New Plan Would Reward Contribution and Skills While Extending Waiting Times for Others
The UK government has unveiled proposals for the biggest overhaul of its legal migration system in almost 50 years. The plan aims to make settlement a privilege for those who contribute to the economy, integrate into society, and follow the rules, while increasing waiting times for migrants reliant on benefits or entering the country illegally.
Under the proposed Earned Settlement model, most migrants would need to live in the UK for 10 years before qualifying for settlement. Certain groups could qualify sooner, but only one type of reduction can be applied per person.
Who Could Qualify Faster
Doctors, nurses, and other skilled public service workers could settle after five years.
Migrants earning over £50,270 a year for three consecutive years could reduce their waiting period to five years. Those earning over £125,140 could qualify after just three years.
Holders of Global Talent or Innovator Founder visas could also settle in three years.
Immediate family members of UK citizens and Hong Kong BN(O) nationals would keep the existing five-year route.
Contributions to National Insurance and higher-rate tax payments could shorten the period, as could volunteering or demonstrating strong English, but only one deduction applies.
Those Who Would Wait Longer
- Migrants in lower-paid roles, including health and social care workers arriving between 2022 and 2024, could face a 15-year baseline.
- Those reliant on benefits could wait 20 years, the longest in Europe.
- Illegal migrants and visa overstayers could wait up to 30 years.
Other Key Points
- Applicants must have a clean criminal record; exact thresholds for offences will be confirmed.
- Access to public funds and social housing could be restricted to British citizens, rather than granted automatically upon settlement.
- Refugees arriving legally would keep access to support, but settlement would take 20 years.
Transitional Arrangements
The proposals would affect nearly 2 million migrants who arrived in the UK from 2021. People with existing settled status would not be impacted. A consultation will determine arrangements for those caught between old and new rules.
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