Update on sponsorship of Care Workers and to Skilled Worker salary rates

Significant changes will be made to salary requirements under the Skilled Worker route and to the process for sponsorship of care workers and senior care workers. These changes will take effect from 9 April 2025.

The Home Office has published a new Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules, which includes several amendments to the Skilled Worker route. 

Salary Requirements

One of the most notable changes is the update to the minimum salary threshold. 

For Skilled Workers who had previously benefitted from a minimum salary threshold of £23,200 gross per year (£11.90 per hour), this minimum will increase to £25,000 gross per annum (£12.82 per hour). 

This change applies to workers sponsored in a Health and Care ASHE salary jobs. This category includes all care workers and senior care workers. It also applies to workers in a relevant health or education occupations based on national pay scales. 

This increase applies to the general threshold. As a sponsor, you will still need to check the going rate for the role and ensure that the applicable pay rate for a relevant sponsored migrant who is to be sponsored after 9 April is the higher of £25,000 gross per annum and the going rate for the role. 

This update seeks to ensure that salary requirements continue to reflect the latest pay situation for UK workers and remains above the National Living Wage.

Care Worker Sponsorship

Changes have also been made to the rules for the sponsorship for care workers and senior care workers.

Sponsors are now required to try to recruit from the pool of care workers and senior care workers in the UK who are seeking new employment before sponsoring new recruits from overseas or from other immigration routes. 

Sponsors must engage with the relevant regional or sub-regional partnership, in the area in which the sponsor is located or recruiting. These partnerships have been set up for the purpose of reducing exploitation of workers in the care sector, supporting displaced care staff in the UK, and helping them to identify a new sponsor.  

Before considering sponsoring a care worker or senior care worker from overseas, or from a different immigration category in the UK, the sponsor must provide confirmation from the regional partnership that the sponsor has engaged with them and that there are no suitable workers available from this pool of Skilled Workers.

The changes do not apply to workers who were already sponsored in these occupations before the changes take effect (including those changing employers), or those switching from other immigration routes who have been working lawfully for their sponsor for at least three months.

This requirement aims to address the growing pool of workers in this route who no longer have sponsorship because their sponsors have been unable to offer sufficient work or have lost their sponsor licences.