The UK government has announced new immigration rules, including stricter English language requirements for all visa routes for both applicants and their adult dependents.
The new policy also requires migrants to live in the country for 10 years before being eligible for citizenship, doubling the current five-year requirement.
The policy shift is part of a broader crackdown on migration, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer declaring that settling in the UK should be “a privilege, not a right.”
Under the proposed “contributions-based model,” only those who make a significant impact on the economy or society, such as healthcare professionals, engineers, or leaders in fields like AI, could be fast-tracked for permanent residency and eventual citizenship.
Alongside this, the government will introduce stricter English language requirements for all visa routes, extending them for the first time to adult dependents.
Officials argue that higher language proficiency will help foreign nationals integrate better and access job opportunities.
These reforms come amid pressure to bring down net migration, which hit a record high of 903,000 in the year to June 2023 before dipping slightly to 728,000 in mid-2024. Despite the drop, migration levels remain significantly higher than pre-Brexit figures.
Experts remain sceptical about the immediate impact of the new rules. Dr. Madeleine Sumption of the Migration Observatory at Oxford University noted that lengthening the residency requirement is unlikely to deter migrants and could mostly serve to boost visa-related revenue.
However, she acknowledged that raising language standards might reduce visa approvals, especially as many recent skilled worker visa holders are dependents.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is expected to provide further details during a parliamentary session later today, with public consultation on the contribution-based system to follow later this year.
