UK Home Secretary cuts care worker wait to five years after cabinet revolt

Shabana Mahmood abandoned plans to force low-paid workers in the UK to wait 15 years for permanent settlement. The Home Secretary reversed course after a backlash from cabinet colleagues and backbench Labour MPs. The move spares care workers from the longest waiting period proposed last year.

The revised proposals allow up to 300,000 people to apply for indefinite leave to remain after five years. This includes care workers earning more than £25,000. The new timeline is one-third of the duration announced in the initial consultation.

Home Office documents published on Monday state that workers in occupations below the RQF6 level will no longer face the 15-year pathway. They will instead qualify through the ten-year pathway if they meet strengthened minimum requirements. Those who demonstrate the necessary contribution can qualify sooner through an accelerated pathway.

The five-year pathway applies to an estimated 146,000 care workers and 136,000 dependants. About 100,000 skilled workers, including butchers and chefs, will face a 10-year wait. Highest earners making more than £125,000 can settle within three years.

Workers earning more than £50,271 will also settle after five years. This group includes public service workers such as doctors, nurses, and teachers. Anyone arriving in the UK in breach of immigration rules faces a minimum 20-year wait.

Refugees entering by small boat and relying on public funds face a minimum 30-year wait. An exception exists for those entering through designated safe routes, such as the schemes for Afghan women and Palestinians. Refugees who enter legally will wait up to 20 years, reducible to 10 years if they enter sustained work or study.

Those entering illegally face a 10-year penalty to gain settlement rights. Working or studying applicants will wait 20 years, while others face a 30-year minimum. Most refugees must meet language requirements and owe no debts.

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner called the original 15-year wait for care workers un-British in June. Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh said in September the plans would have been tough for her refugee family. The Home Office estimates that granting permanent residency to care staff from 2026 to 2030 will cost the public purse roughly £10 billion.

Pressure intensified as the wave of migrants arriving under Boris Johnson reached the five-year threshold. The Institute for Public Policy Research reported that skilled migrants settling under current rules are expected to contribute a net lifetime total of about £115 billion in taxes. The Home Office has granted about 200,000 health and care worker visas in the last five years.