UK reverses 15-year settlement plan for migrant care workers, retains five-year pathway

The United Kingdom government has reversed its proposal to extend the permanent residency qualifying period for migrant care workers to 15 years, allowing eligible foreign workers, including Nigerians, to retain the existing five-year settlement pathway.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced the revised policy on Monday, November 2, 2026, following opposition from Labour lawmakers who warned that longer settlement periods could worsen workforce shortages in the country’s social care sector.

Under the revised framework, migrant care workers who arrived in the UK before May 2025, earn at least £25,000 annually and meet their visa conditions will remain eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after five years.

The decision forms part of the government’s broader Earned Settlement reforms, which will extend the standard qualifying period for most foreign workers from five to 10 years.

UK Retains Five-Year Care Worker Settlement

Speaking before the House of Commons, Mahmood said the government had introduced special provisions for care workers who supported Britain’s healthcare system following the COVID-19 pandemic.

• “Those who earn £25,000 a year working in the social care sector, which was the condition of their visa, will therefore be able to settle on their existing five-year path,” she said.

However, care workers who failed to meet their original visa conditions will be allowed to apply for another five-year visa, during which they can secure employment with legitimate care providers.

The government said approximately 250,000 care workers and their dependants entered or switched into the social care route between 2022 and 2025.

UK Proposes New Settlement Qualifying Periods

Under the broader reforms, migrants earning below £50,000 annually will generally face a 10-year settlement period.

Higher earners receiving above £50,000, alongside eligible doctors, nurses and teachers, will qualify after five years, while those earning above £125,000 may apply after three years.

Mahmood also disclosed that approximately 517,000 migrants would face delayed settlement under the revised proposals, compared with 799,000 under the earlier framework.

UK Previously Proposed Longer ILR Wait

The latest decision follows a series of immigration restrictions introduced by the UK government to reduce reliance on foreign workers, particularly in the social care sector.

• In November 2025, Nairametrics reported that the UK planned to double the qualifying period for permanent residency from five to 10 years, with lower-paid workers, including care workers, potentially facing a 15-year wait. The latest announcement exempts eligible existing care workers from that longer pathway.
• Earlier, in July 2025, Nairametrics reported that the UK had stopped issuing new Health and Care Worker visas to overseas care workers, effective July 22. The restriction was introduced to reduce migration and address abuses within the visa sponsorship system, while allowing eligible workers already in the country to remain under transitional arrangements.

The sector has also faced allegations of worker exploitation. In June 2024, Nairametrics reported that British social care agencies were accused of exploiting foreign workers by offering limited or no employment, despite recruiting them from overseas. Some workers reportedly incurred substantial debts to secure jobs that failed to materialise, leaving them financially vulnerable and dependent on their sponsors.