By Pooja Kaur, Solicitor (LLB Hons)
The government recently published a Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules (HC 1695) on 5 March 2026 which will become effective on 26 March 2026.
The key changes, which are likely to affect businesses and migrant workers in the UK, are set out below.
If you require any immigration assistance – either as an individual or a business – please get in touch with our team.
Summary
The March 2026 reforms introduce stricter eligibility, compliance and settlement requirements while increasing flexibility in select routes. Key changes include extending visa requirements to Nicaragua and St Lucia, tightening Skilled Worker salary monitoring and excluding Afghan nationals, alongside more flexible Global Business Mobility rules and an expanded Global Talent route.
Settlement standards will rise, with higher English language requirements, and broader refusal grounds linked to criminality and immigration breaches. Additional reforms streamline processes, such as biometric reuse, while tightening asylum, student and EU Settlement Scheme rules.
Expansion of visa regime to include nationals of Nicaragua and St Lucia
On 5 March 2026, the visa regime was expanded to include nationals of Nicaragua and St Lucia. Consequently, they were also removed from Appendix Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) as an eligible nationality.
Transitional arrangements allow these nationals to travel to the UK without a visa where:
- They hold a valid ETA.
- They have a confirmed travel booking to the UK (made before 5 March 2026) with an entry date before 3pm on 16 April 2026.
- The planned entry date to the UK has not been brought forward to a date that falls before 3pm on 16 April 2026.
Skilled workers
Afghan nationals will be ineligible for a Skilled Worker visa if they apply on or after 26 March 2026.
From 8 April 2026, a change is being made to the salary requirements so that a worker must be paid the required salary in each pay period, subject to variations already permitted in the Immigration Rules.
This change ensures that UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI) do not need to wait until a full year of salary has been paid where there are concerns about underpayment.
This is intended to help support worker welfare and ensure that, where underpayment is identified, the sponsor is notified and has an opportunity to explain or remedy the issue early, or for compliance action to be taken before an individual is significantly impacted.
Specifically, sponsors will need to be aware of the following:
- The salary paid to a sponsored worker in each pay period must equal or exceed the going rate for their SOC code for every hour worked in that pay period.
- Subject to permitted salary subtractions and uneven hours:
- where the sponsored worker is paid at a frequency of monthly or less, the salary paid over any three-month period must be at least equal to a quarter of the required annual salary; and
- where the sponsored worker is paid more frequently, the salary paid to the worker over any 12-week period must be at least equal to 12/52 of the required annual salary.
- If the worker is being sponsored to work a pattern where the regular hours are not the same each week, resulting in uneven pay, the sponsor must confirm the working pattern and the salary over any 17-week period must be at least equal to 17/52 of the required annual salary.
Global Business Mobility
From 8 April 2026, the qualifying period of overseas employment for the Global Business Mobility – Secondment Worker route will be reduced from 12 to six months.
This will provide greater flexibility for businesses and attract more high-value contracts to the UK.
For the Global Business Mobility – Service Supplier route, provisions have been made to include Indian nationals. This proposed change will implement the UK’s entry and temporary stay commitments taken in the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and India, once that agreement enters into force (planned for end of March). This will allow service suppliers entry for up to 12 months at a time.
Global talent
From 1 July 2026, the Global Talent route will be expanded to include a design pathway, covering additional design roles not previously catered for, making it easier for top design talent to use the Global Talent visa.
The fast-track route will also be simplified to clarify which individuals in eligible academic or research positions can access the pathway.
The existing provisions have previously caused some confusion, leading applicants who would have been eligible for the fast-track route to apply through the full peer review pathway; a longer, more involved process
Separately, the Migration Advisory Committee has issued a call for evidence on the Global Talent (and Innovator Founder) routes as part of its self-commissioned review into how best to attract talent to the UK (for more information see Legal update, Migration Advisory Committee issues call for evidence on the Global Talent and Innovator Founder visa routes).
Changes to English language requirements for settlement
From 26 March 2027, level B2 English (A-Level equivalent) will be required for settlement applications (increased from level B1 (GCSE equivalent)) across most visa routes, including but not limited to:
- Spouse
- Skilled Worker
- Scale-up
- Ancestry
- Global Talent
- Innovator Founder
- Long Residence
This is in line with the government’s proposals in its White Paper on immigration (see here).
These changes will affect those who are already in the UK on one of the affected visa routes and are on a pathway to settlement.
However, the Home Secretary has confirmed that the implementation date of 26 March 2027 provides “those subject to the new requirements with sufficient opportunity to take any steps necessary to meet them” (read more here).
Part suitability
From 26 March 2026, the mandatory grounds for refusal will be extended in line with the changes to the duty to deport foreign national offenders introduced by the Sentencing Act 2026.
The mandatory ground for refusal based on a 12-month custodial sentence is being expanded to also include suspended sentences of the same length.
The discretionary provision for refusals based on current or previous breach of immigration law is being expanded to also apply to visa applications overseas in addition to the current applications in the UK and applications on arrival.
Biometrics
From 8 April 2026, changes will enable applicants who have previously enrolled their biometrics under controlled conditions, such as at a Visa and Citizenship Application Service centre, and who are making a new immigration application, to have their identity reused.
This means that the individual does not need to re-establish their identity by producing an in-date passport, or any other form of satisfactory identification document.
It will be achieved by the applicant uploading a “live” facial image using the Generic Identity Document Verification app, which will be biometrically compared to the image they enrolled under controlled conditions and is stored on the Immigration and Asylum Biometric System.
The explanatory memorandum explains that this is intended to reduce the number of times an applicant has to attend a biometrics centre in their journey to settlement.
EU Settlement Scheme
From 29 April 2026, changes to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) will introduce a new suitability requirement which, where proportionate, will allow an EUSS application to be refused if it is more likely than not that the person has assisted another individual to fraudulently obtain, or attempt to obtain, entry clearance to the UK or permission to enter or remain.
From 8 April 2026, additional validity requirements will be introduced for the EUSS family permit to reject out-of-scope applications and improve customer service for those in scope.
Other changes from 26 March 2026:
- Nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan will be ineligible for sponsored student visas.
- Anyone receiving a suspended sentence of 12 months or more faces mandatory refusal or cancellation of their visa.
- Asylum seekers who have waited for over a year for their claim to be decided and have permission from the Home Office to work will only be permitted to work in a role that appears on Appendix Skilled Occupations, as long as it is RQF skill level 6 or above (degree level). At present, they can undertake any employment as long as it’s included in Appendix Immigration Salary List.
- Refugees and those needing humanitarian protection will now be granted 30 months (2.5 years) of stay instead of the previous 5 years.
- The specific circumstances in which a child can be granted settlement to join a “relative” in the UK, under Part 8 of the Immigration Rules, will be clarified to confirm that a child should settle in the UK when both parents are settled or are British citizens. If only one parent is settled the child will only be granted settlement if that parent has sole responsibility (where, for example, the other parent is deceased or has abdicated responsibility) or there are compelling and compassionate circumstances.
From 8 April 2026, the British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) route is being amended to include the adult children of someone with BN(O) nationality if they were born after 1 July 1979 for eligibility under this route.
If you are unsure how these changes may affect your circumstances, or you are planning an application in the near future, it is worth seeking tailored advice.
Please speak with one of our experienced immigration solicitors who can help you navigate the rules with confidence, avoid costly mistakes and put forward the strongest possible application.