Net migration to the UK falls by nearly 50 percent amid tighter policies

Key points

• The ONS says net migration fell to 171,000 in the ⁠12 months to the end of December from 331,000 a year earlier.
• Long-term net migration to the United Kingdom nearly halved ⁠in 2025, falling to levels last seen before the post-Brexit immigration system was introduced, as tougher government measures enacted in recent years restricted arrivals.
• The Office for Statistics (ONS) said on Thursday that net migration fell to 171,000 in the ⁠12 months to the end of December from 331,000 a year earlier, extending a sharp decline from a record peak of 944,000 in 2023. Immigration – both legal and illegal – has dominated political debate in the for more than a decade, with successive governments imposing stricter visa rules and higher salary thresholds.
• The current government has pledged to go further.
• The British Future think tank said the country was “experiencing one of the sharpest falls in net migration...