UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood Cancels 15-Year Wait for Migrant Care Workers
Shabana Mahmood ends plan forcing foreign care workers to wait 15 years for settlement, restoring a five-year route for eligible migrants while withholding c...
POLICY WIRE — London, United Kingdom — Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced the abandonment of a proposal that would have required foreign care workers already in Britain to wait up to 15 years before qualifying for permanent residence.
The revised rule now permits eligible migrant care staff to submit applications for indefinite leave after five years, provided they earn a minimum salary of £25,000 and satisfy existing visa criteria.
The change safeguards African care workers who entered the scheme before May 2025, allowing them to retain the shorter five‑year pathway despite broader settlement reforms that could affect more than half a million migrants.
Mahmood indicated that a full accounting of the financial impact of dropping the longer‑wait plan will be published in a later statement.
Criticism from senior Labour members prompted the softening of the original proposal, signaling a shift toward a more permissive stance on migrant settlement.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
