By Islam El-Sakka
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood will announce sweeping new rules on Monday that would require most legal migrants to wait a decade or more before qualifying for indefinite leave to remain in the UK, doubling the current five-year standard qualifying period.
New Rules Double Qualifying Period
Under the proposals published for consultation, the standard settlement wait would rise from five to 10 years. Workers in occupations below graduate level, including care workers, could face a 15-year qualifying period, subject to proposed exemptions and reductions. The government's response to the consultation will be put before MPs on Monday.
Concerns Over Care Worker Shortages
Ministers, including Housing Secretary Angela Rayner, have raised concerns that the rules would exacerbate staff shortages in health and social care. The Home Office has granted about 200,000 health and care worker visas in the last five years. The government is expected to offer some exemption for care workers already in the UK, though most other professions will face the lengthy waits. Mahmood has suggested the wait could be reduced through a points-based system rewarding community contribution or higher earnings.
MPs Warn of Windrush-Style Injustices
In a letter to Mahmood and Health Secretary Yvette Cooper, Labour and Green MPs alongside organisations such as Care England and the Society of Radiographers warned the proposals risk repeating the injustices of the Windrush scandal. Signatories argue that changing rules for people who planned their lives around existing requirements is unfair and could drive essential workers out of the country. They also caution that exemptions may not protect staff employed by independent providers or workers' family members.
Government Defends Earned Settlement Approach
Launching the consultation last year, Mahmood described Britain as a "multi-faith, multi-ethnic democracy" that demanded "contribution and integration." She stated that permanent settlement "is therefore not a right but a privilege – and one that must be earned."
