UK net migration falls to lowest level since pandemic

Estimated UK net migration dropped to 171,000 over the 12 months to December, down 48% from 331,000 the previous year and below 200,000 for the first time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The estimate reflects arrivals minus departures. Fewer people from outside the EU arrived for work, contributing to the decline. In 2025, 813,000 people arrived and 642,000 left. More British nationals left (246,000) than returned (110,000). For EU-plus nationals, departures (118,000) exceeded arrivals (76,000). For non-EU nationals, arrivals (627,000) exceeded departures (278,000). Separate Home Office data showed asylum seekers in hotels fell to 20,885 by end of March, a record low and down 35% year-on-year, supporting a plan to close asylum hotels by the end of the current Parliament term.

"UK net migration dropped to an estimated 171,000 last year, the lowest level since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The figures for the 12 months to December are down 48pc compared to the previous year (331,000), according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It is the first time the estimate - which is the difference between the number of people arriving and leaving the country - has fallen below 200,000 since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak."

"The continued fall in net migration is being driven by fewer people from outside the EU arriving in the UK for work, the ONS said. Some 813,000 people are estimated to have arrived in the UK in 2025, while 642,000 are likely to have left. The figures suggest more British nationals left the country during the 12-month period (246,000) than returned home (110,000)."

"It was a similar picture for nationals from "EU-plus countries" - covering the 27 members of the EU plus Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland - with a higher number leaving the UK (118,000) than moving to the country (76,000). By contrast, more people from outside the EU moved to the UK in 2025 (627,000) than left (278,000)."

"Separate Home Office figures, also published on Thursday, show the number of asylum seekers living in hotels fell to a record low of 20,885 by the end of March, down 35pc year-on-year. The UK government has committed to closing all asylum hotels as quickly as possible and by the end of the current Parliament term, which will end before July 2029 ahead of the next general election. Officials argue the latest figures suggest the plan is on track."

Read at Irish Independent