Immigration News Weekly Roundup – 21 March 2025
The Home Office has announced sweeping changes to UK work visa regulations and substantial fee increases, set to take effect in just three weeks. Immigration advisors are urged to mark 9 April 2025 in their calendars and prepare thoroughly for these significant adjustments to the immigration practice.
The UK Government’s April 2025 immigration rule changes focus primarily on tightening the skilled worker route, particularly in the care sector. From 9 April, care sector sponsors must first recruit from skilled workers already in the UK before sponsoring overseas candidates, requiring confirmation from regional partnerships that no suitable domestic workers were available. The minimum salary floor for skilled workers will increase from £23,200 to £25,000 per annum (£12.82 hourly), though the general threshold remains £38,700 for most roles. The new floor applies to care workers, new entrants, roles on the Immigration Salary List, certain health and education positions, and STEM PhD-relevant roles. Additionally, “new entrant” salary reductions based on professional qualification training will only apply to UK qualifications.
Other changes include modifications to Global Talent route evidential requirements, introduction of visit visa requirements for Trinidad and Tobago nationals, exempting French school children and British Nationals (Overseas) from Electronic Travel Authorisation requirements, and amendments to Ukraine Schemes.
The Home Office has also announced significant increases to visa sponsorship costs effective 9 April 2025. The administrative fee for assigning a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) will rise dramatically from £239 to £525 per CoS—a non-refundable charge even if workers withdraw from the recruitment process. This substantial increase applies not only to Skilled Worker visas but also to Global Business Mobility Senior or Specialist Worker visas, International Sportsperson visas, and T2 Minister of Religion visas. Visa application fees will simultaneously increase, with Skilled Worker visa costs rising by £50-£99 for applications made outside the UK and £58-£115 for applications inside the UK. Health and Care Visa applications will also see increases, from £284 to £304 for sponsorship up to three years, and from £551 to £590 for longer periods. These combined changes to immigration rules and fee structures signal a more restrictive and costly approach to the UK’s work visa regime, likely prompting employers to accelerate CoS assignments and visa applications before the April deadline. See our course on Skilled worker HERE
On the asylum front, the UK asylum appeals system faces an unprecedented crisis, with tribunal backlogs surging nearly 500% over two years to 41,987 cases by end-2024, according to Refugee Council analysis of Ministry of Justice data. This dramatic increase stems from a perfect storm of policy changes: declining asylum grant rates (now 47%), expedited decision-making processes introduced under both Conservative and Labour governments, heightened evidentiary standards from the Nationality and Borders Act 2022, and a critical shortage of immigration lawyers. The situation has created a troubling displacement of bottlenecks within the system, with 38,079 asylum seekers remaining in hotel accommodation at significant public expense (potentially £1.5 billion annually). While the government projects £4 billion in savings from clearing the initial application backlog, experts warn that poor first-instance decision-making is merely shifting delays to the appeals process, leaving thousands in prolonged legal limbo.
The Home Office is poised to implement stringent new monitoring measures for foreign criminals who cannot be deported, introducing an amendment to the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill that would grant powers to electronically tag offenders and impose night-time curfews. This legislative change targets the 18,069 foreign offenders currently awaiting deportation in the community, particularly those who have successfully challenged deportation orders on human rights grounds. The policy shift would close a significant loophole in current legislation, where monitoring conditions applicable during immigration bail cannot be maintained once an individual receives permission to remain in the UK. Drawing parallels with terrorism prevention measures introduced in 2011, the amendment establishes breach of tagging conditions as an imprisonable offence. The government frames this as part of its commitment to public safety, highlighting a 21% year-on-year increase in foreign criminal removals since the July election, whilst Conservative opposition seeks to go further by proposing amendments to block migrants from using human rights laws to contest deportation in UK courts.
HJT is presenting a live online Skilled Worker Masterclass with expert Sacha Wooldridge. With sweeping changes to the skilled worker route taking effect on 9 April, including care sector recruitment restrictions, increased minimum salary thresholds, and CoS fees more than doubling to £525, update your expertise and master these policy changes to effectively advise clients through this challenging transition. To book your spot, click here
For more information on our other live online courses, visit here
Additionally, all significant updates on Rules, Case Law and procedural changes are covered comprehensively in Mastering Immigration Law. The comprehensive resource ensures immigration advisors can meet the everyday challenges through effective interpretation of the legal resources to accelerate their case successes.
For enquiries and FREE DEMO, contact us enquiries@hjt-training.co.uk or call 075441 64692.
For the full list of updates on media news, reports and Home Office Guidance and Policy updates, SEE BELOW
Immigration News
Many victims of Channel dinghy tragedy could have been saved, inquiry lawyers say – The Guardian
Many of the people who drowned in the biggest ever loss of life in a migrant dinghy in the Channel could have been saved if rescue services had searched for them for longer, lawyers for their families have said.
Their comments came after the independent Cranston inquiry, which is scrutinising the circumstances surrounding the mass drowning, heard evidence from an expert into survivability in the water.
For full report, click here
Red Cross had to take £220,000 from disaster fund to clothe asylum seekers in UK – The Guardian
The British Red Cross had to use hundreds of thousands of pounds from its disaster fund to provide basic clothing for asylum seekers in the UK in what it described as an unprecedented intervention.
For full report, click here
Number of UK asylum seekers awaiting appeals up by nearly 500% in two years – The Guardian
The number of asylum seekers left in limbo as they appeal against a rejected asylum application has risen by nearly 500% over two years, putting renewed pressure on the taxpayer, an analysis by the Refugee Council has found. Figures released by the Ministry of Justice show that at the end of 2024 there were 41,987 asylum appeals in the tribunal courts’ backlog, up from 7,173 at the start of 2023.
For full report, click here
Essex couple’s £1,500 fine for reporting Channel stowaway is cancelled – The Guardian
A couple who were fined £1,500 after reporting a boy who had stowed away on the back of their motorhome for their journey from France to Essex have had the penalty cancelled.
For full report, click here
UK work visa changes criticised as new immigration rules loom – The Standard
Changes to the skilled worker visa route for foreign workers were made without understanding the impact it would have and resulted in thousands more migrants claiming asylum in Britain, a watchdog has found. There had been a significant increase in the number of people holding a Skilled Worker visa claiming asylum – up from 53 claims in 2022 to 5,300 in the first 10 months of 2024, the National Audit Office (NAO) revealed on Tuesday.
For full report, click here
Officials do not fully understand UK skilled worker visa, watchdog says – Financial Times
UK government officials do not fully understand how the main route for workers to come to Britain is being used or what it is contributing to the economy, according to the independent public spending watchdog. The Home Office did not conduct an impact assessment before widening the skilled worker visa route to include entry-level care jobs in 2022, the National Audit Office said in a report published on Monday.
For full report, click here
Foreign criminals to face Home Office tagging – BBC News UK
Foreign criminals who cannot be deported could be electronically tagged and placed under a night-time curfew by the Home Office, under a new government measure. Ministers have put forward an amendment to the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill now in the Commons, giving them the right to impose tagging.
For full report, click here
Case Law
Secretary of State for the Home Department v S [2025] EWCA Civ 188
The Court of Appeal has ruled that the Home Office can lawfully exclude trafficking victims who are subject to deportation orders from a concession allowing certain victims to be considered for discretionary leave under more favourable pre-January 2023 provisions. The case involved two trafficking victims with criminal convictions: VLT, a Vietnamese national, and S, who was trafficked to the UK as a child. The court overturned previous Upper Tribunal decisions, finding that the “deportation carve-out” was a legitimate policy choice and that those with deportation orders are not in an analogous position to other trafficking victims. VLT has since gained refugee status, while S faces an uncertain future despite having lived in the UK for nearly 40 years and Nigeria refusing to accept him.
For full decision, click here
Home Office Guidance and Documents Policy Updates
Guidance: Register of licensed sponsors: workers has been updated on 19thMarch 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Register of licensed sponsors: students has been updated on 19th March 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Student sponsor guidance has been updated on 19th March 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Student route: caseworker has been updated on 19th March 2025. To View the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Chapter 08 – appendix FM family members: caseworker has been updated on 18th March 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Priority change of circumstances for sponsors has been updated on 18th March 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Right to work checklist has been updated on 17th March 2025. To View the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Ask the Home Office to check your immigration status is correct has been updated on 17th March 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Collection: Archive: Immigration Rules has been updated on 14th March 2025. To view the updated Collection, click here
Guidance: Immigration Rules archive: 11 March 2025 to 11 March 2025 has been published on 14th March 2025. To view Guidance, click here
Guidance: Tanzania: tuberculosis test clinics for a UK visa has been updated on 14th March 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Written by Shareen Khan – Legal Content Writer, HJT Training
STAY TUNED FOR MORE IMMIGRATION NEWS NEXT WEEK!
Disclaimer: This blog post is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Immigration advisors should consult the full decisions and official policy documents when advising clients on specific cases.
