Major changes are also anticipated in employment law, some of which will interact with immigration developments. For details of these, see: What’s happening in employment in 2026?
Businesses that take a strategic approach to proactively assessing and mitigating immigration and employment exposures will be best positioned for the year ahead.
Short on time? Here are the key takeaways for businesses
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You should assess how the expanded illegal working regime will apply to you and get ready for its implementation in 2026. This is likely to require a review of your contracts and policies relating to how you engage workers, and investment in additional compliance resources.
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You should review how your business may be affected by the government’s earned settlement proposals. This will require you to understand which of your staff are currently in the UK on a settlement route (whether sponsored or non-sponsored) and to consider how to engage with them on their future eligibility for settlement. You should also consider how the changes may affect your recruitment and retention strategy for overseas talent.
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You should take care to adequately assess the activities and broader eligibility of any business visitors you intend to invite to the UK, including taking immigration advice to check compliance.
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If you are a sponsor licence holder, you should:
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Review your internal HR systems and processes to ensure sponsor compliance risks (including illegal working risks) are proactively identified and addressed; and
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Understand how your business may be affected by the many recent and upcoming changes to sponsored immigration routes, including budgeting for additional application costs.
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Monitor Home Office announcements or sign up to receive our updates so you don’t miss a thing.
A summary of key 2025 changes that will have an impact in 2026
Many of the changes we expect to see in 2026 follow on from work that started last year. We’ve summarised these in the accordions below.
Expanded illegal working regime
Affects all businesses
What happened in 2025?
The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 was passed on 2 December 2025. It forms the basis of the government's planned expansion of the existing illegal working regime, bringing it one step closer to implementation.
All businesses are likely to be affected by the planned changes to a greater or lesser extent, depending on the range of arrangements used to engage workers.
What's expected in 2026?
Expanded right to work checking obligations and illegal working liability risks
The expanded illegal working regime is expected to be implemented in 2026. It will cover non-employees engaged by businesses, both directly and indirectly. This will dramatically increase the level of illegal working risk exposure for businesses.
As part of implementing the provisions, the Home Office will issue substantial revisions to their guidance documents, which businesses will need to understand and comply with. Read more here.
Earned Settlement
Affects all businesses
What happened in 2025?
Proposals for an earned settlement model would extend the standard 5 year qualifying period for settlement to at least 10 years in many cases. The Government consultation runs until 23:59 GMT on 12 February 2026.
Earned settlement has major implications for workforce planning across sponsored and non sponsored populations. Read more in our series of articles covering the minimum mandatory requirements, the qualifying period, the impact on Skilled Workers, the impact on British Nationals (Overseas), and the proposal not to have transitional arrangements.
What's expected in 2026?
Implementation of the earned settlement model
We expect the changes to start to come into force from April 2026, but further clarifications on timelines are awaited from the government. Those who anticipate becoming eligible for settlement before April 2026 should plan to apply at the earliest opportunity.
You should understand what’s being proposed and map out a contingency plan as early as possible. This can then be finalised once the earned settlement policy is published.
The changes will require sustained, long‑term engagement with affected staff members. This is likely to require a review and alignment of your immigration and employment law policies.
If you sponsor workers, the period of sponsorship may be shorter (for some high earners) or longer than it is currently. You will need to consider budgeting for longer sponsorship in some cases.
For a more detailed list of action points for Skilled Worker sponsors, see our article here.
Skilled Worker route amendments
Affects sponsors
What happened in 2025?
The July 2025 changes included a sharply higher salary requirement, the introduction of a Temporary Shortage List (TSL), and the removal of many medium skilled occupations from eligibility. Transitional arrangements apply.
What's expected in 2026?
Revision of general and occupation-specific salary thresholds
The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has recently recommended maintaining the general threshold at £41,700, but reducing occupation-specific thresholds from the 50th to 25th percentile.
A separate general threshold of at least £30,900 is recommended for TSL roles (on the assumption that these roles will not lead to settlement in future), with occupation-specific thresholds set at the 50th percentile.
A revised new entrant salary requirement of £33,400 is also suggested, with no occupation-specific threshold being applied to this group. The MAC has also suggested a range of options for extending the duration of the new entrant beyond 4 years, and making the discount available for the full period independently of the length of the initial visa.
Occupations on national pay scales should remain paid in line with these, and have a general salary threshold set at Band 5 in the lowest-paying nation.
The MAC recommends that salaries for Health and Care roles not on national pay scales should be set in the same way as for other Skilled Worker roles, potentially with some transitional arrangements for roles below degree level.
Abolition of the salary discount for roles requiring a PhD is also recommended.
The Home Office has not yet confirmed whether and when any of the recommendations may be adopted. Implementing threshold reductions may be considered too risky politically.
Temporary Shortage List review
The current TSL is due to expire on 31 December 2026. A replacement list is expected to be implemented before this, taking into account recommendations from the MAC’s review of the TSL which is due to be published in July 2026.
Equality (Race and Disability) Bill
This could require equal pay for sponsored and non sponsored workers, which may clash with sponsorship salary thresholds. Timing is uncertain, so factor in possible pay alignment pressure in 2026.
Increased costs and cost-related compliance
Affects sponsors
What happened in 2025?
The Immigration Skills Charge increased by 32% from 16 December 2025, adding £1,600 over 5 years for a medium or large sponsor of a non exempt worker. Sponsor priority service fees also increased from £200 to £350 per request.
These changes increase the cost burden to sponsors, who in addition must not pass specific sponsorship costs onto Skilled Workers (including in all circumstances the ISC).
Since April 2025, certain salary deductions, loan repayments and investments in the sponsoring business have been excluded from counting towards Skilled Worker salary thresholds. Read more on this development in our article.
What's expected in 2026?
Extension of the ban on passing on costs to other sponsored work routes
The ban currently only applies to Skilled Workers, but the plan is for it to be rolled out to other sponsored work routes. Read more in our article. We can expect to see this happen in 2026.
General compliance changes
Affects sponsors
What happened in 2025?
Here’s a summary of small changes with significant impact that sponsors should be aware of.
- Extended cooling off period: A cooling off period of at least 2 years applies to businesses whose licence is revoked for repeated non compliance or serious immigration breaches, during which a fresh licence cannot be obtained.
- Wider responsibility for compliance: A Person with Significant Control of a sponsoring business is now within the scope of the Home Office's considerations on licence grant, compliance, and any suspension or revocation action.
- Access changes to the Sponsor Management System (SMS): The primary Level 1 User of the SMS must be an employee, director, or partner of the sponsoring business and a settled worker. Transitional arrangements apply to sponsors who applied for their licence before 31 December 2024.
What's expected in 2026?
Sponsor licence compliance to remain a focus for the Home Office
We anticipate that suspension and revocation action for sponsors will remain high and could further intensify if there is non-compliance with the expanded illegal working regime.
We strongly recommend you proactively review your sponsor licence compliance, including identifying if a new sponsor licence is required due to historic group restructuring. This is an aspect the Home Office is scrutinising more routinely.
Maximum duration to increase for sponsor licence action plans
This will increase from 3 months to 12 months, with revocation action to follow if a sponsor fails to pay for the action plan, the action plan is not complied with, or the sponsor fails to make the improvements required by the end of the action plan.
Worker protections
Affects sponsors
What happened in 2025?
Publication of the government’s immigration White Paper, which includes proposals for new worker protections.
What's expected in 2026?
Changing sponsors may become easier for workers
The government will consider making it easier for sponsored workers to move between sponsors during the validity of their immigration permission, with a view to reducing the risk they will be exploited by being ‘trapped’ with an abusive sponsor.
This change, if implemented, may require sponsors to reevaluate their immigration and employment policies to retain staff.
Fair Work Agency to enforce employment laws
The Fair Work Agency will be established in April 2026 (but will only become fully operational once the responsibilities of the agencies it replaces are transferred). Its enforcement powers will be applicable to businesses found guilty of serious employment law breaches, and the Home Office intends to back this up with ‘tougher rules on sponsors flouting employment law’.
Visitors
Affects all businesses
What happened in 2025?
Full rollout of the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) for eligible visa-free nationalities from 2 April 2025. This is a pre-entry requirement for visit and other short-term purposes. For further information on ETAs, see our article here.
What's expected in 2026?
Full enforcement of ETAs
This will go live from 25 February 2026 following the end of an implementation period.
ETA-required passengers will not be able to board without one, so business travel policies should factor in a process for checking eligibility and applying in good time.
We anticipate more complex cases may come to light once ETA is fully enforced. For further information on how we can help with these, see here.
Greater scrutiny of business visitors
As sponsored work routes tighten, we anticipate more active scrutiny of the genuine visitor requirements in business visitor applications and arrivals.
You should ensure that the scope of activities for visitors is well defined and checked from an immigration perspective in advance, that visa applications are well-prepared and that invitation letters are clear and accurately reflect the proposed activities.
Contact a member of our immigration team if you need assistance with compliance advice or with an application.
eVisas on approval
Affects all businesses
What happened in 2025?
The issuing of eVisas on approval happened for Skilled Workers initially and was then extended across other work routes and dependants. It has a direct impact on right to work processes and record keeping. This development furthers the government’s goal of operating a fully digital immigration system.
What's expected in 2026?
Further rollout of eVisas
Visa stickers (vignettes) will stop being issued during 2026.
Make sure you have robust processes and systems in place for the completion of compliant right to work checks in line with the guidance as it evolves.
Other route-specific and system shifts to watch
Here’s a summary of other changes that all businesses should be aware of:
- Higher English language requirements for some work routes: For main applicants applying from 8 January 2026 in the Skilled Worker, High Potential Individual and Scale-up routes, the English language requirement is raised from Level B1 (intermediate) on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) to Level B2 (upper intermediate). Only those who need to rely on an approved English language test are affected, so we suggest flagging the new requirement as early as possible to give candidates the maximum time to prepare and sit the test. Those who intend to switch immigration route in-country before the expiry of an existing visa should ensure they sit the test in good time if required. Students and Graduates should not be affected as CEFR Level B2 English is ordinarily required under the Student route and they can rely on having met the requirement in that previous application.
Individuals already in the Skilled Worker or Scale-up routes are not affected by this change and can continue to apply in their existing route without needing to meet the higher English language requirement, provided they still have (or were last granted permission in) that route.
There is the possibility of further policy development in this area, as the MAC has mentioned in its most recent annual report that ‘high language requirements may exceed employers’ requirements, in which case such requirements may exclude workers who would otherwise have brought economic benefits and technical skills that are in high demand in the UK’. This issue may be touched on in the MAC’s review of the Skilled Worker Temporary Shortage List, which is due to be delivered in July 2026.
- English language requirements for all adult work route dependants: Adult work route dependants will be required to meet stepped English language proficiency criteria starting at A1 (beginner) for their initial application, rising to level A2 (elementary) at extension stage and level B2 (upper intermediate) at settlement. The implementation date for this is not yet known, but is expected during 2026.
- Shorter Graduate route: The length of permission under the Graduate route is being lowered from 2 years to 18 months for all applicants other than those with a PhD. The permission for PhD graduates will remain at 3 years. This change will affect individuals applying for the Graduate route on or after 1 January 2027. The reduced length of Graduate permission, combined with the abolition of the long residence settlement route (see below) and increased ISC may mean more and earlier requests for sponsorship, and more consideration of Student to Skilled Worker switches.
- Amendments to salary requirements in work routes: In addition to the Skilled Worker route salary amendments discussed above, the MAC has recommended the following changes, which the government will consider implementing:
- Senior or Specialist Workers: General threshold to be set at the median salary figure for eligible occupations, with occupation-specific thresholds rising from the 25th percentile to the 50th;
- Graduate Trainees: A single salary threshold of £33,400, in line with the recommendation for new entrants under the Skilled Worker route;
- UK Expansion Workers: General threshold to be set at the median salary figure for eligible occupations, with occupation-specific thresholds to be set at the 50th percentile; and
- Scale-up: Salary thresholds set in line with the Skilled Worker route (with the MAC also suggesting that the route could be abolished entirely without much consequence due to low take-up).
- Abolition of the long residence settlement route: Once earned settlement is implemented, the government intends to close the long residence settlement route. Affected individuals who wish to stay in the UK may seek sponsorship or pursue other extension options if they are eligible. If you have employees in this position, we suggest starting discussions about their plans and possible options as early as possible.
- Earned citizenship: Once the earned settlement model is in place, the government intends to introduce an aligned earned citizenship model. This will require amendments to primary legislation, so changes to citizenship may not happen this year. Our expectation is that it will be more difficult to become a British citizen under the earned citizenship model than it is currently. Those with settled status under the EUSS, people who have been granted settlement before the implementation of the earned settlement model and children are likely to be adversely affected. There could also be knock-on effects for those who wish to bring a partner or other family member to the UK. This is because under the earned settlement proposals, family members of British citizens may be eligible for a 5-year discount on their qualifying period for settlement.
- Settlement for EU Settlement Scheme pre-settled status holders: Since the beginning of 2025, some EEA/Swiss pre settled status holders may be granted settled status automatically. However, an automated upgrade is not possible for many applicants. Pre-settled status holders may wish to take advice on their eligibility for settlement, with a view to applying as soon as possible and, in turn, obtaining British citizenship before earned citizenship is implemented.
Conclusion
The government’s planned changes this year are intended to profoundly influence the behaviour of businesses and individuals using the immigration system.
We can help with an assessment of how your business may be impacted, including making recommendations; training options to ensure compliance with your duties; mock right to work and sponsor compliance audits; business visitor advisory and a toolkit of guides and resources. Get in touch with a member of our immigration team for more information on the options.