The UK's migrant population has grown faster than any other G7 country over the past decade, the Telegraph claims, citing a report from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). According to this study published on November 12, the number of people born abroad and residing in the United Kingdom increased by 55% between 2015 and 2024, from just under 8.5 million immigrants to 13.1 million in 2024. This represents 4.6 million additional individuals. On the scale of the country's total population, the share of immigrants is also increasing, representing 19% in 2024, compared to 13% in 2015.
For comparison, Germany - also a member of the G7 - has recorded an increase of 49% since 2015, with 16.1 million immigrants living on its soil in 2025. Another European neighbor is experiencing even greater growth: Spain (which is not a member of the G7), up 61% since 2015.
The Brexit paradox
The British daily highlights “significant progress” in the United Kingdom, almost ten years after Brexit, which aimed to reduce immigration by ending free movement with the European Union. Before Brexit, EU citizens could come and live and work in the UK without a visa. Brexit supporters, like Nigel Farage, denounced this situation. They defended the idea that the United Kingdom should be able to decide for itself the number and profile of people authorized to settle on its territory.
The slogan “Take back control” summed up this promise of sovereignty, particularly in terms of borders. On June 23, 2016, 51.9% of British voters voted in favor of leaving the European Union. The day after its departure from the EU on January 31, 2020, the United Kingdom established a points-based migration system: European nationals are, essentially, subject to the same work visa rules as third-country nationals.
The shaken economy
If European immigration has declined, arrivals from countries outside the EU have increased significantly. This increase is linked to work visas and recruitment, particularly in health and personal assistance. The Telegraph states that “this development has made health and personal care services particularly dependent on immigrant labor.” The newspaper points out that 18% of immigrants work in the health sector, according to the OECD, and that a third of the 1.6 million jobs in the care sector in England are held by people born abroad.
The Telegraph insists that “immigrants are more likely to be employed than people born in the UK”. Last year, 76.8% of foreign-born residents were employed, across all sectors. However, this situation is not unique to the United Kingdom: in 19 of the 34 countries studied by the OECD in its report, the employment rate of immigrants is higher than or equal to that of the native-born, although the trend reverses slightly at the organization level.
The decline in new arrivals
If we observe an increase in the number of people immigrating to the United Kingdom between 2015 and 2024, the OECD reports a drop in new arrivals after 2023. In fact, this flow of new arrivals has fallen by 60% in just two years. In 2023, the OECD recorded 741,600 new immigrants for a long-term stay or on a permanent basis. They then mainly came from India, Nigeria, China and Pakistan. In 2024, this figure will drop by 41.5%, reaching 433,900 entries. In 2025, the international organization will only have 296,000 in 2025, marking a drop of 32% compared to the previous year.
Of these 296,000 immigrants, 23% are work migrants, 57% are family members and 17% are migrants admitted for humanitarian reasons. If arrivals slow, the total number of immigrants living in the UK can still continue to rise, as long as new settlements continue to outnumber departures and deaths.
