Data tables  /  Work  / Study  / Family  / Visas  / Admissions  / Asylum  / Extensions of stay  / Settlement  / Citizenship  / Detention  / Removals and voluntary departures

Selective Extracts from Summary Points

Detention: The number of people entering detention in 2014 fell slightly to 30,365 from 30,418 in 2013. Over the same period there was a fall of 1% in those leaving detention (from 30,030 to 29,655).    There was a continuing decline in the proportion of detainees being removed on leaving detention from a high of 64% in 2010 to 53% in 2014. Conversely, there was an increase in the proportion of detainees granted temporary admission or release, from 28% to 38% over the same period.



As at the end of December 2014, 3,462 people were in detention, 24% higher than the number recorded at the end of December 2013 (2,796). This increase may, in part, be accounted for by the opening in September 2014 of The Verne IRC as some detainees may have transferred from being held in prison establishments. In 2014, 99 children entered detention. This was a 91% fall, and the lowest level since the beginning of the data series in 2009 (1,119).

Removals/Voluntary Departures: Enforced removals from the UK fell by 6% from 13,311 in 2013 to 12,460 in 2014. The number of passengers refused entry at port and who subsequently departed increased by 11% in 2014, to 15,943 from 14,396 for the previous year. However, the long-term trends show levels decreasing since 2004. In 2014, there were 24,001 voluntary departures. Due to the retrospective nature of data-matching exercises that are undertaken in counting for some voluntary departures, this figure is particularly subject to upward revision as matching checks are made on travellers after departure.

Asylum: There were 24,914 asylum applications in 2014, an increase of 6% compared with 2013. In 2014, the largest number of applications for asylum came from nationals of Eritrea (3,239), followed by Pakistan (2,711). Grants rates for asylum, humanitarian protection, discretionary leave or other grants of stay vary between nationalities. For example, 87% of the total decisions made for nationals of Eritrea were grants, compared with 20% for Pakistani nationals.



At the end of 2014, 22,974 of the applications for asylum received since April 2006 from main applicants were pending a decision (initial decision, appeal or further review). This was 34% more than at the end of 2013 (17,180), reflecting a decrease in staffing levels following a restructure initiated by the UK Border Agency. Since January 2014, the Home Office has taken steps to reallocate resources to this area.       The UK had the fifth highest number of asylum applications within the EU in 2014 (fourth in 2013). In 2014, Germany, Sweden, France and Italy had more asylum applicants than the UK.

Extensions: There were 23% fewer (-69,963) grants of extensions, falling to 236,572 grants, accounted for by 28% fewer work-related grants (-33,907), 35% fewer study-related grants of extensions (-40,641) and partially offset by 29% more grants (+7,659) for other reasons (mainly an increase in discretionary leave). The -33,907 fall in work-related extensions was mainly accounted for by 32,055 fewer Tier 1 General grants (as this category has been closed to new entrants).

Settlement: There was a fall of a third (-33%; -51,542) in grants of permission to stay permanently, to 103,147 in 2014, the lowest figure since 1999 (97,115). This drop was accounted for by falls in family-related (-27,045), work-related (-20,499) and asylum-related grants (-4,075).



Family-related grants to stay permanently fell by nearly half (-45%) to 32,604, continuing the overall downward trend since 2010 (69,228). There were notable decreases in grants to wives (from 33,844 to 18,690) and to husbands (from 16,652 to 9,539). And 24% fewer children (-931). 32% of family visas decisions in 2014 were refusals, up from 2013 (29%).

Full breakdown analysis of statistics Q4 are here