Foreign interest in the UK labour market declined in the first three months of 2025. However, interest from US job seekers rose significantly during this period, coinciding with the beginning of Donald Trump’s second presidency.
The US ranks second overall. Experts attribute this rise to Trump’s policies, characterised by a strongly ideological stance, amid growing debate over a potential ‘brain drain’’ from the US to Europe.
About 3.8% of UK job searches on hiring platform Indeed came from abroad in the three months to March 2025. That’s down from 5.7% in September 2024 and well below the 6.3% peak in September 2023. The latest figure also falls short of the 4.2% average since early 2019.
According to Jack Kennedy, Indeed’s senior economist, the decline may reflect a combination of a subdued job market—UK job postings are trending weaker than in peer economies—and the continued impact of tighter immigration policies.
US ranks second among foreign jobseekers looking at UK roles
Between January and March 2025, India accounted for the largest share of foreign interest in UK jobs at 11.3%, followed by the United States at 8.5%.
The year-on-year increase contributed to the US securing this strong second-place position. The US saw the largest growth during this period, with a 2.4 percentage point increase from 6.1% to 8.5%.
Despite the sharpest decline of 5.2 pp, India still held the top spot as the leading source of foreign interest.
Experts: Interest in European jobs linked to Trump policies
Scholars link the brain drain to Trump-era policies. “There does seem to be a link between the administration’s policies and interest in emigration and overseas employment for Americans,” Dr Michael Plouffe from University College London (UCL) told Euronews. He stated that the dramatic cuts in federal research funding will lead researchers to look elsewhere for stable funding.
The rise in American interest in UK and EU employment in the first quarter “is likely the result of a combination of factors stemming from the political and social upheaval unleashed by the second Trump administration” according to Dr. Katie Pruszynski, a US politics researcher at the University of Sheffield.
UK and EU attractive option for Americans
“The shared language and significant cultural overlap with the UK makes it an attractive prospect,” she told Euronews.
Bernd Parusel, senior researcher at the Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies (SIEPS), pointed out that many researchers are at risk of losing their jobs and others fear political interference with their work.
“In parallel, highly educated, experienced public sector employees are being laid off as a result of the Trump administration’s ‘government efficiency’ policy. This could result in a brain drain from the United States,” he said.
Parusel noted that immigration rules in Europe are probably not a major obstacle for US citizens who want to work here. “Many European countries have other advantages for US workers, too.” he added. These included lower cost of living compared to the US and free welfare.
He emphasised that Europe has a strong demand for such researchers and workers, and virtually all countries in the EU are trying to attract talent.
According to a Nature poll of over 1,600 respondents, 75% of US scientists said they were considering leaving the country, with many exploring job opportunities in Europe and Canada.
Overall decline focused on higher-paid occupations
The decline in foreign interest in UK jobs is most remarkable in higher-paid sectors including engineering, tech, and healthcare. These roles are more likely to meet the UK’s new salary threshold for skilled worker visas but interest in them has still dropped.
However, this trend reflects overall foreign interest and does not specifically apply to the US.
Electrical engineering and software development experienced the largest year-on-year declines in the first quarter of 2025, each falling by 3.9 percentage points (pp). Despite this, they continue to draw strong foreign interest, with overseas clicks accounting for 16% and 22%, respectively.
Year-on-year change was also above 2.5 pp in IT operations, chemical engineering, and civil engineering, which still hold a significant share of foreign clicks.
Nursing (–3.6 pp), personal care & home health (–1.4 pp), and physicians & surgeons (–1.4 pp) were among the other professions with the largest year-on-year declines during this period. Yet, each still maintained a strong share of foreign clicks, all above 12%.
“Declining interest in UK high skilled roles reflects the relative weakness of UK labour demand internationally,” Indeed’s Kennedy told Euronews.
He stated that the tightening of eligibility for Health and Social Care visas has likely significantly impacted foreign interest in healthcare sector roles.
