The UK has received a surge in job searches from overseas during the past year, partly reflecting a post-Brexit relaxation in work visa rules for non-European Union nationals, reports Reuters, citing data from job agreggator Indeed. A record 5.5% of searches for UK jobs on Indeed's website in June came from potential applicants outside the country, up from 4.4% a year earlier and an average of 3.6% from 2017 to 2019. EU-based job seekers accounted for 1.4% of Indeed's UK job searches in June, down slightly from before Brexit, while non-EU interest has more than doubled to 4.1% of searches. India, Nigeria, South Africa and Pakistan were some of the main origins for searches.

Pawel Adrjan, Indeed's director of research for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said the increase showed a growing interest in higher-skilled jobs like software development from non-EU applicants, and a shift from lower-skilled roles European workers had filled before the UK left the EU in January 2020. Adrjan added that immigration to developed countries has rebounded in recent years, fuelled by tight labour markets and aging populations.