Radical immigration reforms were announced this week.
The Conservatives introduced significant restrictions on immigration in April 2024, including the raising of the minimum salary level required for the sponsorship of foreign workers. The Labour Government is continuing this trend but has set out an even more ambitious and overarching plan. The Government issued an immigration White Paper on 12 May 2025, outlining a significant shift from a demand-led to a more controlled and selective immigration system.
The aim is to reduce net migration, currently exceeding 700,000, and to align immigration more closely with economic and societal needs. The Government considers that the migration system as it is, is a failed system, and that Britain needs to focus long-term on training people in the UK with the necessary skills to be integrated into the workforce rather than recruiting the relevant skills internationally.
Pam Sidhu comments:
“The changes in the White Paper unveiled this week represent a very significant and ambitious step towards further tightening of the UK’s immigration system. The Government is determined to reduce UK businesses’ reliance on foreign labour by upskilling and training the domestic workforce. Whether this strategy will work, given the urgent need to grow the economy and the shortage of roles in many sectors in the UK, is yet to be seen. There are currently no implementation dates for the announced changes, and some of the finer details are awaited. What is clear is that visa routes that are currently viable may soon close or become more restrictive. All employers should review their workforce requirements and prepare for the changes.“
Key Proposals
The key proposals in the White Paper that are relevant to businesses are as follows.
Changes to the Skilled Worker Visa
The skill level for Skilled Worker roles will increase from A-level (an academic qualification acquired by 18-year-old students in the UK) to graduate level. This means a wide variety of supervisory and technician roles, as well as roles in care, catering and logistics, are likely to be excluded from sponsorship.
Employers will only be able to recruit undergraduate-level roles on a new, tightly controlled and regularly updated “Temporary Shortage List”. This will allow time-limited (and possibly capped) roles in sectors that are key to industrial strategy or delivering critical infrastructure, and have a workforce strategy. Dependants may be banned or restricted from joining such temporary shortage workers.
Salary levels could increase for sponsored roles. The Migration Advisory Committee will review salaries (including any applicable discounts) to ensure they reflect fair market wages and do not create incentives for employers to recruit internationally as a substitute for investing in pay and training for UK-based staff.
Over time, access to visas will be directly linked to employers demonstrating investment in and focus upon home-grown skills and talent – the exact detail of what this will mean for employers is yet to be seen.
English Language Requirements
Stricter English language proficiency standards will be set for all Skilled Workers as well as adult dependants of visa applicants (the latter being an entirely new requirement which did not exist previously), aiming to enhance integration and community cohesion.
Graduate Visas
These allow graduates to live and work in the UK for two years after their study; this period will be reduced to 18 months.
Global Talent
There will be a focus on increasing UK visas for the “very highly skilled”. This will include a review of the Innovator Founder, Global Talent, and High Potential Individual visa routes in order to maximise their benefit to the UK economy.
Adult Social Care
Since 2022, the Health and Care Worker visa route has been on a shortage occupation list with lower salary requirements and reduced visa fees, enabling easier recruitment of overseas candidates. Under current proposals, the Health and Care Worker visa will be completely closed to new overseas recruits. This is a decisive policy shift away from heavy reliance on international recruitment to fill chronic staffing shortages in social care.
Transitional provisions will apply for those already in the UK until 2028, after which the Government expects the care sector to have shifted away from international recruitment in favour of a domestically sustained workforce.
Settlement Route
Currently, most migrants on work and family routes are eligible to apply for settlement after five years of continuous residence in the UK. This will change in the majority of cases to a period of ten years. The accelerated settlement will be possible in exceptional categories, such as for individuals employed in critical national infrastructure (for example, education, health, and defence).
Clearly, these reforms raise significant legal and strategic considerations for employers and workers alike.
How Wilkes can help
Whether you are an employer who is concerned about your workforce or ability to recruit, or are an individual who thinks the changes proposed in Monday’s White Paper will impact your ability to work in the UK, our team of legal experts has the expertise and experience to diligently guide you through your issues.
If there is anything mentioned above that you think may affect your business, our Business Immigration team is available to support you with these steps.
If you have any enquiries, please contact our Head of Business Immigration, Pam Sidhu by email at [email protected] or on 0121 710 5815.
Or reach out to any member of our Employment & Business Immigration team at 0121 233 4333 for tailored advice.
