In this article, we set out the main immigration developments most likely to be of interest to employers during 2025. To find out about what’s happening in UK employment law read our separate article here, and our Northern Ireland spotlight article here. We also have commentary on the employment law changes expected in Ireland, which you can find here.
More robust sponsor compliance measures
Recent and forthcoming changes to the system for sponsoring workers mean that sponsor compliance will be a hot topic throughout 2025.
Government strategy for avoiding exploitation of sponsored workers
During 2025, the Government is planning to put in place a range of measures to align employment law compliance with sponsor licence eligibility.
As confirmed by the Minister for Migration and Citizenship in a written ministerial statement in November last year, these include:
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Although the current sponsor licence guidance already provides for a cooling-off period of up to 5 years in more serious cases, it may be that the guidance is amended to say that the minimum period will be 2 years in certain circumstances (instead of the current 1 year), and/or the maximum cooling-off period may be longer than 5 years.
Although not mentioned in the ministerial statement, the Government’s proposed Equality (Race and Disability) Bill could potentially result in sponsors of workers having to ensure equal pay for sponsored and non-sponsored individuals within their workforce. This may present an issue for sponsors in cases where sponsored workers are paid more than other workers due to the salary thresholds that must be met for sponsorship. It is not yet clear whether the legislation will be implemented in 2025 or later than this.
Revised sponsor obligations
Some significant tightening of sponsor obligations was made in changes to sponsor guidance on 31 December 2024. The effects of these will be felt in 2025. Changes include:
- Banning sponsors from passing specific sponsorship costs to Skilled Workers (with similar bans for other sponsored work routes expected);
- Bringing the behaviour of any Person with Significant Control of a sponsoring business within the scope of the Home Office’s considerations on licence grant, compliance and any suspension or revocation action;
- Banning workers in a personal capacity from being sponsored; and
- Requiring at least Level 1 User of the sponsor management system (the ‘primary Level 1 User’) to be both an employee, director or partner of the sponsoring business, AND a settled worker – this applies only to businesses applying for a sponsor licence on or after 31 December 2024.
| If you sponsor workers, you should familiarise yourself with sponsor guidance updates and ensure your business’s HR systems and processes are robust. We can also provide your business with sponsor licence refresher training or a mock audit to help you limit the risk of your licence being suspended or revoked. |
Sustained focus on illegal working enforcement
The Government sees illegal working as a key component of worker exploitation and is taking action to combat this. Some examples of increased activity in this are highlighted below:
- Between January and October 2024, illegal working enforcement visits and related arrests were increased by over 20%. We can expect sustained efforts in this area in 2025.
- Sectors being targeted include construction, hospitality, logistics and manufacturing. Some of the enforcement operations include arresting agency workers at the client business’s premises.
- Since September 2024, the Home Office has been actively encouraging businesses to carry out right to work checks beyond directly employed staff, extending these to self-employed contractors (and any substitute workers) and agency workers. One of the strongest reasons to do this is to avoid reputational damage.
| To help you minimise the risk of engaging an illegal worker to carry out work for your business, we can review your current arrangements with non-employees and make practical suggestions for direct and indirect right to work checking. |
New measures to reduce net migration
In November 2024, the Prime Minister, Kier Starmer, announced an Immigration White Paper to be published ‘imminently’, setting out a plan to reduce migration, potentially through requiring sectors found to be over-reliant on immigration to sign up to obligations to train the domestic workforce. The White Paper has not yet been released.
Reforming immigration policy in a strategic way is a complex task for a new government, and below we set out some considerations that may mean the White Paper is delayed until later in the year, or that its scope is limited.
The Government may need to take stock before proposing reforms
It may prove controversial to set out further immigration reforms before the impact the previous Government’s net migration reduction measures have been properly evaluated, and before the Migration Advisory Committee has reported on the use of the immigration system to fill IT, telecoms and engineering roles.
The MAC may not agree that training the domestic workforce will reduce net migration. The MAC’s 2024 annual report highlights that domestic and international workers are not direct substitutes, and that employers will seek the best match for their vacancy even if there are candidates with sufficient skills available. A resident labour market test could be reintroduced to force employers to prioritise domestic workers in this situation, however the MAC is likely to favour this only if the economic benefits outweigh the administrative cost.
The MAC also commented in the annual report that there will be different reasons across sectors and occupations for skills shortages. In some cases, shortages may be addressed by increasing the skills pool may have an effect, and in others, raising pay and conditions or other interventions may be more appropriate policy responses.
Net migration reduction will need to be weighed against other Government priorities
Also, the Home Office may come under pressure from other Government departments over the role the immigration system should play in meeting the government’s other top policy objectives, such as advancing the green energy transition and maximising AI opportunities.
Ambitious system changes may prove too expensive
In view of the current state of public finances and rising cost burdens for businesses and individuals, the Government may need to limit the scope of the White Paper to prefer measures that will minimise extra cost and administrative burdens, both for the Home Office and system-users.
Rises to immigration and nationality fees
Substantial rises are planned in Spring 2025 for ETAs, Certificates of Sponsorship and naturalisation applications. Other application fees may also increase to assist with funding the immigration system and contributing to government revenue more generally. For further information and commentary, see our recent article here.
New IT services for sponsors
The Home Office’s ‘Sponsor UK’ service has already replaced the sponsor management system (SMS) for some Government Authorised Exchange scheme sponsors.
It is expected that the Sponsor UK system will be extended to additional sponsors during 2025 and 2026, with the SMS continuing to operate in parallel for those sponsors who have not yet been invited to switch to the new system.
Unlike the SMS, Sponsor UK does not include Level 2 users. Sponsors should be aware any users of the new system must be able to meet the requirements in the sponsor guidance for Level 1 Users.
Reforms to EU Settlement Scheme processing
From late January 2025, the Government is intending to implement automated decision making for those with pre-settled status to gain settled status if they are eligible. We are also expecting the Home Office to finalise a policy on what will happen if a pre-settled status holder breaks the continuity of their residence due to absences from the UK. This could mean that some pre-settled status holders have their permission cancelled. For further information on these developments, see our separate article here.
Further eVisa transition work
Most UK Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) expired on 31 December 2024, and no new BRPs have been issued since the end of October 2024. BRP holders should set up an online UKVI account and link it to their eVisa. For further information, see our UK immigration document phase-out eVisas FAQs.
To ease potential travel difficulties, particularly for those who have not yet successfully set up their eVisa, the Home Office has confirmed BRPs can be used for travel purposes until at least 31 March 2025. The holder must still have valid immigration permission at the time they seek to re-enter.
Currently, some types of physical immigration document continue to be valid. These include wet ink stamps and visa vignettes (stickers) in passports. The Home Office intends to phase other physical documents out by mid-2025, however this will be subject to operational readiness.
Full roll-out of Electronic Travel Authorisations for visitors to the UK
The Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) is the Government’s digital permission to travel scheme for non-visa nationals who intend to travel to the UK:
- As a visitor;
- As a creative worker for up to three months; or
- As a person transiting the UK landside (there is an exemption for airside transit at Heathrow and Manchester airports).
This scheme now applies to all non-visa nationals aside from European citizens. Europeans will need to apply for an ETA to travel to the UK from 2 April 2025, and can apply for one from 5 March 2025. For further general information, see UK ETAs: Who needs one and when.
Family route reform
The MAC is currently reviewing the financial requirement and adequate maintenance tests for family visa routes, with their report being due in June 2025. Once the Home Office has considered the report’s recommendations, revisions to the Immigration Rules are expected. The family routes are also due to be simplified as part of a broader ongoing project. Due to the timing of the MAC’s report, the new Rules in this area are likely to be included in Autumn 2025 changes at the earliest.
Keep in touch with Lewis Silkin for further updates and assistance
We will be monitoring immigration law developments throughout 2025 and will publish further information once available. You can sign up here to receive our updates.
If you are an employer interested in keeping on top of immigration-related compliance during the upcoming year, please feel free to contact our Immigration Team about our training offerings, compliance guides and mock audit services.