The Home Office publishes the data you have requested in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on sponsored study outcomes are published in table Vis_D02 of the entry clearance visa applications and outcomes detailed datasets’. The latest data goes up to the year ending March 2026. Please find below a table on sponsored study visas issued and refused for each year between the year ending March 2024, to the year ending March 2026.

Sponsored study (‘Student’ and ‘Child Student’) entry clearance visas issued and refused between the YE March 2024 to the YE March 2026

Notes: The figures include both main applicants and dependant family members.

Arrivals under the new safe and legal routes will start small and build over time. The number of arrivals will be carefully managed to align with the UK’s capacity to support refugees.

To prevent abuse of the routes, the Home Office will assess all applications to ensure that only those who meet the eligibility requirements can access them. Refugee status will be determined in partnership with the UNHCR, and all applicants will be subject to appropriate security, identity, and background checks before arrival in the UK.

The Home Office will also retain control over who can sponsor, setting clear criteria to be met by sponsor groups and undertaking monitoring and assurance to ensure sponsorship arrangements are safe, effective and deliver positive outcomes. Where concerns about misuse, fraud or non-compliance are identified, appropriate action will be taken.

The consultation for the earned settlement model, as proposed in ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, was open to the public between 20 November 2025 and 12 February 2026.

We received over 200,000 responses and are now carefully considering the feedback received, as we develop the final model. As no final decisions have been made, I can give no further detail at this time.

The final model will also be subject to economic and equality impact assessments, which we have committed to publish in due course.

The Home Office service standard completion rates are individual to each casework route. There is no correlation between completion rates for British National (Overseas) Leave to Remain applications and ECAA Leave to Remain applications.

Each application is considered on its individual facts, with each immigration route having its own specific eligibility criteria that must be considered prior to a final decision being served.

The Home Office allocates resources for case working of immigration applications in line with the forecasted demand.

The increase in applications for indefinite leave to remain under the British National (Overseas) route reflects the timing of eligibility following the route’s introduction on 31 January 2021. Those on the route generally qualify for indefinite leave after five years’ residence. Casework resource was allocated to this route in line with the forecasted increase in applications throughout 2026.

There has been a higher than forecast intake on the European Community Association Agreement (ECAA) route over the last 12 months, and a high proportion of complex cases with large amounts of evidence which must be reviewed as part of the decision-making process. This has impacted processing times and volumes of decisions. Additional decision-making resource has now been assigned to the ECAA route.

The Home Office service standard completion rates are individual to each casework route. There is no correlation between completion rates for British National (Overseas) Leave to Remain applications and ECAA Leave to Remain applications.

Each application is considered on its individual facts, with each immigration route having its own specific eligibility criteria that must be considered prior to a final decision being served.

The Home Office allocates resources for case working of immigration applications in line with the forecasted demand.

The increase in applications for indefinite leave to remain under the British National (Overseas) route reflects the timing of eligibility following the route’s introduction on 31 January 2021. Those on the route generally qualify for indefinite leave after five years’ residence. Casework resource was allocated to this route in line with the forecasted increase in applications throughout 2026.

There has been a higher than forecast intake on the European Community Association Agreement (ECAA) route over the last 12 months, and a high proportion of complex cases with large amounts of evidence which must be reviewed as part of the decision-making process. This has impacted processing times and volumes of decisions. Additional decision-making resource has now been assigned to the ECAA route.

The number of full time equivalent (FTE) asylum caseworkers employed at the Home Office per month until December 2025 is published in the ASY_05(M) tab of the published migration transparency statistics, located on the Immigration and Protection data; September to December 2025. At the end of December 2025, there were 2,028 FTE asylum caseworkers.

We are continuing to onboard staff to maintain staffing at the required levels to allow us to manage asylum intake, reduce the overall time to make initial asylum decisions and deal with appeals.

The Windrush Compensation Scheme already includes provision for the independent review of claims. If an individual is dissatisfied with the outcome of their claim, they can ask the Home Office to review its decision. This will be an internal independent Tier 1 review by someone who has not been involved in the individual’s case.

If an individual remains dissatisfied, they can request an external independent Tier 2 review by the Adjudicator’s Office (AO). The AO is a separate organisation, independent of the Home Office who can look at, among other things, whether the department has followed its policies, and the use of discretion by the Windrush Compensation Team.

If, after completing both review stages, claimants remain dissatisfied, they can ask their MP to submit their complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO).

The Scheme was designed to be accessible without legal representation. Whilst we recognise the application process can be emotionally challenging, it does not require the arguing of complex points of law or determinations of liability. For these reasons, legal representation is not considered necessary to access the Scheme.

Instead, we are focused on providing practical, community based support. The £1.5 million Windrush Compensation Advocacy Support Fund, launched in 2025, enables trusted local organisations to help claimants gather evidence, complete forms, and confidently tell their stories. The Year 2 funding competition launched on 12 January and closed on 6 February. Successful bids are expected to be announced shortly.

The family reunion route was suspended to ease the pressures that local authorities and public services have been placed under due to the recent significant increase in people arriving under this route in recent years.

Outstanding applications will continue to be considered under the family reunion rules in place prior to the commencement of the suspension, including those that are at appeal.

During the suspension, the Government is taking forward wider asylum and family reforms to place the system on a fairer, controlled and sustainable footing. Further information on forthcoming changes will be set out in due course. In the meantime, other family routes remain available, including Appendix FM.

Those who claimed asylum or made further submissions before 2 March 2026, and who are eligible for protection, will receive 5 years’ permission to stay in accordance with the transitional arrangements included in the Immigration Rules laid on 5 March 2026.

We will encourage refugees to switch out of the Core Protection route wherever possible into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

Refugees granted refugee status or humanitarian protection (as well as those arriving under one of the UK’s resettlement schemes) have immediate access to the labour market and benefits, including employment support from Department for Work and Pensions work coaches. Unemployed refugees are eligible for full funding for English for Speakers of Other Languages learning.

We want to encourage refugees to integrate more fully into the communities providing them sanctuary and we will encourage refugees to switch out of the Core Protection route wherever possible into a new, bespoke work and study route. In addition to the wider the socio-economic advantages, this will also enable them to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

We are committed to ensuring our policies are sustainable and do not place unnecessary burdens on the taxpayer, and this policy is no different. In terms of resources and processing, only those who do remain on Core Protection will have their protection needs regularly reviewed. Reviews will be targeted based on objective country information, and any other new information that comes to light, allowing us to make the most efficient use of resources. We will continue to monitor staffing levels and will deploy our workforce flexibly subject to business needs as we have done in the past.

The approach to reviewing status will be efficient and targeted; we will reassess where country conditions or personal circumstances have changed significantly.

To do this we will build on the efficiencies that have already seen record levels of initial decisions being made, including use of AI, such as our policy search tool or case summarisation which are already assisting asylum decision makers.

We want to encourage refugees to integrate more fully into the communities providing them sanctuary and we will encourage refugees to switch out of the Core Protection route wherever possible into a new, bespoke work and study route. In addition to the wider the socio-economic advantages, this will also enable them to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

We are committed to ensuring our policies are sustainable and do not place unnecessary burdens on the taxpayer, and this policy is no different. In terms of resources and processing, only those who do remain on Core Protection will have their protection needs regularly reviewed. Reviews will be targeted based on objective country information, and any other new information that comes to light, allowing us to make the most efficient use of resources. We will continue to monitor staffing levels and will deploy our workforce flexibly subject to business needs as we have done in the past.

The approach to reviewing status will be efficient and targeted; we will reassess where country conditions or personal circumstances have changed significantly.

To do this we will build on the efficiencies that have already seen record levels of initial decisions being made, including use of AI, such as our policy search tool or case summarisation which are already assisting asylum decision makers.

We want to encourage refugees to integrate more fully into the communities providing them sanctuary and we will encourage refugees to switch out of the Core Protection route wherever possible into a new, bespoke work and study route. In addition to the wider the socio-economic advantages, this will also enable them to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

We are committed to ensuring our policies are sustainable and do not place unnecessary burdens on the taxpayer, and this policy is no different. In terms of resources and processing, only those who do remain on Core Protection will have their protection needs regularly reviewed. Reviews will be targeted based on objective country information, and any other new information that comes to light, allowing us to make the most efficient use of resources. We will continue to monitor staffing levels and will deploy our workforce flexibly subject to business needs as we have done in the past.

The approach to reviewing status will be efficient and targeted; we will reassess where country conditions or personal circumstances have changed significantly.

To do this we will build on the efficiencies that have already seen record levels of initial decisions being made, including use of AI, such as our policy search tool or case summarisation which are already assisting asylum decision makers.

Those who claimed asylum or made further submissions before 2 March 2026, and who are eligible for protection, will receive 5 years’ permission to stay in accordance with the transitional arrangements included in the Immigration Rules laid on 5 March 2026.

Refugees approaching the end of their 5 years’ permission remain eligible to apply under Appendix Settlement Protection.

The family reunion route was suspended to ease the pressures that local authorities and public services have been placed under due to the recent significant increase in people arriving under this route in recent years. Other family routes remain available including Appendix FM, and cases lodged before the suspension continue to be considered on a case-by-case basis. During the suspension, we are undertaking a review of the route, along with the wider family rules, to place the system on a more sustainable footing. Further information about forthcoming changes will follow in due course

The Home Office maintains regular engagement with a wide range of stakeholders on asylum and immigration matters, including providing updates on policy developments. As with any change, we recognise that there may be impacts arising from the package of reforms on organisations supporting asylum seekers and refugees.  We will maintain our regular engagement and on-going work with, for example, local authorities, Non-Government Organisations and other stakeholders.

Children are not a homogeneous cohort, and careful consideration will be given as to how children will be impacted when policy frameworks are applied in respect of them, in line with Section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). We will work with external stakeholders to shape policy development, including elements which will impact children. Whilst the changes take place the Government will continue to protect the welfare and best interests of children, including refugees

This Government is committed to supporting refugees and those granted protection in the UK to fully integrate and contribute to British economy and society, in a way that promotes community cohesion. All refugees and those granted protection in the UK should be able to fully integrate into life here and become self-sufficient, providing for themselves and their families, and contributing to the economy.

The service standard for deciding applications for citizenship is six months. The most recent published Transparency Data shows that 97.9% of applications were decided within this standard.

Migration transparency data - GOV.UK

If any further information is required from an applicant while their application is being processed, they will be contacted via their preferred method of communication and direct reply details provided. For general matters applicants are encouraged to use the UK Visas and Immigration contact form so that they may be directed to the right department to answer their query.

Contact UK Visas and Immigration for help - GOV.UK

A service to allow applicants to track the progress of their application online is currently in the early stages of development.

There is a 6-month service standard for this route. The below links show published data on Home Office performance.

• migration transparency data - March 2014 to December 2024
• migration transparency data - January to March (Q1) 2025 onwards

The Government’s Asylum Policy Statement outlines the current challenges, the Government’s objectives, and a comprehensive package of measures to restore order, control, fairness and public confidence in the UK’s system. Specific Impact Assessments will be undertaken as policies are developed more fully. These will be kept under review to ensure that there are no unintended impacts on people with protected characteristics.

Further details on asylum reform, including support and contributions, will also be announced in due course.

The Asylum and Returns Policy Statement sets out the intention that we will review protection status for people who do not switch out of Core Protection. This is part of the wider package that seeks to incentivise people to switch (alongside the ability to earn down the time to settlement, and sponsor family members).

We cannot predict with any certainty what proportion of people will switch, although the system will be designed to ensure that switching is a viable option for the majority of people.

For those who do remain on Core Protection, reviews will be conducted on a targeted basis so that we can make the most efficient use of resources. The renewal stage will generally involve a simple security check, and we will set business rules to identify cases that warrant a manual intervention.

Please find the figures in the table below.

Table 1: Number of Asylum Claims and Number of Grants of Protection or Other Leave at Initial Decision (October 2015 – September 2025)

Source: Asy_D01- Asylum Claims and Asy_D02 Asylum Initial Decisions of the ‘Asylum claim and initial decisions detailed datasets’, as part of Home Office’s ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’.

Figures include both main applicants and dependants. Grant figures reflect outcomes at the initial decision stage only.

Whilst the information is obtainable, it is not currently available from published statistics. The relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

The Immigration White Paper, published on 12 May 2025, set out that the standard qualifying period for settlement would increase to ten years, although individuals would have the opportunity to reduce this qualifying period based on contributions to the UK economy and society. We will launch a consultation on these changes later this year.

Individuals working within tech can access a number of routes, including the UK’s main work visa Skilled Worker for the majority of individuals, and via the Global Talent route for leaders and future leaders in key fields; those at an early career stage who have the potential to benefit the UK economy can apply through the High Potential Individual route; and those setting up the next generation of tech companies can access both the Innovator Founder and Scale-up routes.

The Immigration White Paper noted that we will go further in ensuring that the very highly skilled have opportunities to come to the UK by, amongst other measures, reviewing our Innovator Founder visa to ensure that it supports entrepreneurial talent currently studying at UK universities to move into the visa so that they can build their business and career in the UK, and streamlining the process for employers and skilled workers to get visas, reducing bureaucracy and supporting growth.

The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.