Please fact check me on this (because I cannot fucking find anything and I would love to have the infographic that I seem to have lost) but I remember hearing somewhere that on average immigrants from western europe contribute roughly 10% more tax money than they use, but immigration from everywhere else in general costs 20% more than what those people will pay into the system. I have looked everywhere and I swear I'm not making this up, even ddg results are fucking worthless propagandised slop.
I doubt these numbers are correct because, on average, people contribute less than they use across their lifetime (for immigrants it might make them a net contributor if they leave once they are old and thus don't use the NHS; although it also means they don't spend their pension in the local economy... it is a complex topic). *
My guess would be that legal immigration
for work from outside the EU contributes more since, before Brexit, they had stricter rules (also had to pay to use the NHS and other things)*. They also cannot use the welfare system iirc. Also tuition and fees for uni - non-EU spent a lot more than their EU counterparts before Brexit (tho EU grants...).
Those with legal status of refugee are the ones using the most of welfare, as they are more likely to be low education, low skills, low English proficiency. They are also entitled to welfare from day 0 iirc.
EU is different. Even with Brexit, there are a lot of EUs who came from before Brexit who can stay as long as they wish to since when they came over there were no restrictions about minimum salary. *Now same rules for EU and non-EU.
*
I think this is more the "median" taxpayer, rather than the average one. So pretty much everyone contributes less than gives. But again, you spend money in the economy, and you spend a higher % than a rich person who, whilst contributes more for tax, cannot spend that much more into the economy.
TLDR: it's complicated. You can twist the numbers each way you want.
The issue with unemployment and the economy is also not really
new immigration. It is a problem, but you cannot ignore the British people who are second gen. Look at Bradford, where there is so much incest that they made it the ground 0 for a study on its effects. (
NHS Study "Born in Bradford",
Example).