UK Government Publishes Annual Allocation of Youth Mobility Visa Places By Country

• The UK government has released a fresh update on its Youth Mobility Scheme for young people from participating countries
• The latest figures show major differences in the number of places available under the scheme
• The development also highlights an important detail about which countries currently have access to the popular UK route

The UK government has published its annual allocation of Youth Mobility Scheme places, setting out the number of visa spots available to young nationals from 13 participating countries and territories.

The latest immigration update shows significant differences in the number of places allocated to each participating country.

Australia has received the largest allocation, with 38,500 places, while Andorra has the smallest quota at 100 places.

UK Youth Mobility Scheme visa allocations

The annual quota for participating countries and territories is as follows:

• Australia: 38,500 places
• Canada: 10,000 places
• New Zealand: 8,000 places
• Japan: 6,000 places
• Republic of Korea: 5,000 places
• India: 3,000 places
• Hong Kong: 1,000 places
• Iceland: 1,000 places
• Monaco: 1,000 places
• San Marino: 1,000 places
• Taiwan: 1,000 places
• Uruguay: 500 places
• Andorra: 100 places

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UK announces number of Youth Mobility Visa places available to 13 countries

Australia therefore accounts for the largest share of the annual allocation, followed by Canada and New Zealand.

India's 3,000 places are provided under a specific bilateral arrangement between the UK and India, while several European microstates and Asian territories have annual allocations of 1,000 places each.

What is the UK Youth Mobility Scheme?

The Youth Mobility Scheme allows eligible young people from participating countries and territories to live, work and travel in the UK for up to two years.

Certain nationalities can extend their stay for a further year, allowing them to remain in the UK for up to three years under the scheme.

The route operates as a reciprocal cultural exchange programme, with participating governments providing similar opportunities for young British citizens to live and work in their countries.

No African country currently participates

The Youth Mobility Scheme is based on agreements negotiated between the UK and participating governments.

As a result, no African country is currently included among the scheme's participating countries and territories.

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This means young Ghanaians cannot currently apply for the UK Youth Mobility Scheme based on Ghanaian nationality.

The annual allocation demonstrates how the available places are distributed among the UK's existing Youth Mobility Scheme partners.

UK names Youth Mobility Visa eligible countries

In a related development, YEN.com.gh reported that the UK government had published the eligibility criteria for its Youth Mobility Scheme visa, naming the four countries whose citizens could apply.

Citizens aged 18 to 35 from the qualifying countries could live, work and study in the UK for up to two years without a prior job offer.

African countries, including Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and South Africa, were not included on the eligibility list.

Source: YEN.com.gh