Work visa applications fall sharply in latest Home Office figures
12 Jun 2026
If you are on a Skilled Worker or Health and Care Worker visa, the latest government data shows how sharply demand on your route has fallen over the past year.
The Home Office published monthly entry clearance visa statistics on 11 June 2026. For the year ending May 2026, Health and Care Worker main applications fell to 9,600 - a 62% drop from the year to May 2025 and 94% below the route's peak. Skilled Worker main applications fell to 31,500, a 39% decrease year-on-year. Dependant applications also fell: Skilled Worker dependants dropped 19% to 40,600, and Health and Care Worker dependants fell 26% to 37,300.
Family visa applications totalled 71,700 for the year ending May 2026, a 4% fall from 74,900 the previous year.
The data is provisional. The Home Office notes that records for 28 to 31 May may have some missing or incomplete entries due to a data feed issue, but says the expected impact on headline trends is "very minimal."
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