Migrant workers in the UK are transferring tens of billions of pounds to relatives and contacts overseas each year, according to new analysis. Research by money transfer platform TopMoneyCompare found that £33.1 billion was sent abroad in 2025 alone. The study identified Pakistan and India as the two largest recipients of funds from the UK.
Russell Gous, Editor-in-Chief at TopMoneyCompare, said the scale of remittances reflects the size of the UK’s overseas-born population. He noted that as this community has grown, so too has the volume of money flowing out of the country. However, he stressed that transfers are not limited to developing nations. Significant sums are also sent to wealthier economies, often linked to property ownership, cross-border family arrangements, and individuals managing financial commitments in more than one country.
The report’s authors said many payments are connected to investments and asset management rather than routine household support. Still, Gous acknowledged that in lower-income countries, remittances can play a vital role, contributing to spending on essentials such as housing, education and healthcare, and supporting local economies.
Despite a recent decline in net migration, Gous expects remittance levels to remain strong due to the UK’s large and established migrant population. The Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford cautioned that remittances are difficult to measure accurately, with official statistics capturing only part of the total. In 2023, such transfers were estimated at 0.34% of UK GDP, ranking the country 107th out of 148 nations assessed.
