The United Kingdom has been renowned for being a sanctuary offering promising prospects for migrants who seek opportunities. However, on the 4th of December, 2023, the UK Home Secretary outlined a 5-point plan. The plan aims to overcome the high immigration rate in the UK. The main stakeholders of this legislation are international students, social care workers and their dependants as they are the main contributors to the rise in net migration within the UK. The five changes and their impacts will be outlined and explained as follows:
Health and Care Visa
Firstly, care homes will now be regulated by the Care Quality Commission. This is due to the increasing abuse of sponsorship within the Health and Care sector. Therefore, the extra layer of review is intended to ensure that only legitimate care home businesses are sponsoring care workers.
Secondly, people arriving in the UK on the Health and Social Care Visa can no longer bring family dependants. The Home Secretary quoted that only 25% of dependants of individuals are active contributors to the economy, implying that the remaining 75% are placing a disproportionate burden on the State.
The inability to bring a dependant may make work in the UK less attractive. This can place further pressure on the already existing worker shortage in this sector which is heavily dependent on migrant workers.
Skilled Worker Visa
There will be an increase in the salary requirement from £26,000 to £38,700. This is done to reflect the median full-term wage in the United Kingdom. However, it is important to note that Health and Social Care workers are exempt from this provision.
This change can place a considerable financial burden on employers.
Replacement of the Shortage Occupation List (SOL) with the Immigration Salary List
The SOL was a list published by the Home Office which shows sectors experiencing a shortage. Such shortage would then be filled in by migrants seeking employment within the UK.
Its intended replacement, the Immigration Salary List intends to reduce the number of people seeking asylum and work. It does so by reducing the number of jobs where it would be possible to sponsor someone for a Skilled Worker visa on less than the usual minimum salary.
This change will result in fewer employers and applicants who will benefit from the cost savings associated with SOL skilled worker visa applications. This will hit some sectors higher than others, especially those where the ‘going rate’ for roles is higher than the discounted rate.
Family Visa
There is an increase in the salary requirement for those applying for a Family visa from £18,600 to £38,700, which is the same as the minimum salary threshold for the Skilled Worker Visa.
It should be noted that this is intended to be an incremental increase. The minimum threshold will first increase to £29,000 on 11 April 2024, then to £34,500 and then, finally to £38,700 by early 2025.
The government argues that this is a necessary increase considering that the minimum requirements have not changed since 2012 and are, therefore, not reflective of inflation nor, the cost of living. The alignment with the minimum salary threshold is done to ensure that only individuals who can financially support their families can apply for the visa.
Review of the Graduate Visa
The government aims to implement greater scrutiny on the Graduate visa by asking the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review said applications.
This is done to reduce the abuse of such visas. However, this will reduce the time employers have to promote and progress their workers to an income level which enables them to qualify for a skilled worker visa. As mentioned above, this can increase the financial burdens upon employers, possibly making the prospect of hiring internationals harder.
The above changes are expected to take effect in Spring 2024 although, the Home Office has clarified that they will not take retrospective effect. Due to the increased barriers to entry, the UK workforce is expected to decrease, increasing adverse pressures on the British economy, which is already facing its share of obstacles. With such restrictive measures, the UK will need to ensure it maintains a competitive advantage to continue pulling in valuable and productive individuals as it is still recovering from the detriments of Brexit and Covid-19.
Bibliography:
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9920/
https://www.armstrongteasdale.com/thought-leadership/further-clarification-on-the-u-k-governments-five-point-immigration-plan/
