According to data from His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), Indian and Nigerian nationals surpassed British citizens in employment in the United Kingdom between 2019 and 2023. This period saw a significant decline in EU nationals’ employment, with a drop of 241,600, indicating a substantial shift in the workforce composition.
Earlier reports highlighted the UK National Health Service’s (NHS) reliance on international talent, with Nigerians among the top five largest employee groups. Approximately 10,494 Nigerians are currently employed by the NHS, closely following Poland’s 10,520 health workers.
The data reveals that Indian nationals experienced the most substantial employment growth, with an increase of 487,900, followed by Nigerian nationals with a rise of 278,700, and UK nationals with an increase of 257,000 jobs between December 2019 and December 2023. The total additional employment during this period was 1.481 million, with 1.465 million of these positions filled by individuals from outside the EU.
Tory MP Neil O’Brien, who requested the data, noted that these figures illustrate the significant changes following the implementation of Britain’s post-Brexit migration system in January 2021. The UK has become a popular destination, with a quadrupling of Nigerians granted UK work visas since 2019 due to post-Brexit immigration rule changes. However, the UK has responded to this increase by tightening work visa and student visa rules.
