The UK government is expected to lay out plans for new immigration laws this summer as figures show the Home Office has issued 931,000 skilled worker visas over the last three years – nearly triple their original estimates.
But how would a crackdown on foreign talent impact the UK economy, as new data shows migrant workers are contributing a whopping £1.3 trillion each year to their respective sectors.
The research comes from the financial experts at Remitly, an American money transfer service, who explored the industries where global talent has the biggest impact and their estimated contributions to annual turnover,
View the full research here: https://blog.remitly.com/gb/immigration/industries-with-most-migrant-workers/
UK industries where migrants contribute the most
|
Rank |
Industry |
Turnover |
Foreign-born workers |
Estimate of turnover contribution by foreign-born workers |
|
1 |
Finance and insurance |
£1.5 T |
23% |
£327.0 B |
|
2 |
Wholesale |
£864.8 B |
24% |
£205.6 B |
|
3 |
Production |
£859.4 B |
16% |
£138.9 B |
|
4 |
Retail |
£449.4 B |
24% |
£106.9 B |
|
5 |
Professional, scientific, and technical |
£379.9 B |
23% |
£85.6 B |
|
6 |
Information and communication |
£298.3 B |
27% |
£81.8 B |
|
7 |
Business administration and support services |
£287.0 B |
23% |
£64.6 B |
|
8 |
Transport and Storage (inc. postal) |
£218.9 B |
27% |
£60.0 B |
|
9 |
Construction |
£333.8 B |
17% |
£55.8 B |
|
10 |
Motor trades |
£227.1 B |
24% |
£54.0 B |
The financial sector benefits most from internationally-born workers.
With around 23% of the workforce made up from foreign talent, migrant workers in this industry contribute an estimated £327 billion to the sector’s annual turnover, with strong growth projected over the next five years.
Employment of non-EU-born workers in the financial sector grew by over half (56%) in the last five years.
If trends continue, the number of finance and insurance employees born outside the EU could rise to 171,500 by December 2028, up from 110,300 in 2023.
Further findings:
-
Migrant workers in Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing contributed the least to their sectors annual turnover – accounting for an estimated £5.1 B of the £46.3 B turnover.
-
Future employment trends point to continued international workforce growth, with Healthcare, Finance, and Professional services set to see the biggest increases by 2028.
-
Over a quarter of the UK’s transport and communication workforce is international. 27% of employees in this sector were born outside the UK, in job roles including bus drivers and broadcasting journalists.
