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One banker in the City of London is faced with paying an extra £40,000 a year in university fees for his children. Nursing homes are worried about finding enough caretakers for residents.
The insurance industry says overseas relocations have now ground to a halt.
Such is life in the UK after the government announced it would now take ten years for immigrants to receive preferential status known as indefinite leave to remain, or ILR.
That’s twice the time it used to take.
“Ten years is a very long time to spend without certainty,” said Louise Haycock, partner at the immigration services firm Fragomen, who has been fielding frequent requests from businesses on the matter.
“The UK already has one of the most expensive immigration schemes.”
The government, which is still finalizing the changes, is attempting to navigate public pressure to tackle the number of people arriving in the country, as the right-wing populist Reform party gains ground in local and parliamentary elections.
It’s too soon to say whether the plans will apply retroactively to those already in the country, immigration minister Seema Malhotra said this week.
Net migration to the UK quadrupled between 2019 and 2023.
While official data suggests this rise is reversing as the post-Covid spike in foreign students ends and European Union citizens face more hurdles to move, the government is keen to drive the decline further.
The rules are also tightening for those who wish to bring family members when they move.
The most obvious businesses hit by the crackdown are care homes, which rely heavily on workers from abroad.
Under proposals set out by the Labour government after May’s local elections, overseas recruitment in the care sector will end within months, reversing an exemption introduced in 2022.
The charity Care England described the decision as a “crushing blow to an already fragile sector.”
Operators say funding pressures prevent them from offering higher salaries, meaning the jobs often only appeal to overseas workers.
The government has said employers will be able to hire migrants who are already in the UK until 2028.
Other sectors are concerned by the changes.
Pharmaceutical companies, for example, face extra paperwork and costs that could restrict scientists moving to the UK.
The hospitality industry also depends on attracting workers from abroad, who will find it tougher to qualify for skilled worker visas under the new, higher pay threshold.
City Fears
In the City of London, whose banks, law firms and professional services firms have long drawn skilled workers from overseas, there’s rising anxiety.
One City worker, who requested anonymity, is considering a move to Dubai or the US in order to fund his child’s increased university fees and said he felt cheated by the changes the government is making.
“It’s just another burden and it’s clamping down on using highly skilled individuals,” said Richard Harris, chief legal officer at recruitment agency Robert Walters Group.
Uncertainty is palpable, even for those already in the country.
It’s clear the government’s intention is trying to find different ways they can make immigration more difficult, according to immigration barrister Catherine Taroni.
“The white paper itself is very broad. It’s quite all encompassing,” she said.
