The 15m foreign nationals claiming UK N.I. numbers – where did they come from?

Proportion of EU nationals has fallen to 1/10th of past levels – another Brexit benefit

Montage © Facts4EU.Org 2024

The fact that overall immigration is still so high is due to poor governance, not Brexit

In Part I of this series we revealed the extraordinary total of 15 million migrants claiming National Insurance numbers in the UK in the last 20 years, in order to be able to work and claim benefits. In Part II today we show where these migrants have come from.

Specifically we break this down by region of the world and look at how this has changed since the United Kingdom left the European Union.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary

National Insurance numbers issued to foreign nationals
to work or receive benefits in the UK

1. Breakdown by region of the world in last 20 years

This century EU nationals have dominated the numbers of foreign nationals given National Insurance numbers, representing more than half of the total.

  • EU : 7,484,675 (50.9%)
  • Asia : 3,995,789 (27.2%)
  • Rest of the World : 2,582,934 (17.6%)
  • Non-EU European : 549,748 (3.7%)
  • Other / unknown : 82,999 (0.6%)

[Source : HMRC and DWP, Jan-Jun 2024, NINO Registrations To Adult Overseas Nationals Entering The UK.]

© Brexit Facts4EU.Org 2024 - click to enlarge

Numbers of EU nationals have tumbled since the UK voted to leave

10 years ago, more than three-quarters (76%) of all new N.I. registrations were being issued to EU nationals. By 2023/4 this had fallen to just 7.4%. The bulk of the fall has occurred since the EU’s Freedom of Movement requirement ended in 2020/21, when the UK finally left the EU.

The proportion of EU nationals has dropped by 90% since the pre-Referendum year, as can be seen below.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary

National Insurance numbers issued to foreign nationals
to work or receive benefits in the UK

2. EU nationals as a proportion of all foreign nationals obtaining a UK N.I. number in last 10 years

  • 2014/15 : 76.0%
  • 2015/16 : 76.5%
  • 2016/17 : 74.7%
  • 2017/18 : 69.6%
  • 2018/19 : 63.5%
  • 2019/20 : 54.7%
  • 2020/21 : 28.9%
  • 2021/22 : 20.6%
  • 2022/23 : 11.9%
  • 2023/24 : 7.4%

[Source : HMRC and DWP, Jan-Jun 2024, NINO Registrations To Adult Overseas Nationals Entering The UK.]

© Brexit Facts4EU.Org 2024 - click to enlarge

EU nationals now represent 1/10th of the proportion of foreign nationals issued with National Insurance numbers, compared to 10 years ago.

Finally in Part III we will look at the implications of all this for the British people

  • The great scramble for jobs in the UK, from the EU’s millions of unemployed
  • Who benefited the most from the EU’s ‘freedom of movement’?
  • What happened to the UK’s jobs market
  • What happened to wages
  • What happened to GDP per person

Observations

During the long period when the UK was a member of the EU, migration from the bloc was the most significant element of the total of net immigration into the United Kingdom. As a member country, there was very little the UK could do about this.

Following the UK’s exit, the number of NI numbers issued to EU nationals in order to claim benefits or to work has fallen dramatically. The UK is no longer under a legal obligation to take in the EU’s unemployed.

The fact that overall net immigration has risen in recent years is due to poor governance, not due to Brexit. In this sense, Brexit did indeed ‘take back control of our borders’ - at least for over half of the problem.

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[ Sources: ONS | DWP | HMRC ] Politicians and journalists can contact us for details, as ever.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org, Friday 25 Oct 2024

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