New data published by the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS) have revealed that Chinese students fueled a rise in non-EU immigration into the UK over the past 12 months. 

Immigration for study is the most common reason for non-EU citizens moving to the UK, with figures showing an estimated 174,000 non-EU students arrived on British shores in 2019.

That number represents 50 percent of all non-EU migrants who arrived in the UK in 2019 and a vast portion of the 221,000 people estimated to have arrived in Britain for formal study lasting more than 12 months in 2019.

Information yielded from the IPS (international passenger survey) has found that 149,000 Asian students, many of whom are Chinese, came to the UK for formal study in 2019.

UK Home Office visa data show Chinese nationals account for 40 percent of the 299,023 sponsored study visas that were granted in the year ending March 2020 – and their number has more than doubled since 2012.

Indian students accounted for a further 17 percent of that overall figure, with 49,844 nationals granted sponsored study visas – a number that has more than doubled since 2016. 

Chinese students have become an important source of income for UK universities, with students paying fees that are two or three times higher than their British counterparts.  

In January, it was reported that China now sends more students than any other country inside or outside the EU to UK universities.

The University of Liverpool has been one of the most prolific higher education institutions in recruiting from China, which now provides one in five of its students.

But universities' reliance on income from China could lead to a loss of billions of pounds over the next 12 months if students opt against enrolling as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A survey conducted by Quacquarelli Symonds has revealed 49 percent of Chinese students don't want to enrol at UK universities this year if that means they have to study online.

Social-distancing measures in the UK have prompted several universities to announce they will conduct all lectures online for the 2020-21 academic year.