MPs are set to debate new rules on how long visa holders must live in the UK before qualifying for settled status, after the proposals sparked a public backlash.
More than 250,000 people signed two official petitions against Home Office plans to make it more difficult for immigrants to Britain to qualify for permanent residence.
The Immigration White Paper was published in May. It proposes increasing the period people on skilled worker visas have to live in the UK before they can claim indefinite leave to remain (ILR) from five to 10 years.
The status gives migrants broadly the same rights as British citizens and means they can work without restrictions and claim benefits.
A petition launched on the government’s website to keep the five-year ILR pathway in place for existing skilled worker visa holders received almost 157,000 signatures.
Honkong visa holders
Meanwhile over 107,000 people signed a second petition urging the Home Office to protect visa holders from Hong Kong from the reforms.
Benedict Rogers, the co-founder of Hong Kong Watch, warned that Hong Kongers who have British National Overseas status would face significant challenges if ILR is changed.
He said: “Now is not the time for the UK to back away from its promises to Hong Kongers. Extending the waiting time for ILR to ten years would pull the rug from under those who have sacrificed so much to build a new life here.
“It would leave them unprotected by British consulates when travelling abroad, unable to withdraw their retirement savings from Hong Kong, and ineligible for home fee status at UK universities, pricing many out of higher education.”
Both petitions will be debated by MPs in Westminster on September 8 after reaching the 100,000-signature threshold, the government confirmed.
Reforms aimed at reducing immigration to the UK were laid out in May.
Net Migration
Net migration – the difference between the number of people coming to Britain and the number of people leaving – surged from around 224,000 in mid-2019 to a record 906,000 in June 2023.
It eased to 728,000 in 2024 after new visa rules were introduced under the previous Conservative government.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer sparked controversy when he said Britain risked “becoming an island of strangers, not a nation that walks forward together” unless further measures were brought forward to reduce immigration.
As well as making it more difficult for migrants to be granted settled status, the government plans to increase enforcement and deportations of people who stay in the UK after their visa has expired or break the law.
Post-study and other restrictions
The existing two-year post-study graduate visa will be cut to 18 months, tightening the window for international students to settle.
Direct recruitment of care workers from abroad will end, with a transition allowing existing visa holders to stay until 2028.
Salary thresholds for skilled worker visas are also expected to increase and the list of jobs eligible for the permit were scaled back last month.
Responding to the skilled worker visa petition, a government spokesman said: “It has been a long-standing principle that settlement in the UK is a privilege and not a right.
“Under the current system settlement is primarily qualified for on the basis of length of time spent in the UK alongside a knowledge of life test which is used to verify knowledge of British customs, history, traditions, laws and political system.
“These criteria alone do not reflect our strongly held belief that people should contribute to the economy and society before gaining settled status in our country and they fail to promote integration, which limits the wider benefit from long term migration into the UK and increases pressure on public services.
“We therefore intend to reform our settlement rules by expanding the Points-Based System and increasing the standard qualifying period for settlement to ten years.”
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