UK PM-Rishi Sunak announced new visa rules for international students and workers.

Following pressure from Tory MPs, the British government, led by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, unveiled a series of measures on visa rules to significantly cut back on immigration. According to the UK Home Office, the move would affect about 300,000 people who would lose their eligibility to enter the country as a result of the new measures, which include a threefold increase in the minimum salary that migrants must earn in a skilled job.

The following are the main policies that Sunak’s government has announced:

1. Dependent Restrictions: As part of the strategy to reduce migration, the government intends to stop a large number of dependents from entering the UK.
2. Salary Threshold Increases: The earning threshold for British citizens and overseas workers who sponsor family members will increase by almost 50%, from £26,200 to £38,700, and by a similar amount for the former group.
3. Health and Care Visa Tightening: The government is cracking down on cut-price labor, eliminating the 20% salary discount for shortage occupations and introducing an Immigration Salary List, which will be reviewed by the Migration Advisory Committee to align with increased salary thresholds. Overseas care workers will no longer be allowed to bring dependents to the UK, and care providers can only sponsor migrant workers involved in activities regulated by the Care Quality Commission.
4. Crackdown on Cut-Price Labor: The government will introduce an Immigration wage List, which will be evaluated by the Migration Advisory Committee to align with rising wage thresholds, and remove the 20% salary discount for shortage occupations.
5. Student Dependant Restrictions: In response to the growing number of students entering the UK with dependents, measures have already been put in place. These measures are anticipated to have a substantial effect on net migration, with 153,000 visas being awarded to dependents of sponsored students in the fiscal year ending in September 2023.