The Statement of Changes in the UK’s Immigration Rules laid on 14 March will have serious consequences for employers from 4 April, as well as for British citizens and settled residents bringing partners to live with them in the UK from 11 April.

Anyone concerned about these changes or how best to navigate the UK immigration routes mentioned can contact us on 0207 033 9527 or [email protected].

4 April deadline

The main changes are summarised below. But first, employers intending to apply for Skilled Worker visas on current salary levels before the changes take effect should note that they must assign a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) before 4 April 2024.

UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) appears overwhelmed with requests taking longer than usual. Plus we are now told that the sponsorship management system will stop working between 7pm on 2 April and 9am on 4 April in order to update the system to new 2020 SOC codes for all occupations. (The Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system used to classify occupations is being updated from the SOC 2010 definitions to the newer SOC 2020 codes.) This, on top of the Easter Bank Holidays, further reduces the timescale to assign a CoS before the deadline. Priority services are heavily oversubscribed too.

Sponsors should also note that if a DCoS allocation is granted before 4 April 2024 but not assigned by this date, the allocation will be cancelled and a new request must be submitted via the sponsorship management system (in accordance with the rules after 4 April). UCoS allocations unused by 4 April will remain valid but if assigned from that date will be subject to the new rules.

April 2024 Skilled Worker visa salary changes

To sponsor someone on a Skilled Worker visa – the main work immigration route since Brexit ended free movement – an employer must pay whichever is the higher amount of the general annual pay threshold or the going rate of pay for that occupation as set by the UK government.

For most new Skilled Worker visas the general threshold will increase from £26,200 to £38,700 on 4 April and there are minimum salary threshold increases too for those with discounts: from £23,800 to £34,830 for Skilled Workers with a relevant PhD and from £20,960 to £30,960 for those with a relevant STEM PhD, New Entrants, or those on the Shortage Occupation / Immigration Salary List.

As well as the general threshold rise, the different going rates for particular occupations increase on 4 April.

Up to now Skilled Workers could be sponsored if paid more than what a quarter of people in similar jobs earn, i.e. a going rate for the occupation that the government based on the 25th percentile of all salaries for that role according to the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE).

From 4 April, the 50th percentile (median) of the 2023 ASHE will be used (rounded up to the nearest hundred) to set the new going rate – i.e. sponsors will have to pay more than what half the people working in such roles in the UK are earning.

The new going rates can be found here or published in Table 1 of UK Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations from 4 April 2024. SOC codes for jobs are changing to the Office of National Statistic’s 2020 set, with different numbering, some changes in categories and some occupations no longer qualifying for Skilled Worker sponsorship.

At the same time, the Shortage Occupation List (SOL) is being scrapped, along with the 20% discount on the going rate for employers facing skills shortages in occupations on the list. A heavily reduced list of jobs on the Immigration Salaries List (ISL) which replaces the SOL will still benefit from a reduced general salary threshold (now £30,960 – see above).

So, for example, there is a current shortage of programmers and software developers in the UK. Up to now they could be hired on Skilled Worker visas if paid £27,200 (based on a 37.5 hour week). From 4 April, they would have to be paid a minimum of the new going rate of £49,400. As this figure is higher than the £38,700 general Skilled Worker threshold, there is no point in this occupation being on the new ISL which now only includes a few shortage roles that pay under that amount, such as various construction trades, lab technicians, pharmaceutical technicians.

Fishing boat crews, for example, were on the SOL to help a fishing industry facing big recruitment challenges post-Brexit. Deckhands on large fishing vessels could be sponsored from £20,960. As their new occupation going rate rises, but not as much as the general threshold, this occupation remains on the ISL, so from April sponsored crew would have to match the ISL general threshold and be paid £30,960.

There was no public consultation before the Home Secretary announced these changes. Affected industries will be able to give evidence to a review of shortage occupations that the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) will be carrying out later this year – only after changes have taken effect. The government commissioned the independent expert committee to do a “rapid review” of replacing the Shortage Occupation List but it has ignored the advice the MAC came back with to reconsider removing the 20% going rate discount for shortage occupations.

Sponsoring national pay scale / Health and Care visas

The government has exempted itself from the inflationary increases to the cost of hiring staff on Skilled Worker visas that it has landed other employers with.

Employees on national pay scales, such as teachers or medical practitioners may be sponsored on a minimum salary threshold of £23,200 (up from £20,960 on 4 April) and should be paid at least according to the national pay scale for that role or salary band.

New health and care workers not on a pay scale (such as care workers and senior care workers) have a general threshold increase to £29,000 from £26,200 and their occupation-based going rate increases along the 25th percentile, not the median. The discounted general threshold for health and care workers with a relevant PhD rises from £23,800 to £26,100 on 4 April and for those with a relevant STEM PhD, on the SOL/ISL or New Entrants, the general threshold increase is from £20,960 to £23,200.

The going rates for Health and Care visas are set out in the new Table 2 of the Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations from 4 April 2024. Eligible roles for national pay scales are set out in the new Table 3, updated going rates for NHS bands in Table 4 and educational roles in Table 5.

Renewing current Skilled Worker visas after 4 April

Those already on the Skilled Worker route are exempt from the salary hikes of new applications after 4 April when it comes to extending their visa, changing sponsoring employer or applying for settlement.

Their pay should progress at the same rate as resident workers – on updated 25th percentiles using the latest pay data when they next make an application. (These are set out in Table 2 of Appendix Skilled Occupations from 4 April.)

The minimum general salary threshold for Skilled Workers already on the immigration route before 4 April will be £29,000 when they renew, change sponsor or apply for settlement. As is the case for the new general thresholds for Health and Care visas (above) there will be discounts: £26,100 for a relevant PhD, £23,200 for a relevant STEM PhD, workers on the SOL/ISL, New Entrants or for those on a national pay scale.

Skilled Workers currently sponsored in a role which was included on either the SOL or ISL list but is no longer on the list when they make their next application, may still be sponsored on the lower general threshold and also qualify for the 20% discount to the going rate, but only if they extend their visa to continue working in the same role for the same sponsor. Otherwise, their pay must meet the above general thresholds and the updated 25th percentile going rate as for others already sponsored as Skilled Workers before 4 April.

Skilled Workers under some SOC codes which are eligible for sponsorship under the current rules may no longer be eligible after 4 April 2024 because they are now deemed to be skilled below RQF Level 3 – these are listed in the new Table 2a of Appendix Skilled Occupations and include nannies, fashion stylists and car salesmen. Those who had continuous permission as a Skilled Worker since before the new rules and now find their roles on Table 2a will only be able to apply for an extension to continue working for the same employer. It will not be possible to apply to change employers.

Fewer permitted occupations for asylum seekers

At present the only jobs asylum seekers are allowed to do – and only if they have been waiting over 12 months for a decision through no fault of their own – are roles on the Shortage Occupation List.

With the SOL replaced by the ISL on 4 April, the government has ignored the MAC’s recommendation that asylum seekers that are permitted to work are allowed to contribute in any occupations, or at the very least all skilled occupations. With tens of thousands of asylum seekers and their dependants stuck in limbo, the Statement of Changes instead restricts permitted jobs even further to the very few shortage occupations which make it onto the new ISL. This spiteful decision means more asylum seekers in semi-destitution at a cost of billions to the taxpayer, rather than allowing them to come off meagre public support, work and contribute to tax revenue.

Salary thresholds for Scale-up sponsor licence holders

The massive increases to the qualifying salaries for sponsored Skilled Worker visas are likely to hurt some employers more than others. They will also make other immigration solutions more attractive to those that qualify for them, – especially companies that can qualify for a Scale-up sponsor licence.

The Scale-up visa was launched for fast-growing companies on 22 August 2022 – back when Rishi Sunak was keen to boast of making “our visa system for international talent the most competitive in the world” – rather than boasting about reducing immigration by any means. The Scale-up visa salary threshold is not increasing by as much on 4 April – from £34,600 to £36,300. The going rate for this route continues to be set at the 25th percentile (Table 2 of the new Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations).

From 4 April, both the threshold and the going rate that new Scale-up workers will have to be paid will now be set lower than those for Skilled Workers, despite the Scale-up visa being a more skilled route (RQF Level 6). Combined with the lower sponsor licence fee, Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) fee and lack of Immigration Skills Charge, this becomes a very attractive alternative for eligible sponsors going forward.

As the salary requirements for workers on Scale-up visas to extend or settle are based on earnings they have already earned in the preceding two or three years, those who originally applied for a Scale-up visa on or before 11 April 2023 need only show qualifying PAYE earnings of £33,000 and those who applied between 12 April 2023 and the new rules coming in on 4 April 2024 will need to show qualifying PAYE earnings of £34,600 to extend or settle.

Salary thresholds for Global Business Mobility visas

For most Global Business Mobility routes thresholds are being raised from £45,800 to £48,500, while the Graduate Trainee route threshold is being raised from £24,220 to £25,410. Going rates for the Global Business Mobility routes will continue to be based on the 25th percentile of roles within the relevant SOC code and so can be found in the new Table 2 of Appendix Skilled Occupations, with those on a Graduate Trainee visa continuing to benefit from the 30% discount to the going rate.

While the £48,500 threshold is higher than the £38,700 for new Skilled Workers, their median-based going rates may make the Global Business Mobility Senior or Specialist Worker route an attractive alternative to overseas companies transferring staff to the UK who up to now may have found the Skilled Worker route easier.

It may also be easier for overseas sponsors to meet Senior or Specialist Worker salary levels as they can include some allowances which are prohibited under the Skilled Worker route. (Senior or Specialist Workers must be employed by overseas entities).

Some SOC codes currently eligible for sponsorship under Global Business Mobility rules are deemed to be below RQF Level 6 and so no longer skilled enough to be sponsored on these routes. These will be found in the new Table 2b of Appendix Skilled Occupations and include interior designers and care home managers. Any Global Business Mobility workers with continuous permission before the rule change will be able to apply to extend to continue working in their role. Otherwise, they may apply to be sponsored in these jobs on the Skilled Worker route with its higher going rates.

Minimum income requirement for partner visa applications

The minimum income requirement for British and resident people to sponsor a partner on a family visa leaps up from £18,600 to £29,000 for applications made on or after 11 April 2024. There will be no additional income requirement for children.

This controversial change deprives many couples of this five-year route to settlement. The Home Office’s own audit found that 40 to 50% of the UK working population will not be able to meet this new threshold based on earnings alone.

Rental income, self-employment and savings can be used to prove someone can support their loved one if they do not meet the earnings threshold. Yet the amount can be prohibitive. For every two and a half years of the partner visa, a British worker earning £22,000 rather than the required £29,000, for example, would have to pay the £7,000 shortfall multiplied by two and a half plus a sum of £16,000 – so £33,500. This rises up to £88,500 if the couple are coming back to the UK and the British partner does not have a job offer as well as 12-months’ salary.

Working class families face living apart or human rights applications to live together in the UK. The Explanatory Memorandum published with the Statement of Changes sheds light on how that might work out: “Existing exceptional circumstances and the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children continue to apply. Those unable to meet the minimum income requirement may still be granted leave where: there are insurmountable obstacles to family life with their partner continuing outside the UK; it would not be reasonable for their child to leave the UK; or there are exceptional circumstances which would render refusal of the application a breach of ECHR Article 8 because it would result in unjustifiably harsh consequences for the applicant or their family.”

Those already holding a family visa, granted a fiancé visa before the threshold hike or applying before the impending income threshold increase this spring, will continue to have visa applications assessed against the current £18,600 requirement.

The Home Secretary initially announced that the threshold for new applications would be raised to match the new median wage threshold for Skilled Worker visas of £38,700. Following a massive outcry, this is now set to be implemented in stages (barring any change of heart from a new government with elections due this year): initially the minimum income requirement rises to £29,000 from 11 April 2024, then again in the Autumn to £34,500 and then in Spring 2025 it is due to hit £38,700.

If you are concerned or would like to discuss any of the above changes, alternative work and personal immigration solutions or indeed any UK immigration matters, please do not hesitate to contact us on 0207 033 9527 or at [email protected]. 

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