The number of foreign skilled workers and Health and Care Worker visas issued in the UK has declined between April 2024 and January 2025.
Written by Sunil Dhaw
Over the ten months ending January 2025, fewer foreign skilled workers traveled to the United Kingdom. Health and Care Worker visas issued during the same period between April 2024 and January 2025 also showed a declining trend.
When the care workers were added to the Shortage Occupation List, monthly numbers of Health and Care Worker visa applications from main applicants increased from 4,100 to 18,300 between February 2022 and August 2023. However, now the trend is coming down. Monthly applications for Health and Care Worker visas fell to 2,400 in March 2024 and have remained broadly stable since. There were 1,900 applications in January 2025.
There were 23,200 applications from main applicants for Health and Care visas between April 2024 and January 2025 – 81% fewer than the same 10 months between April 2023 and January 2024.
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This followed policy changes affecting social care workers and their family members introduced in March 2024. The UK has banned migrant care workers from bringing their partners and children into the country, limiting the number of applicants to single individuals or those willing to leave their dependents behind.
However, falls were seen since the latter part of 2023 likely due to more scrutiny applied by the Home Office to employers in the health and social care sector, and compliance activity taken against employers of migrant workers.
Applications for dependants have decreased since December 2023, falling to 4,000 in January 2025.
The monthly number of Skilled Worker visa applications from main applicants was broadly stable between January 2022 and March 2024 at around 6,000 applications per month. Applications temporarily increased to 10,100 in April 2024, before returning to average levels in the following months. There were 4,000 applications in January 2025.
There were 54,900 applications for Skilled Worker visas from main applicants between April 2024 and January 2025 – 10% fewer than the same 10 months between April 2023 and January 2024.
Applications for dependants on the Skilled Worker route were broadly in line with the main applicants. There were 46,700 applications between April 2024 and January 2025 – 7% fewer than the same 10 months between April 2023 and January 2024.
UK Immigration Rules 2024
From 1 January 2024, international students were no longer able to bring dependants on all but postgraduate research courses and courses with government-funded scholarships.
From 11 March 2024, social care workers arriving from overseas are no longer allowed to bring dependants (that is, partners and children) on their visa.
From 4 April 2024, the baseline general salary to be sponsored for a ‘Skilled Worker’ visa increased from £26,200 to £38,700, while the ‘going rate’ minimum salary specific to each job has also gone up significantly.
A list of jobs for which it is possible to sponsor someone for a ‘Skilled Worker’ visa at a reduced minimum salary was reduced and renamed the Immigration Salary List.
From 11 April 2024, the minimum income normally required to sponsor someone for a spouse/partner visa was increased from £18,600 to £29,000.