In 2013, 46,000 Chinese migrants entered Britain for study and work reasons followed by 33,000 Indians.
India is tied at second place along with Spanish migrants from within the European Union, also at 33,000, according to the Office of National Statistics (ONS) International Passenger Survey (INS).
Around 29,000 migrants came from Australia, 27,000 from Poland, 22,000 from France and 20,000 from the US.
Three-quarters of immigrants to the UK are people migrating to work or study, ONS found as part of a research on long-term international immigration.
"Generally, immigration of British citizens remains relatively stable, both in terms of the overall level and the main reasons for immigrating," the ONS notes.
The flow of immigrants into Britain is set to remain an emotive issue in the UK as Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative-led government struggles to control the figures.
He had reiterated his determination to not "cave in" on tough immigration targets as part of a speech yesterday when ONS figures revealed that net migration rose by 50 per cent to 318,000 last year with a total of 641,000 people moving to the UK in 2014.
"There is the approach of just give up, cave in and forget about it. But that's not my approach," he said as he pledged tougher rules to crack down on illegal workers in the country.
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