The UK Immigration rules are undergoing constant and significant changes following the White Paper issued earlier this year. These changes include the much-discussed increase in residence requirement for settlement, along with adjustments which tighten the requirements of the Skilled Worker route, including increasing the minimum salary thresholds, increasing the Immigration Skills Charge and requiring a higher level of English language ability. These changes target skilled individuals, filling gaps in the UK employment market, who have come to the UK legally and contribute to the UK economy, which leads to the question, is this really the most sensible approach to manage net migration, or is the UK risking pricing itself out of the global talent market?
Key policy changes
The most significant changes which have currently been confirmed are in relation to the Skilled Worker route, specifically the increase to the minimum salary threshold, which has increased from £38,700 to £41,700 from July 2025. The intention behind this change is to ensure that sponsored workers are only placed in high skilled roles, and as such are highly remunerated for their work. However, in reality this is likely to have a disproportionate impact based on region and size of company. London based companies, or those with large turnovers, are going to be in a much better position to provide the salary required under the Skilled Worker visa, than a smaller company in the North of the UK. This is going to limit their access to crucial talent required for growth and expansion.
The salary threshold isn’t the only financial increase as the Home Office have also announced an increase to the Immigration Skills Charge (ISC), a fee which must be paid by the employer, including charity employers, for each sponsored worker, by 32%:
| Current ISC | New ISC | |
| Small and Charitable Sponsors | £364 per year | £480 per year |
| Medium and Large Sponsors | £1,000 per year | £1,320 per year |
As an example, a charity sponsoring a Skilled Worker for 5 years will currently pay £1,820 in ISC, whereas with the new fees they will be required to pay £2,400. A significant increase, one which many small businesses and charities will be unable to afford, effectively pushing them away from sponsorship altogether. This risks only large corporations being able to recruit talent internationally, preventing small companies from harnessing innovation and being competitive.
Effective from January 2026, new entrants to the Skilled Worker route will require a higher level of English proficiency, level B2, equivalent to A Level ability. Whilst improved linguistic ability offers a clear benefit in terms of integration and workplace communication, especially in public facing roles, it will inevitably affect the number of applications from talent from non-English speaking countries. Potentially leading to the exclusion of highly experienced, talented or specialist experts whose value lies in their skills over and above their grasp of the English language.
Economic consequences of targeting skilled employment routes
It’s no secret that the UK economy is already struggling, and these new changes to international recruitment are likely to have a further damaging impact. The key question in relation to these changes is whether the increased threshold is necessary, or even helpful, to encourage domestic training and upskilling, or will they in fact just hinder the UK’s growth by deterring international talent.
Specific sectors are likely to be disproportionately impacted:
- Technology and Innovation: Start-ups and fast-growing firms are going to find it harder to meet the increased salary thresholds required to attract technical experts. If new firms become unable to compete and recruit the best talent, this is going to substantially impact the UK’s competitiveness in this sector.
- Science and Academia: Organisations such as universities and research labs often adhere to national pay scales, which can differ based on location. These thresholds are unlikely to meet the new immigration salary thresholds, which will result in considerable difficulty in recruiting vital research staff. For a country which sees itself as a pioneer in science and research, this is likely to be a severe detriment.
The issue at the centre of this may not be that international workers are here “taking jobs”, but rather that there are issues within the current structure of the UK labour market. By restricting international workers, the government is risking increasing talent shortages and slowing down growth across key industries. Even if their plan does work to an extent in the long term, there appears to have been little to no consideration as to who is going to fill the gaps whilst others are being trained, bearing in mind that training for these roles often takes a number of years.
What is the government’s rationale for these changes?
According to the government announcements, their key rationale boils down to three main aspects:
- Investing into domestic talent – they aim for this policy to result in the training and upskilling of the current UK workforce, rather than industries relying on overseas talent to fill gaps. They hope that in turn this will lead to lower unemployment rates.
- Quality rather than Quantity – they intend for these rule changes to attract only the “best and brightest” talent, reducing net migration whilst ensuring consistent quality contributions.
- Targeting abuse – the Home Office have claimed that certain routes, and industries (such as care work), were being abused by ungenuine employment or other purposes not consistent with the intentions of the Skilled Worker route.
The aims are understandable, and you would struggle to find someone who doesn’t agree that UK unemployment rates need to be lowered, however whether these measures are the best way to address these aims is yet to be seen. A clear potential consequence of these actions is likely to see an increased economic burden, with the UK becoming less attractive for international talent. The increased cost, complexity and administrative burden risk creating an impossible environment for highly skilled workers.
While the policy clearly aims to bring down net migration numbers, and is very likely to achieve this, it does so at the expense of the UK economy, industry shortages and making the UK an undesirable location for the best international talent. The financial increases run the risk of hindering economic growth by limiting companies’ ability to remain competitive, ultimately leaving the UK behind in innovation and scientific advances.