Country Update 2025: UNITED KINGDOM

Contributed by: Nick Rollason

May 2025

1. Legislative Changes

There have been no major legislative changes. However, the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill was introduced and is currently going through the legislative process (see below) .

The UK Immigration rules were changed in December 2024 and April 2025 to make a number of changes to key visa routes. There was a further significant increase in some application fees for visas and citizenship.

2. Business Immigration

Employment-based immigration (skilled workers)

• Changes to the rules for sponsors of Skilled Workers, restricting what costs can be passed on to the Skilled Worker. Employers cannot pass on the costs of the sponsor licence fee and Certificate of Sponsorship fees to the Skilled Worker, as well as the Immigration Skills Charge. This is in response to abuse and unethical recruitment practices in the care sector.

• Self-sponsorship: The Home Office have changed their practice to prevent self-sponsorship, by requiring that companies applying to become sponsors are already trading (ie with UK contracts and income) and the role is genuine before they can sponsor Skilled Workers. In addition, payments made by the Skilled Worker to the Sponsor such as loan repayments and investments now affect the minimum salary calculations for Skilled Worker-this is to close a loophole under which applicants could fund their salary through an investment into the sponsor business.

  
  

• Health and Care Worker Visas: Care providers must now attempt to recruit from the existing UK workforce before they sponsor overseas workers. This follows from the scandal under which numerous health and care workers were sponsored by bogus sponsors with no job to go to.

Highly Skilled immigration

There have been some minor changes to the Global Talent route, mainly to clarify the eligibility criteria under multiple endorsement routes.

3. Family based immigration

The Government commissioned a review by the Migration Advisory Committee of the minimum income threshold for family settlement visas. The proposed increase of the minimum income from £29,000 to £38,700 has been paused pending the review. Due in June 2025.

4. Asylum

The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill aims to improve border security by introducing new criminal offences related to illegal immigration, including offenses for supplying or handling items used in illegal immigration activities. The Bill also aims to repeal the Illegal Migration Act 2023 and the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act 2024, thus formally cancelling the previous Government’s Rwanda policy. The Bill seeks to:

• Strengthen the asylum system by streamlining the asylum process and limiting the grounds for asylum claims, with a focus on expedited returns to countries considered safe.

  
  

• Expand Law Enforcement Powers by granting law enforcement agencies expanded powers, such as the ability to seize migrants' phones and other devices, and strengthen detention and biometric information collection.

  
  

• Introduces new criminal offences, including for endangering another person during an illegal crossing of the English Channel.

The UK Parliament and other organisations have expressed concern about the bill's potential impact on human rights and the UK’s international obligations, limiting access to justice, and undermining the rule of law.

5. EU Settlement Scheme

The Home Office automated the conversion of eligible EU pre-settled status holders to settled status, eliminating the need for them to make a further application. This also includes extending pre-settled status for a further 5 years for individuals approaching expiry to ensure they do not lose their status. The Home Office also tightened the criteria for late applications under the Settlement Scheme, which are still being accepted if there are good reasons.

6. Deportation

No significant changes

7. Citizenship

The Home Office updated its "good character" guidance for nationality applications, making it more likely that people who entered the UK illegally, including via small boats, will be refused citizenship, especially if they arrived through a "dangerous journey". This change, implemented on February 10, 2025, impacts applications submitted on or after that date.