Overview of the immigration system
Published 29 November 2018
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-year-ending-september-2018/overview-of-the-immigration-system
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The Home Office ‘Immigration statistics quarterly release’ series forms part of a larger cross Government Statistical Service (GSS) transformation plan, to meet changing user needs, and which will begin to put administrative data at the core of evidence on migration.
The ‘Immigration Statistics, year ending September 2018’ release provides the latest figures on persons who are subject to United Kingdom immigration controls. All data in this release relate to the year ending September 2018 (01 October 2017 to 30 September 2018) and all comparisons are with the year ending September 2017 (01 October 2016 to 30 September 2017), unless stated otherwise. Due to EU freedom of movement principles, the majority of UK immigration controls relate to non-EEA nationals. Unless otherwise stated, data in this release relate to non-EEA nationals.
The Immigration Statistics release provides information on the Home Office’s operation of immigration control and related processes, including the work of UK Border Force, UK Visas and Immigration, and Immigration Enforcement.
Figures on performance against service standards and processing times are published as part of the Home Office Migration transparency data.
The Home Office publish a range of other research on migration, available at the Migration research and analysis page. Details on the developments and future plans for Home Office Immigration Statistics can be found in Developments in migration statistics since 2010.
Other statistical releases
At the same time as this release, the Office for Nationals Statistics (ONS) published a summary of the latest official long-term international migration statistics, in their Migration Statistics Quarterly Report (MSQR).
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The content and format of the quarterly release and associated data tables are currently being reviewed. This means the release may be subject to change in the future. If you have any comments, or suggestions for the development of this report, please provide feedback by emailing MigrationStatsEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk. Please include the words ‘PUBLICATION FEEDBACK’ in the subject of your email.
See section 6 of the ‘About this release’ section for more details.
The diagram in Figure 1 provides an overview of immigration control for non-European Economic Area (EEA) nationals and does not include a reference to all aspects of immigration.
Figure 1: Summary of UK immigration system1,2
Chart notes:
- The chart excludes references to appeals.
- Non-visa nationals seeking to enter the United Kingdom in a visa category or for longer than 6 months require a visa, whereas those seeking to enter the United Kingdom for 6 months or less do not.