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The UK government has banned international recruitment for social care roles and announced a dramatic cutback on so-called “low-skilled migration,” declaring that “skilled must mean skilled.”
The hardline move, detailed in the new 82-page Immigration White Paper released Monday, forms the backbone of the most significant immigration reset in a generation.
“We will close social care visas to new overseas applications,” the Home Office stated.
“This route has been exploited and overused in ways that damage public confidence and do not support long-term workforce sustainability.”
This is a sweeping overhaul of Britain’s immigration system, a statement obtained from the UK Home Office website revealed.
The paper, titled “Restoring Control over the Immigration System,” marks a decisive shift toward reducing net migration, which the government says has spiralled out of control, quadrupling from 2019 to 2023.
End Line For Care Worker Visas
The decision to block new overseas applications for social care roles takes immediate effect. Existing care workers already in the UK will only be able to extend or switch their visas until 2028, pending the rollout of a new domestic workforce strategy.
It read further, “The health and social care sector must move away from reliance on low-wage overseas recruitment,” the document declared.
“We will instead support long-term workforce planning and training within the UK.”
Skilled Must Mean Skilled
At the heart of the reforms is a redefinition of ‘skilled work’ under the points-based immigration system.
The government is raising thresholds on salary, qualifications, and English language across most routes, removing what it calls “loopholes for low-skilled migration under a skilled label.”
“We are tightening the definition of skilled work — skilled must mean skilled,” the White Paper insists. “Work that does not meet the bar will not be eligible for a visa, no matter the sector.”
The controversial Immigration Salary List — which allowed employers to hire workers below the general salary threshold — will be abolished.
“We will remove the Immigration Salary List to prevent undercutting of UK wages and to ensure that migration supports, rather than suppresses, the labour market,” it declared.
Shifting Burden To Employers
In future, employers will be required to demonstrate domestic recruitment efforts before turning to foreign labour, particularly in sectors previously reliant on overseas workers.
“No employer should be allowed to default to migration. We are rebalancing the system to reward training, not reliance,” the Home Office said.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper called the plan “a bold, necessary reset.”
“We are acting to bring numbers down and restore control. We must rebuild public trust and end the perception that immigration is a substitute for skills planning,” Cooper said.
The White Paper’s tone is uncompromising throughout: “We will not allow temporary migration routes to become permanent. Our reforms will restore integrity and ensure immigration works for Britain — not the other way round.”
