Indians Face Sharper Visa Curbs in UK and New Zealand in 2025

(UNITED KINGDOM) Indians are facing tougher odds for UK visa approvals and New Zealand permits in 2025, with sharp declines across work, family, and student routes while Australia shows a partial opening. New data for the United Kingdom point to a broad pullback: in the first half of 2025, total India visas fell from 520,000 (2023) to 479,000, with the steepest drop in work visas. This shift comes as several Western countries, including the United States 🇺🇸, move to lower net migration and tighten the rules for lower-barrier routes.

UK: Big drops in work visas, still central to skilled migration

In the UK, the fall in work visas for Indians is stark. Approvals plunged from 88,737 (2023) to 35,390 (2025), a slide that aligns with higher salary thresholds for the Skilled Worker route and a clampdown on care-sector sponsorships. Family and partner permissions also shrank, from over 2,000 to 1,486. Student visas—typically a resilient path—dipped as well, sliding from a peak of 53,122 (2023) to 34,650 in the recent cycle.

Even with the slowdown, Indians remain central to the UK’s skilled migration picture. In the year ending March 2025, Indians still accounted for 16% of all UK work-related entry visas. But overall, work visas for non‑EU citizens fell—from 312,600 (2023) to 171,000 by March 2025—with the steepest decline in the Skilled Worker category.

• Health and Care Worker grants fell especially hard:
  • Caring roles: approvals down 88%
  • Nursing roles: approvals down 80% (year ending June 2025)

These trends reflect Home Office policy moves, including tighter wage rules and curbs on sponsorship in the care sector. Official Home Office data can be found here: UK immigration statistics: quarterly release.

Students: main applicants hold up, dependants hit hard

Indian nationals received 98,014 study visas in the year ending June 2025, down 11% from the prior year. The main trigger is the January 2024 rule that sharply limited dependant visas for most students, cutting dependant grants by about 81%.

• Signs of resilience:
  • Main applicant approvals for Indians rebounded in Q1 2025—up 31% from Q1 2024.
  • Grant rate for Indian main applicants was 96% in that quarter.
  • About 81% of Indian students in the UK pursue taught postgraduate (Master’s) degrees.

Comparative context:
– Pakistani student issuances fell a smaller 7% in Q1 2025, with a grant rate of 74%—well below India’s 96%.

Implications for students and universities:
– More students travel without dependants, increasing demand for single-occupancy housing and university support.
– Some students may switch to courses that still allow dependants (e.g., research postgraduates).
– Universities focused on taught Master’s programs must adapt recruitment and student services.

New Zealand: sharper pullback hitting Indians hardest

New Zealand’s tightening follows a similar pattern. In the seven months to July 31, Indian work visas numbered only 3,948, down from 9,660 in 2024—a drop of nearly 60%. Approvals for visitors and students also cooled, though the education route performed relatively better: around 6,950 student visas were granted to Indians in 2025.

The overall effect appears to hit Indian applicants harder than those from Bangladesh and Pakistan, whose application volumes have been more stable.

Australia: partial opening for Indian temporary workers

Australia stands out as a counterpoint. In the six months to June 30, temporary work visas for Indians rose to 7,000, up from 4,250 the previous year. This suggests ongoing demand for Indian workers in certain sectors, even as the UK and New Zealand scale back.

For Indian professionals weighing options, Australia’s recent trend signals that not all traditional destinations are closing at the same pace.

Policy shifts driving the decline

Governments across major destinations face political and public pressure to bring down net migration. Key policy levers in play:

• Higher minimum salaries for Skilled Workers — screens out lower-wage roles and smaller sponsors.
• Stricter rules for care-sector sponsors — limits openings where Indians have been heavily represented.
• Tight limits on student dependants — now largely restricted to research postgraduates and certain government-funded scholars.
• More audits and compliance checks on sponsors — adds cost and time, prompting some employers to slow hiring.

These moves reduce visas in categories that used to move faster and cost less for employers, particularly affecting care and entry-level jobs.

New Zealand mirrors the pattern: fewer work permits, tougher checks, and a tilt toward higher-pay roles. Australia, in contrast, appears to be targeting sectoral needs, which helps explain the rise in Indian temporary work visas.

Impact on students, workers, and families

Students:
– Path remains open but more focused on main applicants.
– Dependants curtailed—many students travel alone or change course choices.

Workers:
– Harder to secure work visas due to higher salary thresholds and tighter sponsor rules.
– Care roles face reduced sponsorship, increasing competition and lengthening hiring timelines.
– Some employers shift hiring toward Australia, which saw approvals rise to 7,000 in the first half of 2025.

Families:
– UK family and partner visas for Indians fell to 1,486, down from over 2,000—leading to more couples living apart and delayed reunions.
– Legal advisers report clients increasingly explore alternate routes (education or employer sponsorship) when family routes are no longer viable.

Comparative effects:
– Declines have been more moderate for Pakistan and Bangladesh, especially on UK work visas—creating diverging choices for applicants.

Regional contrasts and next steps

The combined UK and New Zealand tightening is pushing some Indian professionals to diversify plans. Recruiters report increased interest in the Gulf and Southeast Asia where processes can be faster and rules more predictable. Australia’s uptick suggests it could attract talent who previously would have chosen the UK or New Zealand.

For policymakers and employers in India, practical considerations include:
– Strengthening support for overseas workers.
– Updating training to meet higher salary thresholds.
– Pursuing bilateral talks to protect fair recruitment.

For applicants planning ahead, recommended actions:

1. Build a budget that assumes fewer or no dependant visas under student routes.
2. For work visas, check current salary thresholds and sponsor status before accepting offers.
3. Keep destination options open—Australia currently shows more room while the UK and New Zealand are tighter.
4. Track official updates regularly; policy changes can affect entry dates, dependants, and switching between routes. The Home Office’s official releases are here: UK immigration statistics: quarterly release.

India’s share of the global talent flow remains large, and demand for Indian skills is still strong. But the 2025 picture is clear: the UK and New Zealand have raised the bar sharply, with work visas and family routes hit hardest and student paths reshaped by dependant limits. Australia shows that not every door is closing.

For many Indian students, workers, and families, the next steps will depend on careful timing, close reading of category rules, and willingness to select the destination that matches both budget and long-term plans.