Nigerian students’ visa approvals to the United Kingdom rose from 8,384 to 65,929 from year ending 2019 to year ending June 2022, a 686% increase.
This was disclosed by the UK Home Office in its National Statistics report titled, “Why do people come to the UK? To work”, published on Thursday, August 25, 2022.
The report also added that India and China had 117,965 and 115,056 students at year ending June 2022, with a growth rate of 215% for India and -4% for China during the same period.
What the report is saying
UK’s Home Office stated that in the year ending June 2022, there were 486,868 Sponsored study visas granted (including dependants), 71% more than in 2019, the last full year before the pandemic.
Nigerian nationals saw the largest relative increase in Sponsored Study visa grants compared with 2019, increasing from 8,384 to a record high of 65,929 (nearly an eight-fold increase), making them the third largest nationality in the latest year.
Pakistani nationals also saw a large increase, rising by 377% with 23,490 student visas granted across this period.
- “The number of Sponsored study visas granted in the year ending June 2022 is the highest on record since this time series began in 2005. These increases reflect the requirement for EEA and Swiss nationals to apply for an entry clearance visa following the end of free movement when the UK left the EU at the start of 2021, as well as the recovery from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on international travel.
- “Prior to the recent increases the highest number of student visas granted was 307,394 in the year ending June 2010.
- “However, the numbers of students granted a visa have since recovered, and reached a new high of 486,868 in the year ending March 2022.
- “There were 117,965 grants to Indian nationals in the year ending June 2022, an increase of 80,569 (+215%) compared to 2019. Indian nationals have passed Chinese nationals as the nationality with the highest number of Sponsored study visa grants for the first time since the year ending June 2011.
- “Chinese nationals were the second most common nationality granted Sponsored study visas in the year ending June 2022, with 115,056 visas granted, 4% lower than the number seen in 2019 (119,825).
The report added that Chinese and Indian nationals together comprise almost half (48%) of all Sponsored study grants.
In case you missed it
- Recall Nairametrics reported earlier that Nigerian nationals emerged the second highest recipients of United Kingdom’s Worker Visas between December 2019 to June 2022. Nigeria was only topped by Indian nationals whose recipients increased from 57,087 to 102,981 in the same period.
- The report revealed that Nigerian approvals had increased by 11,854, a 303% level change from 3,918 in December 2019 to 15,772 in June 2022, making Nigerians the second highest recipients.
- It added that the “Worker” visa category which was previously known as “Skilled worker” visa, includes sponsored visas which typically lead to settlement.