UK Net Migration Drops to Lowest Level Since 2012

The UK's net migration has dropped to its lowest level since 2012, excluding the COVID-19 pandemic period, according to the latest data. This decline comes amidst ongoing discussions about various migration measures, including asylum applications, small boat arrivals, and visas granted.

The net migration figure is calculated using the internationally recognized definition of a long-term migrant, defined as someone moving to a country for at least a year. The data on visas for legal migration includes various categories such as work, study, and family visas, but excludes visitor and transit visas. Work visas cover new permissions or extensions for categories like seasonal work, health and care, and youth mobility.

Asylum applications and accommodation data reveal that the number of people in hotels and other forms of accommodation is closely monitored. The distribution of accommodation across local authorities is compared to the UK-wide average, highlighting areas with significantly higher or lower shares. Additionally, backlog figures for asylum decisions include both main applicants and dependents.

Small boat crossings and other irregular arrivals are tracked to understand the scale of unauthorized entries. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) collects data on fatalities during these crossings, although these figures are considered an undercount due to the lack of official statistics. The data also covers modern slavery cases, combining all recorded irregular arrivals that were not by small boat.