Care workers and their dependants will be allowed to apply for indefinite leave to remain after five years, benefiting an estimated 280,000 people.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has softened her plans to make low-paid workers wait 15 years before they can settle permanently in the UK, following opposition from fellow cabinet ministers, Labour MPs and health sector unions.
Under revised proposals, an estimated 280,000 care workers and their dependants will be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) after five years.
However, most of the tougher immigration measures developed by Mahmood’s department last year remain in place. People who entered the UK through irregular routes, including by small boats, could still face a wait of up to 30 years before qualifying for settlement.
On Monday, Mahmood said settled status was one of the most valuable rights the UK could offer and should no longer be granted almost automatically.
“From today it must be earned. Those who contribute will settle fastest. Those who don’t play by the rules will be refused or wait much longer,” she said.
She added that the policy was intended to create a fair migration system for people who contribute to the country and British citizens who should not be expected to carry a greater burden.
Five-Year Settlement Route for Care Workers
Under the revised proposals, care workers earning more than £25,000 a year will be able to apply for ILR after five years. This is a significant reduction from the 15-year pathway proposed last year.
A Home Office document estimates that the five-year route will apply to 146,000 care workers and 136,000 dependants.
A further estimated 100,000 care workers and their dependants will be given the opportunity to apply for a new five-year visa. The Home Office said this provision followed concerns about exploitative practices in the care sector.
The previous proposals would have required workers in occupations below graduate level, classified as below RQF Level 6, to wait 15 years before becoming eligible for permanent settlement, subject to possible exemptions and reductions.
Revised Rules for Other Workers
In its response to a public consultation, published on Monday, the Home Office said workers in occupations below RQF Level 6 would no longer face the proposed 15-year route.
Instead, they would qualify through a 10-year pathway if they met strengthened minimum requirements. They could become eligible sooner if they demonstrated the level of contribution required for an accelerated route.
Officials estimate that around 100,000 skilled workers, including butchers and chefs, may have to wait 10 years before applying for settlement.
The proposals also set out shorter routes for higher earners and some public service workers:
- Three years: People earning more than £125,000 a year.
- Five years: People earning more than £50,271, as well as certain public service workers, including doctors, nurses and teachers.
- Ten years: Some skilled workers in occupations below graduate level who meet the strengthened requirements.
Tougher Settlement Conditions for Refugees
The revised plans also introduce particularly strict settlement requirements for refugees.
Those who enter the UK through irregular routes, including by small boats, and rely on public funds could face a minimum 30-year wait before qualifying for permanent settlement.
An exception will apply to a small number of refugees arriving through designated safe and legal routes, including the reopened scheme for Afghan women and girls and arrangements for Palestinians.
Other refugees who have accessed public funds will not be eligible for settlement under the proposals.
People who enter the UK legally before claiming asylum could face a wait of up to 20 years. This period could be reduced to 10 years if they move into sustained employment or study and demonstrate that they earn enough to make a consistent contribution.
Those who enter the UK illegally will face an additional 10-year penalty before gaining settlement rights. The proposed waiting period would be 20 years for those in work or study and at least 30 years for those who are not working or studying.
Most refugees will also be expected to meet language requirements and have no outstanding debts.
Pressure from Labour Figures and Unions
Mahmood’s decision to revise the proposals follows opposition from trade unions, care providers and senior Labour figures, including Housing Secretary Angela Rayner and London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
In June, Rayner described requiring care workers already living in the UK to wait up to 15 years for permanent residence as “un-British”.
In September, Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh said the proposals would have been difficult for her family, who came to Britain as refugees.
Under the original consultation proposals, the standard qualifying period for settlement was due to increase from five to 10 years. Some workers in occupations below graduate level, including care workers, would have faced a 15-year qualifying period, subject to proposed exemptions and reductions.
The earlier plans would have affected around 117,000 low-paid care workers and 79,000 dependants, who could have been required to wait up to 15 years to obtain ILR.
‘Boriswave’ Migrants and the Financial Contribution Debate
Pressure to tighten settlement rules has increased as migrants who arrived during the so-called “Boriswave” of legal migration under former Prime Minister Boris Johnson approach the current five-year threshold for applying for ILR.
Home Office officials estimate that around 500,000 migrants will have to wait longer than the current five years under the revised proposals. However, approximately 1.4 million of the 1.9 million people who arrived during the Boriswave period will remain eligible to apply for settlement after five years.
An analysis published on Monday by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) found that skilled migrants and their adult dependants expected to settle in the UK under the current rules could make a net lifetime contribution of around £115bn to public finances through the taxes they pay.
Mahmood met trade union general secretaries on Monday to discuss the final details of the proposals. Some unions had previously raised concerns about the planned changes.
The Guardian first reported in July that Prime Minister Andy Burnham was considering exempting hundreds of thousands of care workers from the new rules to ease pressure on the social care sector.
The Home Office has granted around 200,000 health and care worker visas over the past five years, with many additional people arriving as dependants.
Government Says Settlement Must Be Earned
When Mahmood launched the earned settlement consultation last year, she described Britain as a “multi-faith, multi-ethnic democracy” that required contribution and integration.
She said becoming a permanent part of the country was not a right but a privilege that had to be earned.
The revised proposals represent a concession to care workers and those who opposed the original 15-year plan. However, the wider settlement reforms remain significantly tougher for many migrants and refugees.
Source: The Guardian
