The cumulative number of asylum applications to the UK has exceeded one million, with Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, and Albania being major contributors.
African countries such as Eritrea, Somalia, Zimbabwe, the DR Congo, and Nigeria have also been in the top ten.
These are the top ten nationalities in the past 23 years.
Since 2005, nationals from China, India, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Pakistan, and Nigeria have ranked among the top three recipients of UK study visas. China led the list from 2010 to 2020. In 19 years, over 1.46 million Chinese nationals (22.9% of the total) received study visas. India followed with 926.9k and Nigeria — which first entered the top three in 2020 — with 436.9k.
In 2023, the UK issued nearly 350k skilled health and care visas, representing 57% of the total work visas (616k) issued, with Indian and Nigerian nationals receiving a combined 50% of the visas issued. Nigeria received 82.8k, approximately 13% of the total work visas issued.
The number of study and work visa applications from Nigeria to the UK has significantly increased, particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic. Although study visa applications dropped by 24% in 2023, they peaked at 124.8k in 2022.
Work visa applications reached a high of 92.7k in 2023, increasing three consecutive years from 2021.
In 2023, Nigeria emerged as the second-largest source of UK work visa applications, with 92.7k applications, trailing only India (171.8k). This places Nigeria ahead of other countries like the Philippines (29.5k), Ghana (36.2k), Pakistan (48.4k), and Zimbabwe (50.3k).
Nigeria, Zimbabwe, and Ghana were the top African countries seeking work in the UK in 2023.
In 2022, the US hosted a diverse African immigrant community, totaling over 2.75 million. Nigerians make up the largest group at 448,405 (16.3%), followed by Ethiopians (10.6%), Egyptians (8.3%), and Ghanaians (7.8%).
