Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to table CDM 01A, Cost per decision for migration applications, in country and overseas, published as part of the Visas and Citizenship data: Q3 2021, for what reason the cost per decision for migration applications, in country and overseas, increased from £155 per decision in 2019-20 to £407 per decision in 2020-21.

The increase in the cost per migration decision reflects that while costs associated with operating the migration and borders system have remained broadly static, there has been a significant reduction in the number of visa applications due to the Covid global pandemic resulting in a significant spike in the unit cost per application.