OVER 500,000 Indian citizens visited the UK during the 12-month period ended in June 2019, data showed on Friday (23).
The latest figures show an 11 per cent increase compared to the previous year.
The cricket World Cup held in England and Wales this year might have boosted the number of visitors from the South Asian country.
More than 503,000 Indian nationals obtained visitor visas in the last one year, Office for National Statistics (ONS) said in a statement.
British High Commissioner to India Sir Dominic Asquith said: “The continued rise in these figures is fantastic news for the UK-India relationship. It also shows that the UK continues to be a welcoming place for Indians to work, study, and vacation.
“It looks like the number of Indian fans who travelled to the UK for the cricket World Cup in England and Wales was even greater than we imagined, and I hope to see even more visitors from India in the future.”
Indian and Chinese nationals together accounted for 49 per cent of all visitor visas granted in this period.
The number of Indian students studying in the UK has seen a remarkable 42 per cent increase.
In addition to the visitor visas, nearly 22,000 Indian nationals received a ‘tier 4’ (study) visa for the year ending June 2019 — up from approximately 15,000 the previous year.
The number of Indians studying in the UK has almost doubled in three years and is now at the highest levels since 2011.
Indian nationals continue to receive more skilled work visas than the rest of the world combined, accounting for 52 per cent of all ‘tier 2’ visas granted globally.
More than 56,000 Indians received skilled work visas- a five per cent increase compared to the previous year, which is also the largest increase for any country.
