CCTV Script 13/05/25
On Monday local time, the UK government released a new immigration white paper, marking a comprehensive reform of its immigration system. The new policies tighten several visa application requirements, with significant impacts on skilled worker visas, social care visas, and student visas. Let's take a closer look:
First, for skilled worker visas, the minimum educational requirement has been raised to a university degree. In addition, applicants wishing to bring family members to the UK must meet a higher salary threshold, and accompanying family members must demonstrate basic English proficiency.
The white paper also proposes ending the visa route for overseas recruitment in the social care sector. At the same time, policies for international student visas have also been tightened.
While international students will still be allowed to stay in the UK to seek employment after graduation, the Graduate visa duration will be shortened from the current two years to 18 months. The government is also considering imposing a 6% levy on universities' income from international tuition fees.
Finally, the white paper stipulates that the minimum residency requirement for applying for permanent settlement in the UK will increase from five years to ten years.
In recent years, net migration to the UK has remained high. With the surge in immigrant numbers, public service resources have become strained, triggering discontent among many British citizens. Shortly after Keir Starmer took office last year, large-scale anti-immigration protests erupted across the country. This helps explain why the Starmer government is now emphasizing the need to regain control over the UK's borders.
Keir Starmer
"As this white paper sets out, every area of the immigration system, work, family and study will be tightened up so we have more control. CUT TO enforcement tougher than ever, because fair rules must be followed."
According to UK government estimates, the reforms could reduce annual immigration numbers by nearly 100,000, with skilled worker entries potentially dropping by as much as 50%.
The latest immigration reforms have sparked strong opposition from the UK's business, care, and education sectors.
According to the , the CEO of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) pointed out that domestic training alone cannot solve the labor shortage. The current immigration policies make it hard for UK businesses to access key skilled workers, which affects investment, limits growth, and may even jeopardize existing jobs.
The CEO of Care England, a social care industry organization, criticized the government for failing to increase investment in the sector or address the staffing crisis — and instead cutting off one of the few existing talent pipelines.
Lastly, the CEO of Universities UK warned that the reforms could further strain higher education institutions. Not only might they hit university finances, but they could also reduce the UK's attractiveness to international students.
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