National statistics

Why do people come to the UK? For family reasons

Published 25 February 2021

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Data relate to the year ending December 2020 and all comparisons are with the year ending December 2019, unless indicated otherwise.

On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak as a global pandemic. A range of restrictions relating to the outbreak began on 12 March 2020, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advised against all non-essential overseas travel on 17 March 2020, and advised all British travellers to return to the UK on 23 March 2020, the same day as the first UK lockdown measures were announced.

Restrictions were put in place across Europe and other parts of the world in the run up to the UK outbreak, which will also have impacted travel to the UK prior to these dates. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the UK immigration system, both in terms of restricting migrant movements to and from the UK and the impact on operational capacity.

Year ending comparisons that follow will reflect the restrictions in place during this period of the pandemic. Commentary specifically addressing changes over the course of the pandemic is also provided at the end of section 1.

This section contains data on:

• Family-related Entry clearance visas
• Dependants on other types of visas (excluding Visitor visas)
• European Economic Area (EEA) Family permits
• EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) Family permits

1. Immigration for family reasons

There were 154,658 visas and permits granted for family reasons in 2020, 18% fewer than 2019. A sharp fall in grants was seen in April to June 2020 (90% lower than in the same period in 2019) due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of grants of visas and permits began to recover in the later months of the year; grants in Quarter 3 were in comparison just 13% lower than in 2019, and by Quarter 4 showed a 15% increase on 2019.

The 2020 total included:

• 40,255 family-related visas, 28% lower than the previous year; grants to partners, children and other dependants all decreased by roughly 28%; almost three quarters (73%) of family-related visas granted in 2020 were to partners, with the remainder comprising children or other dependants
• 69,631 dependants of people coming to the UK on other types of visas (excluding Visitor visas), down 14%; there was a particularly large drop in grants to dependants of Tier 2 Intra-Company Transfer migrants (down 58% to 10,094)
• 19,234 EEA Family permits, down 58%
• 25,538 EUSS family permits issued to non-EEA close family members of those granted settled or pre-settled status through the EU Settlement Scheme

Table 1: Family visas and permits granted, by visa type

Visa type	2019	2020	Change	Percentage change
Family-related visas	55,643	40,255	-15,388	-28%
of which:
Partners	40,317	29,219	-11,098	-28%
Children	7,574	5,379	-2,195	-29%
Other dependants	7,752	5,657	-2,095	-27%
Dependants on other visas1	80,935	69,631	-11,304	-14%
Total family visas	136,578	109,886	-26,692	-20%
EEA Family permits	45,692	19,234	-26,458	-58%
EU Settlement Scheme family permits2,3	6,603	25,538	+18,935	+287%
Total family permits	52,295	44,772	-7523	-14%

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
Notes:

1. Excludes dependants of those on Visitor visas.
2. The EU Settlement Scheme family permit is an entry clearance route that launched on 30 March 2019. It is not an application to the EU Settlement Scheme. A successful applicant can, if they wish, make a further application to the EU Settlement Scheme once in the UK.
3. Year ending comparisons for EUSS family permit grants are incomplete at this stage, as the permit scheme only launched on 30 March 2019. The first complete year ending comparison will be in 2021 Quarter 2.

Figure 1: Family-related visas and permits granted, by visa type, 2011 to 2020

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
** Notes:**

1. Includes dependants of those coming on other visa categories (such as work and study) but excludes dependants of those on Visitor visas.
2. From 29 November 2010, all non-EEA nationals applying to enter or extend their stay as a partner of a British citizen, or settled person, were required to demonstrate a level of English, except in certain circumstances. This change coincided with a fall in family-related visas granted.
3. Several changes to the Immigration Rules came into effect on 9 July 2012. Further details on the rule changes can be found in the user guide and in the additional analysis provided in ‘Immigration statistics, July to September 2014’.
4. The EU Settlement Scheme family permit is an entry clearance route that launched on 30 March 2019. It is not an application to the EU Settlement Scheme. A successful applicant can, if they wish, make a further application to the EU Settlement Scheme once in the UK.

1.1 Family-related visas by nationality

Pakistani nationals were granted the highest number of family-related visas in 2020, accounting for just under one sixth (16%) of the total, although their number was 31% fewer than in 2019. In 2020, the top five nationalities together accounted for more than one third (38%) of all family-related visas granted.

Table 2: Top five nationalities granted family-related visas in 2020

Nationality	2019	2020	Change	Percentage change
Pakistan	9,507	6,543	-2,964	-31%
India	4,276	3,176	-1,100	-26%
Bangladesh	2,734	2,123	-611	-22%
United States	2,795	1,948	-847	-30%
Iran	2,025	1,637	-388	-19%
All other nationalities	34,306	24,828	-9,478	-28%
Total	55,643	40,255	-15,388	-28%

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02

There was a fall in grants for most nationalities as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, including for the top two nationalities: Pakistan (down 2,964 or 31%) and India (down 1,100 or 26%).

Some nationalities saw a rise in grants in 2020, most notably Hong Kong (up 326 or 89%).

1.2 Dependants on other visas (excluding visitors)

In addition to family-related visas, other dependants can be granted visas to join or accompany migrants with visas for other purposes, such as work and study.

In 2020, there were 69,631 visas granted to dependants on other visas, 14% lower than the previous year. This decrease was largely due to a fall of 12,390 grants to dependants of those on skilled work visas.

Table 3: Visas granted to dependants on other visas

Visa category	2019	2020	Change	Percentage change
Sponsored Study	16,047	19,968	+3,921	+24%
Skilled Work	49,798	37,408	-12,390	-25%
Other Work Visas	5,709	4,025	-1,684	-29%
Other Visas	9,381	8,230	-1,151	-12%
Total	80,935	69,631	-11,304	-14%

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
Notes:

1. Not all visas have a dedicated dependant visa, dependants on those routes are instead granted a general joining or accompanying visa which are contained in this category.

The fall in Skilled Work dependants was mainly a result of Indian nationals, making up 9,488 or around three quarters of the total decrease from 2019.

Similarly, the increase in dependants of students was driven by Indian nationals increasing from 3,135 to 8,183 in 2020.

The fall in visas granted to dependants of migrants on work visas reflects the overall fall in those routes – for more information, see the Why do people come to the UK? To work section.

1.3 Family permits

EU Settlement Scheme and EEA family permits allow non-EEA close family members of EEA and Swiss nationals to live in the UK. The migrant joining should apply for an EU Settlement Scheme family permit if the family member they are joining has settled or pre-settled status under the scheme, otherwise they should apply for an EEA family permit.

There were 44,772 family permits granted in 2020, 14% fewer than the previous year. From October to December 2020, there were 18,683 family permits granted, 28% higher than in the same period a year earlier.

There were 19,234 EEA family permits granted, a decrease of 58%, following a recent downward trend since the third quarter of 2019. In the fourth quarter of 2020, there were 6,499 EEA family permits granted, 39% lower than the same period a year earlier.

There were 25,538 EUSS family permits granted in 2020. This route opened at the end of March 2019

1.4 The effects of COVID-19 on the UK immigration system (family)

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all visa application centres were closed by 31 March 2020. They began gradually reopening from June 2020. As a result, visa application and grant numbers were much lower than usual in the Quarter 2 2020 (April to June), but significantly recovered in Quarters 3 and 4 (July to December).

In Quarter 2 2020 there was a sharp decline in visas granted to dependants on other visas compared to the previous year (down 18,360 or 94%). The reduction in Quarter 3 2020 was more moderate (down 2,750 or 11%) and was followed by an increase of 5,718 or 30% in Quarter 4.

The number of applications for family visas and permits in Quarter 3 2020 was 20% lower than a year earlier, however Quarter 4 showed a rebound with a 25% or 18,388 increase on this period in the previous year.

The number of family visas and permits granted fell by 13% in Quarter 3, but in Quarter 4 had increased by 15%, or 7,210 grants. The number of applications and grants were particularly low in the months of April and May (12 and 843 visas granted, respectively), at the height of the pandemic response.

Figure 2: Number of family visas and permits granted, by month, January to December 2019 and 2020

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes – Vis_D02 and underlying data

2. About these statistics

The statistics in this section provide an indication of the number of people who had an intention to enter the UK for family reasons.

Entry clearance visas allow an individual to enter and stay in the UK within the period for which the visa is valid. EEA nationals do not require a visa to enter the UK.

Data in this section refer to the number of Entry clearance visas granted for family reasons (including those issued to dependants of those travelling on other types of visas, excluding Visitor visas), EEA Family permits and EU Settlement Scheme family permits granted, within the period. If an individual was granted a visa more than once in a given period, this has been counted as multiple grants in the statistics. If an individual entered the UK multiple times within the period for which a visa was valid, this has been counted as one grant in the visa statistics.

The data do not show whether, or when, an individual arrived in the UK, what they did on arrival to the UK, or how long they stayed in the UK.

Year-on-year comparisons of the number of decisions can be affected by quarterly fluctuations in the data. These fluctuations can be examined in the quarterly data in the published tables.

Additional analysis on Family visas was included in the ‘Immigration statistics, July to September 2014’ release to assist users in understanding the trends in family data before and after the changes to the Immigration Rules in July 2012 (updated in the ‘Immigration statistics, April to June 2015’ release).

For figures on family-related grants of settlement as well as residence documentation issued to EEA nationals and their family members, see ‘How many people continue their stay in the UK?’. Data on the Family reunion visa category can be found in the ‘How many people do we grant asylum or protection to?’ section.

The EU Settlement Scheme family permit operates alongside the EEA family permit, which continues to provide a separate entry clearance route for those who qualify for it. The EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) family permit facilitates entry into the UK of an eligible non-EEA citizen family member in order to join, or accompany, an EEA or Swiss citizen who has been granted settled status or pre-settled status under the EUSS. This is separate entry clearance route from those applying directly to the EU Settlement Scheme. EU Settlement Scheme statistics are published by the Home Office on a monthly basis. More detailed breakdowns are provided on a quarterly basis.

2.1 Other sources

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes long-term international migration (LTIM) estimates in its ‘Migration to and from the UK report’. Additional migration publications may be found in the ‘Other migration outputs in this release’ section.

3. Data tables

Data on family immigration can be found in the following tables:

• Entry clearance visa summary tables
• Detailed Entry clearance visa datasets
• Admissions summary tables
• Extensions summary tables
• Detailed Extensions datasets

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