Bulgarian and Romanian workers will not “overwhelm” Britain, leading politicians from the two countries have said.
Bulgarian foreign minister Nikolay Mladenov said many of his compatriots would much rather travel to Germany, Spain and Italy, as his country has stronger business links with those countries.
He said there was a danger that fears about thousands of immigrants descending on the UK could possibly “dampen” relations with Bulgaria.
Romanian ambassador to the UK Dr Ion Jinga said many immigrants had already bypassed the restrictions by declaring themselves self-employed and finding jobs in sectors such as construction.
There are fears that when the ban preventing immigrants from the two countries working in the UK comes to an end at the beginning of next year, thousands will arrive and look for jobs.
Bulgaria and Romania joined the European Union in 2007 but under “transitional arrangements” workers from the two countries were prevented from travelling to the UK.
Mr Mladenov said: “I do not expect the UK to be overwhelmed by a wave of our nationals coming over seeking employment for a number of reasons.
“When we look at the experience of other countries over the last seven years, this has not happened and there is no reason to believe that this would happen in the UK in the January of next year.”