There has been a sharp fall in the number of overseas health and care workers applying for visas in the first few months of this year compared with the year before.

Just 12,400 people applied for the Health and Care Worker visa from January to April this year, according to the latest statistics published by the government on Wednesday.

During the same period last year, 50,900 applications were made – 76% more than this year.

The dramatic drop in applications comes after visa rules changed so social care workers are no longer able to bring any dependents on their visa.

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