UK set to tighten visa rules to cut legal immigration under new plan, details inside

The UK government, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, is planning to tighten visa rules to reduce the number of people entering the country legally for work. This move is part of a new Immigration White Paper aimed at fixing what the government calls a "failed free market experiment" that allowed mass immigration in recent years.

As per the new plan, skilled worker visas will now only be given to people applying for graduate-level jobs. Those who want to work in lower-skilled roles will only get visas if they are applying for jobs that are important to the country’s industrial strategy. In simple terms, this means that only jobs that are crucial for the UK’s economy and where there is a real shortage of workers will be considered.

The Home Office said that these new rules are being introduced to make sure that UK businesses train and hire local workers instead of depending heavily on migrants. A special group will be formed to check which industries rely too much on foreign labour.

Even though the government has not mentioned Asians directly, reports say that visa applications from countries like Pakistan and Sri Lanka may be affected. The aim is to bring down overall immigration numbers, especially after public pressure and recent local election results where the anti-immigration party, Reform UK, performed well.

Keir Starmer is also under pressure to reduce the pressure on public services caused by the high number of migrants. The UK saw record-high net migration of 906,000 people in the year ending June 2023. This is a huge increase from 184,000 in 2019 when the UK was still part of the European Union.

After Brexit, while the number of European migrants dropped, the UK saw more arrivals from Ukraine and Hong Kong due to special visa programs. The number of dependents coming along with visa holders has also increased by 360% between 2021 and 2023.

Interior Minister Yvette Cooper said they are trying to bring back order in immigration after the previous government replaced free movement with free-market rules. However, the government is facing criticism for not thinking about how these new rules may hurt businesses and for not protecting visa holders from exploitation.

On the other side, Conservative leader Chris Philp said Labour's plan isn’t strong enough. He wants a strict cap on immigration numbers and has proposed removing the Human Rights Act in immigration matters.