London: Indians have been topping the foreign students tally at UK universities for some time now and the latest enrolment statistics from last year reaffirms this lead, even as overall migration to Britain registers a downward trend as a result of tighter visa norms.

According to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) data released on Thursday, India sent more students to the UK than any other overseas country in 2022-23 and accounted for 26 per cent of all students from outside the European Union (EU). Overall, the number of students from India has increased by 1,45,650 over a five-year period since 2018-19, which leading representative body Universities UK International (UUKi) attributed largely to the Graduate Route visa offering students the opportunity to stay in the UK for two years to work or look for work after graduation which the new Labour Party government has also endorsed.

We were delighted to see the UK's Secretary of State for Education, Bridget Phillipson, affirm the UK's commitment to retaining the Graduate visa alongside her message of support and welcome for international students, UUKi said in a statement.

There are some fears that the recent anti-immigrant riots across the country may adversely impact these statistics, which saw Indian students overtake those from China as the largest nationality to be issued student visas back in 2022.

It has been heartening to see communities across the UK come out to show their support for each other, and against racism and xenophobia. We hope this positive response helps reassure current and potential international students that the UK welcomes and values diversity and stands up to show it, UUKi added.

Meanwhile, the latest Home Office statistics, also released this week, indicate that students and skilled workers applying for visas to the country have started to sharply fall since the crackdown on allowing family dependents across most categories came into force in recent months.

The National Indian Students and Alumni Union (NISAU) UK, which is currently on an India-wide tour of eight cities concluding at the British Council in New Delhi over the weekend, struck a note of caution over this downward trend.

The HESA figures are now two years out of date. It is critical that we don't let these mask the current picture and ensure that the chaos and uncertainty that the review of the Graduate Route had led to, is now fully put to rest, said NISAU UK Founder and Chair Sanam Arora.

Home Office estimates show that visa applications for main applicants and dependents across key UK visa routes Skilled Worker, Health and Care, and Study fell by 35 per cent or 187,900 in the first seven months of 2024, compared with the same period last year.

Student visa applications fell by 16 per cent or 30,300 and the related dependent visa applications under the route is down 81 per cent or 55,000 over the same period.

The sharpest fall has been in the Health and Care dependant applications, which are down 71 per cent or 53,100 in the first four months since restrictions were placed on care workers to bring dependents with them, compared with the same period last year. Health and Care applications overall are 81 per cent or 46,800 over the same period, having been in decline since August last year.

Immigration brings many benefits to the UK, but it must be controlled and delivered through a fair system, a UK Home Office spokesperson said.

We have set out a clear plan to bring down historically high levels of legal migration by tackling the root causes behind high international recruitment. By linking immigration, labour market, and skills systems we will ensure we train up our homegrown workforce and address the shortage of skills, the spokesperson said.

The restrictions were introduced by the previous Rishi Sunak led Conservative Party government to curb immigration into the country, with new Home Secretary Yvette Cooper telling Parliament last week that these measures would be carried forward by the new Labour government.

A number of changes to the system were made earlier this year, including: restricting most overseas students from bringing family members to the UK; restricting the ability of care workers and senior care workers to bring dependants with them and requiring all care providers sponsoring migrants to register with the Care Quality Commission; increasing the general salary threshold for those arriving on Skilled Worker visas by 48 per cent from GBP 26,200 to GBP 38,700 this government supports these changes and will continue to implement them, Cooper said in her House of Commons statement.