Employment immigration: news in brief | Winter 2024

Measures to reduce net migration

The Government recently announced its plans to introduce a number of measures with the aim of cutting net migration. We are yet to see the Statement of Changes, and so various issues remain unclear, but we do know some detail from the Factsheet published by the Home Office.

Skilled workers

The minimum salary threshold for Skilled Workers will increase from £26,200 per year to £38,700 per year from 4 April 2024. In addition, the going rates for each eligible occupation will be increased from being set at the 25th percentile of the salary band for the occupation, to the 50th percentile. This will bring the going rate in line with the median full-time wage for equivalent jobs.

Care workers

The prohibition on carers bringing their dependants to the UK, which will come into effect from 11 March 2024, will apply to both carers (SOC code 6145) and senior carers (SOC code 6146). This is intended to prevent sponsors from misrepresenting the skill level of sponsored carer roles to allow their workers to be accompanied by dependants. Care workers already in the route will be able to remain with their dependants, including extending, changing employer (within these SOC codes) and settlement.

Family visas

The government has gone back on its previous announcement to increase the minimum income threshold to £38,700 for spouse, partner and family visas in spring 2024. Instead, the threshold will increase in stages, to £29,000 from 11 April 2024, then to £34,500 and finally to £38,700 by early 2025. Individuals who enter the five-year partner route (including as a fiancé(e)) before the spring changes will have their extension and settlement applications considered under the threshold they initially applied under.

Shortage Occupation List

The 20% going rate discount for occupations on the Shortage Occupation List, will be abolished in favour of a new Immigration Salary List which we will be introduced from early April. The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) will now advise government on which occupations should be temporarily added to the new list initially, in time for March.

Immigration Health Surcharge increases in force from 6 February 2024

The Immigration (Health Charge) (Amendment) Order 2023 came into force on 6 February 2024, increasing the immigration health surcharge (IHS) for most applications from £624 to £1,035 per person per year. Children (under the age of 18 at the time of application), students, dependents of students and Youth Mobility Scheme applicants have had the IHS for their applications increase from £470 to £776 per person per year.

Home Office removes sponsor licence renewal from 6 April 2024

From 6 April 2024, the Home Office is removing the requirement for sponsors to renew their sponsor licences. All licences due to expire after 6 April 2024 are being automatically extended by 10 years. Those who have a licence expiring before 6 April 2024 will still need to apply and pay for renewal and will not receive a refund of the fee.

Rights to work civil penalties Code of Practice updated

The Home Office has issued a revised Codes of Practice covering the civil penalty schemes for right to work, which will come into force for right to work checks (including follow up checks) taken on or after 13 February 2024.

The new rules include the previously announced increase to civil penalty fines for employers who employ foreign nationals who do not have the right to work or rent in the UK. The civil penalties will increase as follows:

• from a maximum of £15,000 per illegal worker to £45,000 per illegal worker for a first breach; and
• from a maximum of £20,000 per illegal worker to £60,000 per illegal worker for repeat breaches.

New EUSS guidance makes some concessions on reasonable grounds for late applications

In a new version of the main EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) caseworker guidance dated 16 January 2024 (EU Settlement Scheme: EU, other EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members, version 22), the Home Office has added two new sets of circumstances which might provide reasonable grounds for a late application to the Scheme.

The new circumstances are where a person has provided information and evidence that they had either a reasonable belief that they did not need to apply earlier to the EUSS, or a reasonable basis for being unaware that they needed to apply, and in either case they have now applied without further delay. The guidance gives a range of factors which can be taken into account (if based on credible information and supporting evidence), and the wording suggests that an application is more likely to be successful if more than one factor is present.