Applications for UK-sponsored study visas fell by 16 per cent in the year ending August 2026, according to provisional figures released by the Home Office.
The UK recorded 360,700 applications from main applicants seeking sponsored study visas in the 12 months to August 2026, representing a decline from the previous year.
The period covers applications submitted between September 1, 2025, and August 31, 2026.
Applications from student dependants also dropped, with 17,000 applications recorded during the period, 22 per cent lower than the figure for the year ending August 2025.
The number of dependant applications has remained significantly lower since January 2024, when immigration rules were changed to prevent most international students from bringing family members to the UK.
Compared with the year ending December 2023, before the restrictions came into effect, dependant applications were down by 88 per cent.
Study Visa Applications Follow Seasonal Pattern
Applications for sponsored study visas typically increase in August ahead of the start of the UK academic year, while a smaller rise is usually recorded in December.
The latest figures are provisional, with the Home Office expected to provide final data in its quarterly immigration system statistics release.
The decline was also recorded across several UK work visa routes.
Applications from main applicants for Health and Care Worker visas fell by 65 per cent to 7,600 in the year ending August 2026.
The figure was 95 per cent below the peak of 161,700 applications recorded in the year ending November 2023.
Applications from dependants of Health and Care Worker visa applicants also fell, dropping by 35 per cent to 31,900. This represented an 86 per cent decline from the peak recorded in the year ending February 2024.
Skilled Worker visa applications from main applicants dropped by 43 per cent to 26,900, while applications from dependants fell by 24 per cent to 36,300.
The Home Office attributed the reductions to tighter scrutiny of employers, compliance measures and changes to immigration rules introduced in 2024 and 2025.
Changes implemented in July 2025 increased the skill and salary thresholds for many Skilled Worker applicants. The government also stopped new overseas recruitment of care workers through the existing visa route.
Family Visa Applications Also Decline
Family visa applications recorded another decline, falling by 20 per cent to 63,800 in the year ending August 2026, compared with 79,900 during the previous year.
Monthly applications dropped steadily from 8,400 in September 2025 to 4,100 in August 2026.
The decline followed the UK Government’s decision to pause new applications under the Refugee Family Reunion route.
People seeking to reunite with family members may still apply through other family visa routes where they satisfy the relevant immigration requirements.
