A total of 7,341 migrant work visas have been issued since January 2018, figures released under Freedom of Information show.

Of these, a total of 3,306 were issued to child and adult dependants.

A large majority of the 7,341 new arrivals were Filipino and South Africa nationals - with a total of 1,674 and 1,402 visas issued. Other nationalities most represented were Indian (714) and Chinese (576).

There were 303 Nigerian nationals, 299 Pakistani, 259 Zimbabwean, 238 Ghanaian and 208 Kenyan.

The Freedom of Information request was submitted by seasoned Tynwald Day petitioner Trevor Cowin in response to a presentation given last month by immigration advocate Maria Bridson to the Positive Action Group.

She said the changes made in 2018 to liberalise the island’s immigration policy had ‘stripped away a lot of the safeguards in the system’.

Mrs Bridson said the changes had aimed to bring in skilled workers, fix labour shortages and add younger people to the demographic - and achieved all those things.

However, she said, the unprecedented high levels of immigration had consequences.

The low level of checks meant nobody stopped to question whether all the jobs were genuine - and the change in policy didn’t factor in the impact on education and health services.

Earlier groups of migrants had come on their own, leaving their families overseas and remitting funds to them but increasingly new arrivals brought over their spouses and children too.

In its response to the FoI, Treasury said the changes brought in on April 2018 saw the previous points based system replaced by the ‘Worker Migrant’ route.

It explained: ‘These changes were introduced as employers found it difficult to recruit the skilled workers their business required.

‘The Worker Migrant route enables employers to recruit non-British or Irish citizens to fill a genuine vacancy that cannot be filled by a settled worker.’

In the House of Key this week, new Treasury Minister Chris Thomas was asked how many people who had arrived in the island with or without a valid work visa had subsequently lost their jobs.

Mr Thomas replied that there is no requirement for those issued visas to present themselves to the immigration service upon arrival in the island.

He said there was a range of reasons why employment for worker migrants could change - and not all would lead to enforcement action.

The Minister, replying to a question from Arbory, Castletown and Malew MHK Jason Moorhouse, said that when action is taken, it typically involves the shortening or the curtailment of the visa.

He said 786 visas had been curtailed between 2023 and 2025.

Onchan MHK Julie Edge asked how many of the 786 curtailments were converted into a new job or whether any people were removed from the island.

Mr Thomas replied that he didn’t have those figures. He added: ‘If a worker loses their job, their visa isn't automatically curtailed.

‘If the worker secures a new confirmation of employment for a new role before leaving their current employment, they may remain compliant and no curtailment is required.’