Yorkshire businesses should prepare for sweeping immigration rule changes: Kathleen O'Donnell
The Government has recently published its immigration white paper outlining significant changes to the UK’s legal migration framework. It is worth outlining what it will mean for businesses in Yorkshire.
The reforms aim to reduce net migration, phase out low-skilled recruitment, embed immigration policy into the UK’s industrial and skills strategies and enhance compliance.
The proposals impact every major visa route including work, study, family and settlement.
While implementation timelines are phased and dependent on rule changes and new legislation, businesses and institutions must prepare for a more regulated, compliance-focused and training-aligned immigration system. That will include how they recruit from the local, strong pool of regional graduates.
The headline change is a refocus on skilled workers with further restrictions on what the government considers lower skilled roles. Where previously employers were able to recruit international staff into lower skilled roles, only graduate level roles will now be permissible.
Additionally, only roles listed on the new Temporary Shortage List will be eligible for visas, with Skilled Worker visa salary thresholds, increased by the previous government, rising in line with graduate level role levels.
The Migration Advisory Committee will review pay standards with salary thresholds rising for those bringing in dependants.
In addition to having to pay international staff more, the cost of hiring them will increase with a 32 per cent hike to the Immigration Skills Charge on Skilled Worker visas.
Businesses across the region have repeatedly told us that the cost of hiring overseas skilled talent to fill skills gaps that are just not available locally is already challenging and these changes will compound that further.
International students across the region’s universities will also face further restrictions, able to say in the UK for just 18-months post-graduation with eligibility for work linked to job level or experience.
The desire to attract the “brightest and best” to the UK is reinforced with the Global Talent, Innovator Founder and High Potential Individual routes expanded and streamlined. This should be welcomed by the region’s ambitious and innovative businesses and for those looking to build and create businesses.
Businesses that already employ international talent will also face considerable change, namely a requirement to develop workforce strategies and show domestic recruitment and training investment.
Our region is experiencing significant skills shortages in construction, manufacturing, and health and social care, with a particular need for skilled trades, engineers and technical staff.
It will undoubtedly be challenging for businesses to meet this tough new requirement.
Taking action now will help regional employers and institutions prepare ahead of legal changes. Given the region’s lower median salaries and current skills shortages, early planning will support applications to the Temporary Shortage list and enable more effective workforce planning based on talent availability and cost.
Kathleen O’Donnell is practice leader for the Sheffield office of global immigration advisers Fragomen