The number of internationally educated nurses and midwives joining the UK register has dropped by a third in the last year, ending the upward trend of overseas recruitment. In total, the NMC register had a record 853,707 professionals as of 31 March 2025. This trend has now reversed, with the latest data showing a 30% drop in international joiners – down to 20,671 compared to 29,623 the previous year. In total, 28,789 people left the NMC register in the year to March 2025 – around 3.5% of the register. In the last six months, 46.5% of UK joiners were aged 31 or above, compared to five years ago when the figure was 37%.

Source: The Times June 18, 2025 13:15 UTC