CEM REPORT, FOREIGN AFFAIRS | The United Kingdom (UK) has decried the rising rate of dependant relatives brought into the country by Nigerian migrants, especially on student Visas.
The UK laments that Nigerian migrants bring in the highest number of dependants when compared to other groups of migrants.
The lamentation is coming on the back of the latest data by Home Office immigration showed a startling inconsistency across different nationalities coming to the UK to work and study.
According to the Daily Mail, UK, the UK Home Secretary, Suella Braverman is considering tightening the rules on dependants.
Analysis from the Home Office report shows that Nigerians accounted for 40% of all dependants who accompanied foreign students in the 12 months to June 2022 despite Nigerian students making up just 7% of all foreign students in that period.
Furthermore, the reports states that 34,000 Nigerians were given study visas in the UK, bringing with them a total of 31,898 dependants. A similar ratio was recorded for work visas, with 8,972 Nigerians issued with one in the 12 months to June bringing with them 8,576 dependants.
“In the other top 5 nationalities, Nigerian nationals saw the largest relative increase in Sponsored Study grants compared with 2019, increasing by 57,545 (+686%) to a record high of 65,929, making them the third largest nationality group in the latest year.”
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In a chat, a Home Office told Daily Mail: “This is the highest on record in our time series, with the substantial increase representing both a recovery from lower numbers during the Covid-19 pandemic but also an increase on the pre-pandemic period.”