Net migration and international students: user needs

Overview

This questionnaire aims to understand whether there is a need for the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to produce an additional, alternative estimate of long-term net migration which excludes international students. This additional estimate may complement the official estimate of net migration.

International students who stay in the UK for 12 months or more and use services while in the UK, meet the United Nations definition of a long-term international migrant. We therefore include them in net migration estimates. Data from recent periods demonstrates why official estimates will continue to include international students, with 87% of those who arrived in Year Ending (YE) June 2023 remaining in the UK one year after arrival. 22% of those arriving on a study visa in YE period June 2019 were still present in the UK at the end of YE June 2024.

Section 15 of our article Understanding international migration statistics also explains why we will continue to include international students in the official estimate of long-term international migration. 

As set out in the UK Statistics Authority strategy, the ONS aims to deliver statistics for the public good and everything we publish should meet a user need. We have a responsibility to ensure that our statistics support the work of our users. On that basis, we are undertaking this user engagement exercise to identify specific areas of work which may benefit from an additional estimate of net migration.

We are aware of potential stakeholder interest in an additional estimate of net migration excluding students, and are seeking user feedback as part of investigating options for whether and how to produce an estimate. Your time in completing this questionnaire would be greatly appreciated. 

The outcome of this engagement exercise will result in the ONS either producing an additional, alternative estimate of net migration which excludes international students (in one of two ways described in this questionnaire), or maintaining our current approach. The methods and approach for our official estimate of net migration will be unchanged by the outcome of this engagement exercise. The outcome will be shared ahead of the next release of long-term international migration estimates via the Population Statistics Newsletter and in subsequent editions of the Quarterly Update series.

     
Please contact pop.info@ons.gov.uk if you have any questions.