The UK government has announced a major shift in its immigration policy, declaring an end to the recruitment of care workers from abroad as part of efforts to curb net migration.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper revealed on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that new rules would be introduced this year, requiring care providers to either hire British nationals or extend the visas of foreign workers already residing in the UK.
“It’s time to end that care worker recruitment from abroad,” Cooper said, emphasizing that the move is aimed at reducing the influx of lower-skilled migrants.
The policy forms part of a broader government plan to reduce net migration, with officials expecting the changes to result in up to 50,000 fewer lower-skilled and care worker visas being issued over the next 12 months.
While full details will be unveiled in an upcoming immigration White Paper, Cooper hinted at several expected reforms, including:
- Raising the threshold for skilled worker visas from A-level to graduate level.
- Narrowing the list of occupations eligible for temporary shortage visas.
- Tightening access to the Immigration Salary List (ISL), which currently allows employers to pay foreign workers 80% of the market rate for roles deemed to be in shortage—such as carpenters, graphic designers, and pharmaceutical technicians.
Despite the new measures, Cooper said the government would not set specific targets for reducing net migration, arguing that past numerical goals had undermined the credibility of immigration policy.
The announcement follows years of political pressure and public debate over immigration, particularly after net migration hit a record high of 906,000 in June 2023 and remained elevated at 728,000 last year.
Critics, however, argue the new policies don’t go far enough. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp described the measures as “too little,” calling instead for the introduction of an annual cap on migration.
The government is expected to officially present its full set of immigration reforms early next week.
