UK to end overseas recruitment of care workers in visa crackdown

The UK government has announced a significant change in immigration policy. They will stop recruiting care workers from abroad to reduce net migration.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper shared this news on BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. New rules will require care providers to hire British nationals or extend visas for foreign workers already in the UK.

“It’s time to end that care worker recruitment from abroad,” Cooper stated. She emphasized that this move aims to lower the number of lower-skilled migrants.

This policy is part of a larger plan to cut net migration. Officials expect these changes to lead to 50,000 fewer lower-skilled and care worker visas issued in the next year.

Full details will be revealed in an upcoming immigration White Paper. However, Cooper hinted at several expected reforms:

1. Raising the threshold for skilled worker visas from A-level to graduate level.
2. Narrowing the list of occupations eligible for temporary shortage visas.
3. Tightening access to the Immigration Salary List (ISL). This currently allows employers to pay foreign workers 80% of market rates for shortage roles like carpenters and graphic designers.

Despite these measures, Cooper stated there would be no specific targets for reducing net migration. She argued that past numerical goals harmed the credibility of immigration policy.

This announcement comes after years of political pressure and public debate over immigration issues. Net migration reached a record high of 906,000 in June 2023 and remained elevated at 728,000 last year.

Critics argue that these new policies do not go far enough. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp called them “too little” and suggested an annual cap on migration instead.

The government plans to officially present its full set of immigration reforms early next week.