The prime minister will set out plans to tighten immigration laws in a speech later amid accusations that his bid to reduce net migration lies in tatters.
Net migration to the UK is estimated to be 260,000 in the year to June - 78,000 higher than the previous year.
Mr Cameron will reply to criticism that his stated aim to reduce net migration below 100,000 has 'totally failed'.
And he is expected to say he will back leaving the EU if he cannot secure curbs on migrants' access to benefits.
He will say EU migrants should have to wait at least four years before receiving benefits such as welfare payments or council houses, and he will insist that welfare reform in this regard is an 'absolute requirement'.
On BBC One's Question Time on Thursday following the publication of the immigration figures, Conservative chief whip Michael Gove said it was 'pretty clear after today' that the government had failed to meet its immigration target.
BBC political editor Nick Robinson said the prime minister's plans to curb migrants' access to benefits were similar to proposals offered by Labour and the Liberal Democrats, but the Conservative leader would 'go further' than rival parties and argue access should be suspended for a longer period.
He also said Mr Cameron 'needs to appeal [in his speech] to the sort of people who like UKIP' without himself 'sounding like UKIP'.
Analysis BBC political correspondent Robin Brant
The speech certainly looks tough. A four-year wait for in-work benefits goes further than what Labour and the Liberal Democrats have touched on.
The list of other reforms also sends out a clear message about trying to make the UK far less attractive to some EU workers.
But what is missing is intriguing. The kite-flying of the past few months has seen the suggestion raised of a cap, or emergency brake, on people coming to the UK. But this measure does not appear in the speech, which is evidence that the prime minister knows what he is proposing has to be deliverable.
It won't be a speech that criticises immigration, it will highlight how important the prime minister thinks it's been to the country. But he will acknowledge he needs to get a grip. 'I get that,' he'll say.
The Conservatives' 2010 election manifesto said 'we will take steps to take net migration back to the levels of the 1990s - tens of thousands a year, not hundreds of thousands'.
But the Lib Dems opposed that idea and the coalition agreement pledged only an 'annual limit' on people coming to the UK from outside the European Union for economic reasons, without a specific number.
As the Office for National Statistics published the latest figures on Thursday, Mr Cameron was criticised by other political leaders for making the pledge in the first place.
Lib Dem deputy PM Nick Clegg said it had made no sense to put a specific number on it - as the government did not have complete control over a net target - and said 'over-promising and under-delivering' did damage to public confidence in the immigration system.
UKIP leader Nigel Farage said Mr Cameron had made a 'dishonest promise' as it was not possible to reduce net migration by such an extent while the UK was a member of the European Union.
'Deeply awkward'
And Labour's shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said the target had been 'ripped to shreds' adding that net migration was now '16,000 higher than when they took office, and almost three times their target level'.
The latest 260,000 figure for estimated net migration - calculated by taking away the number of people leaving the country from the number coming in - is 16,000 higher than it was when the coalition government was formed in 2010.
BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith said the figures were 'deeply, deeply significant' and 'deeply awkward for David Cameron'.
Mr Cameron's speech has long been trailed as one likely to set out what changes he wants to see to the rules on migration within the EU as part of his planned renegotiation of the UK's relationship with the rest of the European Union.
He has said that if the Conservatives win the next election the renegotiation would take place, followed by a referendum on whether or not the UK should stay in the EU.
At the moment EU citizens are free to come to the UK and compete for jobs without being subject to any immigration controls. Those from outside the EU face much tighter controls if they wish to enter the country.
Some 228,000 EU citizens came to the UK in the year to June 2014, the Office for National Statistics said, while the number of people immigrating from outside the EU rose to 272,000.
Migration Watch UK said the figures were 'disappointing' but that a target should remain in place.
Labour says they would reduce the number of low-skilled migrants coming to the country by enforcing the minimum wage, tackling rogue landlords and limiting access to social security.
Net migration peaked at 320,000 in 2005. It fell to a low of 154,000 in the year ending September 2012.
Posted by Unknown on Thursday, November 27, 2014 - Rating: 4.5
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