Sierra Leone
In 2025, 381 nationals of Sierra Leone claimed asylum in the UK, counting main applicants and family members.
How UK records count nationals of Sierra Leone in 2025.
UK counts
These counts can overlap. Never add them together.
- Moved to the UK
- Not published
- The ONS does not publish an estimate for this nationality.
- Asylum claims
- 381 people
- People named on initial claims, main applicants and family members. Counted by claim date, not arrival date.
- Small boat arrivals
- 204 people detected
- People detected arriving by small boat across the English Channel. Figures from January 2025 can still be revised.
- Resettled or relocated
- 0 people
- People who came through UK resettlement schemes, including the Afghan schemes, by date of arrival. Not a visa route.
Sources (5)
- 1 ONS, Long-term international migration, year ending December 2025
- Table 3e of the dataset, nationalities outside the EU+, on a visa. The ONS publishes nationality estimates for a few nationalities only.
- Published 21 May 2026. Official statistics in development.
- 2 Home Office, entry clearance visa datasets, year ending June 2026
- Entry clearance visas granted, main applicants and family members together, by date of decision.
- Published 27 August 2026. Accredited official statistics.
- 3 Home Office, asylum claims dataset (Asy_D01)
- Initial claims, main applicants and family members, by date of claim.
- Published 27 August 2026. Accredited official statistics.
- 4 Home Office, illegal entry routes dataset
- Small boat arrivals by nationality, people detected, calendar years from 2018.
- Published 27 August 2026. Official statistics.
- 5 Home Office, resettlement dataset (Res_D02)
- Res_D02, people resettled or relocated, by date of arrival in the UK.
- Published 27 August 2026.
Visa routes5 routes · 2025
A visa gives permission to come. It is not an arrival.
Work visas38 grants
Includes family members of workers, and seasonal and other short work visas.
Study visas122 grants
Includes family members of students.
Family visas185 grants
The family route, including refugee family reunion. Not the family members counted in work or study.
Safe route visas0 grants
The BN(O) route and the Ukraine schemes.
Other visas52 grants
All other visas, including EU Settlement Scheme permits and visas for resettled refugees.
Selected visa routes345 grants
Added here Work, study, family and safe route grants added up here, 38 + 122 + 185 + 0. Excludes other visas. Not all visas, and not arrivals.
History
Showing Work visas, grants.
Showing work visas because the ONS does not publish an estimate for this nationality. Visas are not arrivals.
| Year | Grants |
|---|---|
| 2012 | 18 |
| 2013 | 18 |
| 2014 | 10 |
| 2015 | 12 |
| 2016 | 13 |
| 2017 | 12 |
| 2018 | 18 |
| 2019 | 17 |
| 2020 | 9 |
| 2021 | 13 |
| 2022 | 91 |
| 2023 | 425 |
| 2024 | 188 |
| 2025 | 38 |
Sources (1)
Home Office, entry clearance visa datasets, year ending June 2026
Country context
These describe country populations, not people who moved to the UK. They do not explain migration.
Population people
The UK figure is the World Bank's, so both countries come from one source. The ONS estimates the UK population at 69,483,939 on 30 June 2025 (published 1 October 2026).
GDP per person constant 2021 international dollars
GDP at purchasing power parity, not earnings or household income.
Sources (3)
- 1 World Bank, World Development Indicators, series SP.POP.TOTL
- The record for Sierra Leone. Latest observation in the file, 2025. Rounded for display.
- Unit as published, people.
- 2 World Bank, World Development Indicators, series SP.DYN.LE00.IN
- The record for Sierra Leone. Latest observation in the file, 2024. Rounded for display.
- Unit as published, years.
- 3 World Bank, World Development Indicators, series NY.GDP.PCAP.PP.KD
- The record for Sierra Leone. Latest observation in the file, 2025. Rounded for display.
- Unit as published, constant 2021 international dollars.
More contextLiteracy, unemployment and urban population
Adult literacy people aged 15 and over, %
UK
Not published
Unemployment share of the labour force, %
Sources (3)
- 1 World Bank, World Development Indicators, series SE.ADT.LITR.ZS
- Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above).
- The record for Sierra Leone. Latest observation in the file, 2019. Rounded for display.
- Unit as published, % of people ages 15 and above.
- 2 World Bank, World Development Indicators, series SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS
- Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (modeled ILO estimate).
- The record for Sierra Leone. Latest observation in the file, 2025. Rounded for display.
- Unit as published, % of total labour force.
- 3 World Bank, World Development Indicators, series SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS
- Urban population (% of total population).
- The record for Sierra Leone. Latest observation in the file, 2025. Rounded for display.
- Unit as published, % of total population.
ReligionsSierra Leone and the UK
These records describe residents in each country. They do not show the religions of people who moved to the UK.
Not directly comparable. Different sources, years, units and categories.
Sierra Leone
2019 estimate · CIA World Factbook [1]
- Muslim77.1%
- Christian22.9%
UK
2011 census · UNdata [2]
- Buddhist261,584 people
- Christian37,583,962 people
- Hindu835,418 people
- Jewish269,568 people
- Muslim2,786,635 people
- Sikh432,429 people
- Other262,750 people
- No Religion16,221,509 people
- Not Specified4,528,323 people
Sources (2)
- 1 CIA World Factbook, People and Society, Religions (archived JSON)
- The Factbook text reads Muslim 77.1%, Christian 22.9% (2019 est.)
- Archive snapshot, 2026 archive. Shares as the Factbook gives them.
- 2 UNdata, Demographic Statistics Database, population by religion (table 28)
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Census - de jure - complete tabulation, Final figure, complete. Counts of people, total area, both sexes.
- Census year 2011. UNdata lists it as received in 2014.
Questions people ask
How many UK visas were granted to nationals of Sierra Leone in 2025?
In 2025, the Home Office granted 38 work, 122 study, 185 family, 0 safe route and 52 other visas to nationals of Sierra Leone, counting main applicants and family members. Source: Home Office, entry clearance visa datasets, year ending June 2026.
How many nationals of Sierra Leone claimed asylum in the UK in 2025?
In 2025, 381 nationals of Sierra Leone claimed asylum in the UK, counting main applicants and family members by date of claim. Source: Home Office, asylum claims dataset (Asy_D01).
How many nationals of Sierra Leone arrived in the UK by small boat in 2025?
In 2025, 204 nationals of Sierra Leone were detected arriving in the UK by small boat across the English Channel. Figures from January 2025 can still be revised. Source: Home Office, illegal entry routes dataset.
How many nationals of Sierra Leone were resettled in the UK in 2025?
In 2025, 0 nationals of Sierra Leone were resettled or relocated to the UK through UK resettlement schemes, by date of arrival. Source: Home Office, resettlement dataset (Res_D02).