Immigration policy timeline announced
The UK government has announced its timeline for implementation of changes to the UK's immigration policy and how these changes will impact employment and visas for new and potential overseas workers.
The full update from the government on its immigration changes is available on the GOV.UK website.
The timeline is as follows:
- From 6 February, the Immigration Health Surcharge will be raised to £1,035.
- From 11 March 2024, overseas care workers and senior care workers coming to the UK will no longer be allowed to bring dependants.
- From 4 April 2024, Immigration Rules will increase the earnings thresholds for those arriving on the Skilled Worker route, with the minimum threshold rising by 48 per cent from £26,200 to £38,700. This will impact trusts that employ overseas staff in non-clinical roles, such as IT or finance. Those coming to the UK via the Health and Care Visa route and those on national pay skills will be exempt from this specific threshold.
- From 11 April 2024, the first incremental increase to the threshold for Family Visas will raise to £29,000 (the 25th percentile of earnings for jobs which are eligible for Skilled Worker Visas). The next incremental increase later in 2024 will be to £34,500 (the 40th percentile), and finally to £38,700 (the 50th percentile and the level at which the General Skilled Worker threshold is set) by early 2025.
The new immigration rules will include the removal of the 20 per cent going rate discount for occupations on the Shortage Occupation List, which will be abolished in favour of a new Immigration Salary List from early April. This follows a recommendation from the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), which will now advise government on which occupations should be temporarily added to the new list.
For more information on these changes, please see our updated guidance.
