During the 18-year period from 2002-2020, over 100,000 overseas nationals applied for new National Insurance Numbers (NINO) in Grampian. Annual registration rates varied between a low of 1,496 in 2002 and a high of 8,926 in 2007. As shown in the chart below, figures dropped dramatically in 2016-17, began to rise again in 2018-19, then dropped steeply in 2020. All three council areas in Grampian followed the same trend, with Aberdeen City consistently receiving the largest number of applications, ranging from 1,129 in 2002 to 6,364 in 2014. These figures follow a similar pattern to that seen across the UK, and correlate strongly with international trends, including the entry of 10 countries to the EU in May 2004, the economic downturn of 2008, free movement for Bulgarian and Romanian citizens in January 2014, the Brexit vote of June 2016, and the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.