U.K. shake up of immigration rules for skilled worker visas should prompt compliance review

U.K. companies employing foreign nationals with skilled worker visas should note that on July 22, the minimum salary for those applying to enter the country on skilled worker visas rose nearly 8% from £38,700 to £41,700. At the same time, the qualification requirement increased from A level (the highest level of school exams) to Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) Level 6 (degree level). The new rules also removed 111 occupations – including butchers and bakers, teaching assistants, youth workers, farmers, and plumbers –  from the list of roles that employers can recruit from overseas. 

This is the first implementation phase of broader immigration rules being introduced under the government’s Immigration White Paper, published on May 12. Announcing the changes, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the government is “delivering a complete reset of our immigration system.” She promised “stronger controls to bring migration down, to restore order to the immigration system and to ensure we focus on investing in skills and training here in the U.K.”