Immigration White Paper webinar with the Home Office

Q. Is there a date for the Temporary Shortage List announcement in December?

A. The first phase of the Temporary Shortage List (TSL) review was published by the Migration Advisory Committee on 9 October. The second stage of the TSL review is open for a Call for Evidence (CfE) until 2 February 2026 and will be published in summer 2026. 

NHS Employers has contacted employers to collect evidence to support our submission to the CfE, looking into laboratory technicians (SOC 3111), medical and dental technicians (SOC 3213), data analysts (SOC 3544), and any other roles that passed through stage 1.

Q. Why is there currently incompatibility between immigration legislation and employment law? For example, with the removal of the Resident Labour Market Test in January 2021 and the Equalities Act, employers cannot reject candidates who don’t currently hold the right to work. Legal advice suggests employers would be indirectly discriminating by excluding people due visa requirements or due to sponsorship costs.

A. The Home Office recognises the difficulties and tensions between the Equalities Act and how this interacts with recruitment and employment law. The Home Office is also subject to the Equalities Act, and the issue requires a broader cross-governmental response. 

Home Office legal advice is that there is no legal obligation to offer sponsorship, however it is also aware that employers have had different legal advice. 

While immigration status is not a protected characteristic, race is a protected characteristic which could leave employers open to indirect discrimination claims. Employers cannot employ people who do not have a right to work. There is guidance on GOV.UK and NHS Employers on preventing discrimination when recruiting, but employers may wish to seek their own legal advice on this. 

Q. How will the White Paper affect existing visa holders — will there be transitional arrangements?

A. For the increased English language requirement, those already in the route prior to the requirements coming into force do not meet the higher B2 requirements. The increases to English language requirements will mainly impact those in unregistered professions, as those in registered roles normally must meet a higher requirement. 

For those currently in roles that have fallen out of being eligible for skilled work, they can continue to extend and switch employers as normal. This is the current situation and may be subject to change. 

For transitional arrangements on settlement, this will be determined by the outcome of the consultation. 

Q. What is the expected timeline for implementing the new immigration policies?

A. The increase to the Immigration Skills Charge is due to take effect from 16 December 2025. 

The increase in English language requirements for main applicants will come into force from 8 January 2026. The increase in English language requirements for dependants does not have a date yet, potentially sometime in 2026. 

The MAC review on salary threshold increases in due before the end of 2025, which will feed into considerations and salary thresholds are likely to increase in April 2026. There will be annual salary threshold increase in line with the latest pay scales.

The MAC review on the Temporary Shortage List will be published in July 2026. 

Reducing the unrestricted time to work on a Graduate Visa to 18 months will come into force 1 January 2027. 

Other changes from the Immigration White Paper that are broader than Skilled Worker Visas, and any other changes outside on the Immigration White Paper, will be rolled out over the duration of this parliament. 

Q. Under the proposed Immigration White Paper changes, will current visa holders still be eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after five years, or will the qualifying period change to 10 years?

A. The ILR changes are still being developed, including how they may apply to current visa holders.  There is a consultation on earned settlement, giving people a chance to have their say before policies are finalised.

NHS Employers will be feeding into this consultation on behalf of employers. 

Q. What is the processing time for Immigration Skills Charge refund when sponsored employee leave early and who do we contact when a refund is not received?

A. The standard timescale for refunds is 90 days. Further information about refunds can be found on GOV.UK. This page includes a contact UKVI link if you have not heard within that timeframe.

Q. Regarding the skills threshold, are we able to sponsor if the job requires "degree or equivalent experience" or does this need to be degree only?

A. The skills threshold relates to the job, rather than specific qualifications/experience. This GOV.UK page lists all roles that are eligible. 

Q. Can the 20 hours per week working limit on Student Visa be counted as average per month or has to be week only? 

A. It is 20 hours per week Monday to Sunday and can't be averaged out over a longer period. Students can work full time outside term time.

Q. Can we reject candidates who are on a Graduate Visa on the basis that their visa length will not covering the training period required for their role, or if they only have a short time left on their visa (eg three-six months)? 

A. Employers will need to seek their own legal advice on this, especially if the role that they are employed in on a Graduate Visa is not eligible for a Skilled Worker Visa. 

Legal advice some employers received is that it would be reasonable to reject candidates who could not complete the training period, but that was a specific case rather than advice in general.

It is important for employers to consider that a Graduate Visa gives the individual an unrestricted RTW and need to be mindful of potential claims of indirect discrimination. Employers need to identity those impacted and have open communication with candidates on how the rules will impact them, including expectations of finding an alternative RTW if they are in a role that is not eligible for sponsorship. 

Q. Will employers only be able to offer posts to the graduates that have graduated in an area they studied in?

A. No, Graduate Visas are not tied to an area where they studied in. They provide an unrestricted RTW in any role, the same way that those on a Dependant Visa or those that hold Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) do. 

Employers should use normal recruitment procedures, based on selecting the best candidate for the role through assessment of the job description, person specification etc. 

Q.  How can we continue to employ individuals on a Graduate Visa currently working in a Band 2 or Band 3 role if some of the positions do not meet the £25,000 salary threshold and are not included on the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List? How can we support these individuals once their Graduate Visas expire?

A. Employers need to identify the Graduate Visa holders and have clear conversations on what the changes mean for them, supporting development as much as possible, and being in a skilled role at the time where there Graduate Visa ends. Otherwise, they may not be in a role that meets the skills or salary threshold requirements, and therefore their employment will have to end. 

Band 2 jobs have never met the skills threshold, and based on 2025/2026 Agenda for Change pay scales, entry level Band 3 roles that do not receive a High-Cost Area Supplement (HCAS) are currently £63 short of the £25,000 salary threshold. 

In some cases, for example, those employed on the Graduate Visa route may have worked in the role for two years and therefore can progress to the top pay point, which will enable them to meet the salary threshold. 

NHS Employers has held conversations with employers on this impact and what it means for them. Employers should seek their own legal advice that still follow Agenda for Change Terms and Conditions. 

Salary thresholds apply at the time of making an application, and not throughout the duration of their visa, but also meet all relevant UK legislation. 

Q. Will the salary thresholds increase in 2026?

A. Yes, it is likely that there will be an increase to salary thresholds in April 2026. The ONS recently published its annual survey of hours and earnings, and will be working with analysts to review this data along with the MAC’s report on salary threshold review when published before the end of 2025. The results are therefore unknown, but this will likely trend upwards and at least increase based on the latest ONS data. 

If salary thresholds do increase in April, employers should be mindful of any potential gaps between the increase and any pay award announcements. 

NHS Employers have fed into the MAC commission on salary threshold review on behalf of employers, highlighting impacts across staff groups including Band 5 biomedical scientists. 

Q. The going rates on the government's website for Health and Care roles are 2024/25 AfC rates, should these be the 2025/26 rates?

A. Immigration Rules on salaries are typically updated at the start of April, and often need to be laid in Parliament before the new year's pay rates have been finalised.  This means the rules often lag behind - although we would expect employers to follow the latest pay scales.

Q. Can the enhancement pay contribute towards meeting the salary threshold?

A. No.

Q. Can employees holding a Health and Care Visa reduce their hours when their salary is the going rate (the entry point of the AfC scale)?

A. Yes they can, as long as they still earn the minimum salary required for that particular SOC code. They would still need to be paid the minimum threshold (usually £25,000), regardless of their working hours.

Q. With the recent immigration rule changes increasing the salary threshold for Skilled Worker Visas, what is the position of Band 3 health care assistants whose current visas are due to expire soon and who are unable to extend their visas due to not meeting the new salary requirement?

A. They would need to meet the £25,000 minimum threshold in an extension application. 

Q. A skilled worker has just obtained ILR. What does this mean for their dependants if we close the CoS? The dependants have not yet applied for ILR due to the cost.

A. Dependants can continue with their existing visas, apply to extend (for three years at a time) or settle, if the main applicant has settled.

Q. What will happen to the dependants of a new starter sponsored under SOC 6131?  The dependents cannot be added to the Skilled Worker Visa after the immigration changes applied from 22 July 2025. 

A. Dependants who have current visas can remain until those visas expire, but cannot extend if the main applicant wasn't already sponsored in the route before 22 July.  The only exceptions are for children born in the UK, or where the main applicant has sole responsibility for them, or where both parents are Skilled Worker Visa holders.

Q. Are we allowed to sponsor someone who has an ongoing FLR(O) application in progress? The Employment Checking Service (ECS) came back with negative verification notice.

A. An individual can only have one immigration application at a time. If they made a second, they would be asked which one they wanted to continue with, and the other would be withdrawn.

Q. When conducting a RTW check, e-Visas currently don’t show what visa someone is on, Certificate of Sponsorship, or sponsor name; will this be implemented? This is a field we are required to complete when entering our new starters on to the Electronic Staff Record (ESR). Can employers request an Immigration Share Code to view this information or a screen shot of their RTW information? 

A. For employers to maintain their statutory excuse, employers need to ensure that candidates have a legal basis to work, which is currently provided by an e-Visa RTW check. The Home Office is aware that some information previously viewable on a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) is no longer viewable on an e-Visa, such as visa type. Employers require the full visa type, start date and end date for employment records in terms of what options are available to that individual following the expiry of that visa as well as workforce planning and management. 

In a previous webinar, the Home Office offered to engage with employers and their representative bodies, to evaluate safeguards and ensure the right to work scheme remains in step with broader pre-employment checking responsibilities and processes.  

Where necessary, employers are able to seek additional information or supporting documentation from sponsored workers to comply with their sponsorship requirements.

Q. An individual has submitted their new visa application, and a decision is currently pending. We used the Employer Checking Service (ECS) to conduct a RTW check and the ECS response indicates that the individual can work for their sponsor, but it is unclear whether sponsor refers to the new trust (whose CoS has been used) or the previous employer who sponsored them. 

Is there is any guidance on how to read this ECS response where the individual has switched employers because it does not state which employer the check refers to?

A. The individual's application is key here. The application needs to be approved before they have permission to work for their new sponsor. The CoS being marked as used only means the application is under consideration, and does not change their permission to work.

Q. Our team come across a lot of service/web page errors with the checking service both for Right to Work and immigration status: is this a common issue with the web pages?

A. This can be helped by deleting your browser history. 

Q. When will the SMS portal have a user-friendly front end for employers with the ability to see all live sponsorships? 

A. The Home Office recently stopped the SMS transformation system, but will look into future improvements into the current system. 

SMS considerations from employers: 

• With recent concerns raised about fraudulent use of SMS; a reporting function to easily review/audit CoS assigned and by who would be reassuring.
• Clearly display refund information within the SMS system.
• Provide a centralised view of all live assigned Certificates of Sponsorship.
• Offer a dedicated section to easily access not assigned CoS records.