34%) lower in the year ending June 2022 compared with 2019, the last full year prior to the pandemic.
Pakistani nationals were granted the highest number of family-related visas in the year ending June 2022, accounting for 16% of the total and more than twice the number of Indian national dependents, the next largest nationality. In the year ending June 2022, the top five nationalities together accounted for almost two fifths (37%) of all family-related visas granted.
Table 2: Top five nationalities granted family-related visas, 2019 and year ending June 2022
| Nationality | Year 2019 | Year ending June 2022 | Change | Percentage change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pakistan | 9,507 | 5,908 | -3,599 | -38% |
| India | 4,276 | 2,387 | -1,889 | -44% |
| United States | 2,795 | 2,033 | -762 | -27% |
| South Africa | 1,804 | 1,656 | -148 | -8% |
| Iran | 2,025 | 1,496 | -529 | -26% |
| All other nationalities | 35,236 | 22,990 | -12,246 | -35% |
| Total | 55,643 | 36,470 | -19,173 | -34% |
Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
1.2 Dependants on other visas
In addition to family-related visas, other dependants can be granted visas to join or accompany migrants with visas for other purposes, such as work and study, these are most commonly for a temporary stay, alongside the main applicant for the duration of the main applicant’s work or studies.
In the year ending June 2022, there were 226,443 visas granted to dependants on other visas, 180% higher than in 2019. This is largely due to increases in dependants in three areas: sponsored study visas, ‘Worker’ visas, and the introduction of the BN(O) visa route.
The number of dependants of people granted sponsored study visas increased to 81,089 (up by 65,042), more than five times the number of dependants on these visas compared to 2019. The number of dependants of those granted ‘Worker’ visas has also increased, more than doubling compared to 2019.
The BN(O) visa route was introduced in January 2021, and there were 30,489 dependants granted BN(O) visas in the year ending June 2022. The introduction of the BN(O) visa route accounts for most of the increase in visas granted to dependants in the ‘Other Visa’ category in Table 3.
Table 3: Visas granted to dependants on other visas1, 2019 and year ending June 2022
| Visa category | Year 2019 | Year ending June 2022 | Change | Percentage change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sponsored Study | 16,047 | 81,089 | +65,042 | +405% |
| Worker2 | 49,798 | 99,990 | +50,192 | +101% |
| Other Work Visas | 5,709 | 9,659 | +3,950 | +69% |
| Other Visas | 9,403 | 35,705 | +26,302 | +280% |
| Total | 80,957 | 226,443 | +145,486 | +180% |
Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
Notes:
- Not all visas have a dedicated dependant visa, dependants on those routes are instead granted a general joining or accompanying visa which are contained in this category.
- The visa category ’Worker’ was previously referenced as ‘Skilled Work’.
The change in the number of visas granted to dependants of migrants on work and student visas reflects the overall change in those routes – for more information, see the “Why do people come to the UK? To work” and the “Why do people come to the UK? To study” sections.
1.3 Family permits
EUSS family permits and EEA family permits allow eligible family members of people from the EU, EEA and Switzerland (and of certain British citizens returning to the UK from the EEA or Switzerland) to travel to the UK. After 30 June 2021, EEA family permits were no longer valid for travel to the UK.
There was a total of 40,640 family permits granted in the year ending June 2022, this represents a 22% decrease since 2019 (down 11,663 from 52,303).
When split by route, there were 38 EEA family permits granted in the year ending June 2022, following a downward trend since Q3 2019. This decrease reflects final closure of the EEA family permit route on 30 June 2021.
There was a total of 40,602 EU Settlement Scheme permits granted in the year ending June 2022. While this is 33,991 more than in 2019, the scheme started in March 2019 which will affect this comparison. Comparing to the year ending June 2021, a period which shows the effect of the global pandemic in a pronounced way, we see that there has been an 8% decrease over the last year.
2. About these statistics
The statistics in this section provide an indication of the number of people who had an intention to enter the UK for family reasons.
Before 2021, due to the application to the UK of European Union (EU) free movement law, the majority of UK immigration control related to non-European Economic Area (EEA) nationals. From 2021, unless otherwise stated, data in this release relate to both EEA and non-EEA nationals.
Entry clearance visas allow an individual to enter and stay in the UK within the period for which the visa is valid. From 2021, EEA nationals require a visa to enter the UK for family reasons, unless they are eligible for the EU Settlement Scheme or a free EU Settlement Scheme family permit.
Data in this section refer to the number of Entry clearance visas granted for family reasons (including those issued to dependants of those travelling on other types of visas), EEA family permits and EU Settlement Scheme family permits granted, within the period. If an individual was granted a visa more than once in a given period, this has been counted as multiple grants in the statistics. If an individual entered the UK multiple times within the period for which a visa was valid, this has been counted as one grant in the visa statistics.
The data do not show whether, or when, an individual arrived in the UK, what they did on arrival to the UK, or how long they stayed in the UK.
Year-on-year comparisons of the number of decisions can be affected by quarterly fluctuations in the data. These fluctuations can be examined in the quarterly data in the published tables.
Additional analysis on family visas was included in the ‘Immigration statistics, July to September 2014’ release to assist users in understanding the trends in family data before and after the changes to the Immigration Rules in July 2012 (updated in the ‘Immigration statistics, April to June 2015’ release).
For figures on family-related grants of settlement as well as residence documentation issued to EEA nationals and their family members, see ‘How many people continue their stay in the UK?’. Data on the Family reunion visa category can be found in the ‘How many people do we grant asylum or protection to?’.
Prior to 1 July 2021, the EU Settlement Scheme family permit operated alongside the EEA family permit, which continued to provide a separate entry clearance route for those who qualified for it. The EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) family permit facilitates entry into the UK of an eligible family member in order to join, or accompany, an EEA or Swiss citizen who has been granted settled status or pre-settled status under the EUSS. This is a separate entry clearance route from those applying directly to the EU Settlement Scheme. EU Settlement Scheme statistics are published by the Home Office on a monthly basis. More detailed breakdowns are provided on a quarterly basis.
2.1 Other sources
Until 2020, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published long-term international migration (LTIM) estimates in its ‘Migration Statistics Quarterly Report’ (latest data available is for the year ending March 2020). The ONS are currently reviewing their methods for measuring population and migration but have released provisional experimental statistics for the year ending June 2021.
3. Data tables
Data on family immigration can be found in the following tables:
- Entry clearance visa summary tables
- Detailed Entry clearance visa datasets
- Admissions summary tables
- Extensions summary tables
- Detailed Extensions datasets
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