The ONS says around 246,000 net long-term international migrants were in the country in the year ending March 2017, down 81,000 on the previous 12 months.
The reduction was through both a drop in immigration - down 50,000 to 588,000 - and a rise in emigration - up 31,000 to 342,000 - both of which were described as "statistically significant changes".
More than half of the total change is down to EU citizens, with the numbers emigrating rising to 33,000, alongside a decrease of 19,000 in immigration. EU8 emigration was particularly high, up 17,000, ONS found.
Of the 275,000 who immigrated to the UK to work, the majority had a definite job (188,000) but fewer came to the UK looking for work (down 39,000 to 87,000).
Nicola White, head of international migration statistics, said:“We have seen a fall in net migration driven by an increase in emigration, mainly for EU citizens and in particular EU8 citizens, and a decrease in immigration across all groups.
“International migration for work remains the most common reason for migration with people becoming increasingly likely to move to the UK or overseas only with a definite job than to move looking for work.
“These results are similar to 2016 estimates published in May 2017, and indicate that the EU referendum result may be influencing people’s decision to migrate into and out of the UK, particularly EU and EU8 citizens. It is too early to tell if this is an indication of a long-term trend.”
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