LONDON — Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has softened controversial immigration settlement plans following significant backlash from cabinet ministers, backbench Labour MPs, and trade unions, publishing revised proposals for what the government calls "Earned Settlement."
The policy, which restructures the pathway to indefinite leave to remain based on contribution and earnings rather than automatic five-year settlement, faced immediate criticism after consultation launch last year. Under the initially proposed measures, the standard qualifying period would have doubled from five to 10 years, while care workers and other low-paid occupations would have faced extended 15-year waits.
Following pushback including comments from Housing Secretary Angela Rayner describing making care workers wait up to 15 years as "un-British" and Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh saying the plans would have been "tough" for her refugee family, Mahmood announced significant concessions. Care workers earning more than £25,000 annually will now be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain after five years, a third of the time originally proposed. Skilled workers in roles including butchers and chefs face a 10-year wait, while highest earners above £125,000 can settle within three years.
The revised policy maintains a five-year path for those earning above £50,271 and certain public service workers such as doctors, nurses and teachers. For refugees, the distinction between safe and illegal entry is central: those arriving via designated safe and legal routes such as the Afghan women and girls scheme and Palestinians qualify for five-year settlement, while those entering via small boats face a minimum 30-year wait for permanent settlement. Refugees who entered legally and are working or studying can qualify for settlement in 10 years, potentially reduced from 20.
Those who arrive in the UK in breach of immigration rules face a minimum 20-year wait for settlement. The policy maintains disqualifying criteria including criminal records, failure to speak English to a high standard, unpaid debts to the British taxpayer, and failure to make three years of national insurance contributions. The Home Office estimates that under the original proposals, 799,000 people would have had delayed settlement; the revised plans reduce this figure to 517,000.
The government has also introduced transitional arrangements for care workers who arrived between 2022 and 2025, offering them a second chance to make the contribution they came to make through a new five-year visa route. These arrangements apply only to those who joined before the Immigration White Paper was published in May 2025.
Analysis by the Institute for Public Policy Research suggests skilled migrants and their adult dependants due to settle in the UK under current rules are expected to make a net lifetime contribution of about £115bn through taxes they pay, while the government estimates its reforms will reduce the benefits bill by billions of pounds. The policy has been described by supporters as a fair system linking rights to contribution, while critics argue it places undue pressure on key sectors such as social care, where the government has already granted about 200,000 health and care worker visas in the last five years.
