Mahmood eases settlement proposals for care workers after Labour opposition

Shabana Mahmood has scaled back proposals that would have required low-paid workers to spend 15 years in Britain before seeking permanent settlement, following opposition from cabinet colleagues, Labour backbenchers and unions. The revised approach would allow up to 300,000 care workers and their dependants to apply for indefinite leave to remain after five years.

A Home Office consultation response published on Monday, November 2, sets out a five-year route for care workers earning more than £25,000. The document estimates that 146,000 care workers and 136,000 dependants would be covered. Under the original proposals announced last year, jobs below degree level were placed on a 15-year settlement route. That category will now generally face a 10-year wait, with stronger minimum requirements and opportunities to qualify earlier through an accelerated route.

Officials said roughly 100,000 skilled workers, including chefs and butchers, would still need to wait 10 years before applying. People earning more than £125,000 would qualify within three years. Those paid more than £50,271, alongside some public service workers such as teachers, nurses and doctors, would be able to apply after five years. The consultation had proposed increasing the standard qualifying period from five years to 10.

Much of Mahmood's tougher framework remains in place, particularly for refugees and people who breach immigration rules when entering Britain. The latter group would face at least 20 years before becoming eligible to apply. Refugees arriving by small boat who rely on public funds would face a minimum 30-year wait. The proposals also restrict settlement for refugees who have accessed public funds, with an exception for the small number arriving through designated safe and legal routes.

Refugees who entered Britain legally before claiming asylum could wait up to 20 years for settlement. That period could fall to 10 years if they enter sustained employment or study and demonstrate sufficient earnings to make a sustained contribution. Illegal entry would add a 10-year penalty, producing a 20-year wait for those working or studying and a minimum of 30 years for those doing neither. Most refugees would also have to satisfy language requirements and have no outstanding debts.

The changes follow lobbying by care providers, trade unions and senior Labour figures, including housing secretary Angela Rayner and London mayor Sadiq Khan. In June, Rayner called the prospect of making care workers already in Britain wait up to 15 years for permanent residence “un-British”. Energy secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh said in September that the proposals would have been difficult for her own family, who arrived as refugees.

The financial implications remain part of the debate. Home Office projections last year suggested that settlement for care staff and their adult family members between 2026 and 2030 could involve lifetime public expenditure of about £10bn. Separately, analysis released on Monday by the Institute for Public Policy Research estimated that skilled migrants and adult dependants expected to settle under existing rules would contribute a net £115bn over their lifetimes through taxation.

Mahmood met union general secretaries on Monday to discuss the final details. Pressure over settlement rules has increased as migrants who arrived during Boris Johnson's administration approach the existing five-year eligibility threshold. Around 200,000 health and care worker visas have been issued over the past five years, with additional arrivals coming as dependants.