As the UK Government releases its Immigration White Paper today, outlining new proposals to reduce net migration, experts have raised concerns over the proposed system’s implications for business, recruitment and critical services such as healthcare.
The plans include significant restrictions on overseas recruitment, particularly targeting lower-skilled roles and care workers. The announcement follows earlier changes that saw the number of work and study visas fall by 40 percent since the Government came to power.
Care homes banned from overseas recruitment
Under the reforms, access to work visas will become more limited. Criteria for family visas will be tightened, and routes perceived as “backdoors to settlement” are to be closed while enforcement is set to increase. According to Government estimates, these measures will result in a reduction of approximately 50,000 lower-skilled workers entering the country this year.
Other measures include requiring migrants to speak a higher standard of English as well as bringing the wait before they can apply for indefinite leave to remain up to 10 years.
Care worker visa route will be closed. The sector has long relied heavily on overseas labour to fill staffing gaps. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper stated that high migration levels, combined with a lack of domestic training, were “distorting” the labour market and damaging the economy.
She added that the Government would support businesses to invest in British workers through sector-specific workforce strategies.
Applications for the UK’s health and care worker visa have already dropped. Between April 2023 and March 2024, there were 129,000 applicants. That figure fell to 26,000 for the following 12 months, coinciding with a policy change that prevented care workers from bringing dependants.
HR and immigration experts urge review of white paper
The proposed changes have raised concern among employers and HR professionals. Neil Carberry, Chief Executive of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), warned that the reforms risk targeting the wrong part of the labour market.
“This major intervention in the labour market will leave many employers fearful that in tackling concerns about immigration, government goes after the wrong target,” he said. “Being open to skilled workers supporting businesses investing here is essential. And we should remember that the private sector has not been the source of the recent growth in numbers.”
Carberry called for the new Labour Market Evidence Group (LMEG) to maintain a flexible and responsive approach to immigration, with regular input from business leaders.
“Employers are clear: boosting training in the UK is essential, but so is a controlled, affordable and responsive immigration system that keeps investment flowing to the UK,” he added.
Sophie Barrett-Brown, Senior Partner at Laura Devine Immigration, also raised concerns about the implications of the Immigration White Paper. She noted that new requirements – such as employer-led training programmes, rising salary thresholds and a narrower range of sponsorship-eligible roles – could increase the cost and complexity of hiring for UK businesses.
“If these measures are implemented, they could disproportionately impact certain sectors, regional businesses and SMEs. It may also have the unintended consequence of reducing the attractiveness of the UK as a place to conduct business,” she told HR review.
“The Government should be careful to hold effective engagement with businesses and other stakeholders to ensure that there is an adequate impact assessment, to balance the objectives of reducing net migration and supporting the economy.”