UK study visas drop 31% in January 2026, work, care routes plunge too

UK Health and Care Worker visas fall to 500; study route records weakest January in years after dependant and salary rule changes

The UK Home Office on Thursday released its monthly statistics for January 2026, laying bare a sharp contraction across two of the country’s most relied-upon migration routes.

 

Overall, work visa demand has fallen. But the steepest drops are in the Health and Care Worker route and the sponsored study route, long seen as central to the NHS, the social care sector and the international education economy.

 

Applications for Health and Care Worker visas have fallen from a peak of 18,300 in August 2023 to just 500 in January 2026. The fall follows ministers’ decision to end overseas recruitment for most frontline care roles and to bar dependants from accompanying workers.

 

Study visa numbers have also slipped markedly.

 

Study route sees weakest January in years

 

There were 19,800 main applicant study visa applications in January 2026, the lowest January figure since at least 2022 and 31 per cent below January 2025, according to the data.

 

The drop comes after the 2025 decision to prevent most postgraduate taught students from bringing family members. Universities had warned the move would deter applicants from key markets including India, Nigeria and Bangladesh.

 

Ruth Arnold, Director of External Affairs at Study Group, told Times Higher Education that the reduction was linked to wider concerns about the UK’s appeal.

 

“The reduction in numbers is linked to perceptions of UK higher education and employment opportunities for graduates, as well as economic challenges and increasing opportunities elsewhere in the world,” she said.

 

“Traditional study destinations such as the UK cannot take the international students who are so fundamental to our universities, communities and economy for granted. British universities are global leaders because they are international and rely on talent from around the world to teach and research, as well as to support domestic activities,” Arnold added.

 

Several universities have linked the fall in overseas enrolment to fragile financial positions in their latest accounts.

 

What changed in the rules?

 

Officials point to the July 2025 tightening of skills and salary thresholds as a key reason for the wider fall in work visas.

 

Changes included:

 

• Raising Skilled Worker roles to RQF level 6

• Increasing the general salary threshold to £41,700

• Stepped-up compliance action in the care sector

 

The curbs came alongside restrictions on dependant visas and closer scrutiny of sponsors.

 

How employers and universities are responding

 

In the short term, businesses reliant on overseas recruitment are reviewing workforce plans. Some are looking at alternative routes such as the Graduate Visa, which remains uncapped but is under review. Others are focusing more closely on domestic recruitment and training.

 

Universities, meanwhile, are lobbying for a sector-specific International Education Accord. The proposal would ring-fence a limited number of study visa places and restore restricted dependant rights.

 

Whether ministers soften their stance may become clearer when the next quarterly migration statistics are published on May 28, 2026.