In recent developments, the United Kingdom (UK) Home Office has reported a significant decrease in applications for Health and Care Worker visas, highlighting a dramatic 81% drop from April to July 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. This reduction follows recent policy changes affecting social care workers and their family members.
For dependents, the decline has been even more pronounced. Applications for dependents under the Health and Care Worker route peaked at 23,300 in August 2023 but fell sharply to 5,100 by July 2024. Between April and July 2024, there were 22,200 applications for dependents—a 71% decrease from the previous year.
In contrast, applications for Skilled Worker visas have shown a notable increase. After a period of stability with around 6,000 applications per month from January 2022 to March 2024, the number surged to 10,100 in April 2024 before settling back to 6,000 in July 2024. Overall, there were 28,600 applications for Skilled Worker visas between April and July 2024, marking a 23% rise from the same period in 2023.
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Applications for dependents on the Skilled Worker route also increased in tandem with the number of main applicants, peaking at 8,100 in January 2024 and then dropping to 5,800 by July 2024. Between April and July 2024, there were 23,400 applications for dependents—a 26% increase compared to the previous year.
The dramatic shift in visa applications is attributed to several recent policy changes. International students can now only bring dependants if enrolled in postgraduate research courses or those with government-funded scholarships. Additionally, social care workers from abroad are no longer permitted to bring dependants. The minimum salary required for sponsoring a ‘Skilled Worker’ visa has risen from £26,200 to £38,700, and the minimum income needed to sponsor a spouse or partner visa has increased from £18,600 to £29,000. These measures were introduced in response to criticism over rising immigration levels under Rishi Sunak’s government.
