Politics

Plan to Force Immigrant Care Workers to Wait 15 Years for UK Permanent Residency Scrapped

AI SUMMARY

A UK proposal to make immigrant care workers wait up to 15 years for permanent residency has been scrapped following opposition from lawmakers.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood proposed requiring migrant care workers to wait up to 15 years for permanent residency due to a surge in applications.
The plan would have extended the previous five-year waiting period for permanent residency to 10 years, with some scenarios pushing it to 15 years.
Labour Party lawmakers opposed the measure, calling it un-British and warning it could cause labor shortages in the care sector.
Shabana Mahmood abandoned the plan following the opposition from lawmakers.
Migrant care workers who arrived in the UK before May 2025 and earn at least 25,000 pounds remain eligible for permanent residency after five years.
Conservative lawmakers criticized the reversal, claiming it would cost citizens billions of pounds.
Migrants earning less than 50,000 pounds will be subject to a 10-year pathway for permanent residency.
The UK population grew by 2.6 million between 2021 and 2024, with an estimated 1.3 to 2.2 million additional people expected between 2026 and 2030.