Changes announced to Skilled Worker visas

The Government has announced important changes for those companies that sponsor overseas workers on a Skilled Worker visa.

From 4 April 2024, sponsors will need to pay the overseas workers they wish to sponsor on a Skilled Worker visa a minimum of £38,700 per year. This is a huge increase of nearly 50% from the current minimum salary of £26,200 per year. This will have a particular impact on those companies which are seeking to sponsor workers in less skilled jobs where the ‘going rate’ of salary for the role is lower than the minimum salary threshold. For example, the ‘going rate’ for a chef is £17,100 per year and for an IT engineer it is £21,900 per year but, from 4 April 2024, these roles will need to be paid a minimum of £38,700 per year if the candidate requires a Skilled Worker visa.

Although health and social care visas (a sub-set of the Skilled Worker visa) will be excluded from this increased minimum salary, the rules will be changed so that people applying for this visa after 11 March 2024 will not be able to bring their dependent family members to the UK with them. This has already led to concerns about care homes being unable to recruit into this sector after the rules change in March.  The Government has confirmed that those already employed on this route before the rules change will still be able to apply to extend their current dependent family visas or apply for dependent family members to join them in the UK. In addition, from 11 March 2024, care providers in England will only be able to sponsor workers if they are regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

In the light of these upcoming changes, sponsors should consider their need to recruit overseas candidates in the near future, particularly those whose proposed salary would be considerably less than £38,700 per year. Sponsors should consider issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship to these candidates as soon as possible so they can make their own individual Skilled Worker visa application before the changes take effect. The Government has now indicated that those already employed in the Skilled Worker route before 4 April 2024 should be exempt from the new salary levels when they change sponsor, extend their visa or apply for settlement. However, the Government has said that it would expect their pay to progress at the same rate as resident workers and therefore they would be subject to the updated 25th percentile of earnings for jobs which are eligible for Skilled Worker visas using the latest pay data when they next make an application.

The Government has also announced that, in early April, it will rename the Shortage Occupation List (which will be known as the Immigration Salary List), thereby ending the 20% discount in salary for shortage occupations and revising what occupations will remain on the list.  It is also going to undertake a review of the graduate visa scheme but does not expect any changes to be made to this scheme before late 2024.

Alongside these changes, the Government has also announced a proposed increase in the minimum income requirement for family visas.  It was originally announced that this increase would be in line with the new minimum salary for skilled workers, i.e. an increase in the minimum financial requirement from £18,600 to £38,700. However, the Government has rowed back from this change, confirming that the financial requirement for family visas will only initially be increased to £29,000 from 11 April 2024, with further incremental increases resulting in the final increase to £38,700 in early 2025. Those who already have a family visa or who apply before the minimum income threshold is raised on 11 April 2024 will continue to have their applications assessed against the current income threshold of £18,600.

Full details of the transitional arrangements in relation to the above changes are still awaited.

As always, if you are a sponsor or thinking about becoming a sponsor of overseas nationals, please get in touch with me or any member of the Paris Smith Immigration team for further advice.