| Net migration levels | Net migration is the measure of migration most commonly used in the UK political debate. It is the number of people coming to UK from overseas, minus the number of people leaving. In 2023, net migration was 685,000, well above levels of around 200,000 to 300,000 seen during the 2010s. More: Net migration to the UK | The Conservative Party has said immigration is too high and has proposed an annual cap on work and family migration. The specific level would be based on recommendations by the Migration Advisory Committee, who would be given a remit to reduce net migration year-on-year while taking the economic impact of migration into account. In December 2023, the Home Secretary, James Cleverly announced several measures designed to reduce immigration levels. Specific changes are discussed with the relevant policy area. | The Labour Party has not set a specific target for net migration level, but Shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, said the party would introduce measures to reduce net migration. These changes are discussed within the relevant policy area. |
| Work migration | The Skilled Worker visa is the largest work migration route in the UK. People coming to the UK on this visa must be sponsored for a job which meets certain skill and salary requirements. Jobs added to the Immigration Salary List (previously Shortage Occupation List) can meet a lower salary threshold to be valid for a visa. More: Migrants in the UK Labour Market: An Overview, How will new salary thresholds affect UK migration? and The ban on care workers’ family members: what will be the impact? | The government initially liberalised non-EU work migration after Brexit, but partially reversed the liberalisations in early 2024. Care workers have been unable to bring their dependants to the UK since March 2024, and the minimum salary required for a Skilled Worker visa increased from £26,200 to £38,700 in April 2024. There are some exemptions to the salary threshold, such as for care and senior care workers. In addition, people coming to the UK to work in jobs on the Immigration Salary List must be paid either £30,960 or the median earnings for the specific occupation, whichever is higher. Levels of work migration would be subject to an annual cap if the party is re-elected (see net migration levels), and the Skilled Worker salary threshold would be increased in line with inflation. | Labour says it would ask the Migration Advisory Committee to review the impact of raising the Skilled Worker salary threshold to £38,700, but the ban on care workers' dependants would be retained. Under Labour's proposals, the Migration Advisory Committee would be linked to bodies setting out industrial and skills strategy. Government departments and employers in sectors applying for high numbers of Skilled Worker visas would be required to draw up "skills improvement plans" to train UK-based workers. The party has also said it would revoke sponsor licenses from employers which do not comply. Related to this, in November 2022, the Shadow Immigration Minister, Stephen Kinnock, said the party would review the decision to scrap the ‘resident labour market test’, which requires employers to show they have tried to recruit in UK before hiring from overseas. Employers who breach employment law, such as by paying below the minimum wage, would be banned from hiring migrant workers. |
| Student migration and the graduate route | The migration of international students and their family members is the largest single group explaining the rise in net migration since 2019. In 2023, 143,500 visas were issued to student dependants, an all-time high. After graduating, international students can live and work in the UK for two years (or three, if they are a PhD graduate) by switching to a post-study work visa, known as the Graduate Visa. More: Student migration to the UK | In January 2024, the Conservative Party banned most students from bringing their family members with them to the UK. The Conservatives have proposed further measures to address “rogue recruitment agents”, restrict remote teaching, and make it possible for universities who accept international students who fail to pass Home Office visa checks to lose their sponsor licences. | The Shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, has said that Labour will retain the ban on students’ family members. The Labour Party has not publicly commented on the review of the Graduate Route. |
| Family income threshold | The minimum income that British citizens and migrants with Indefinite Leave to Remain must earn to bring partners and children from overseas to live with them in the UK. It was first introduced in 2012. More: Family fortunes: The UK’s new income requirement for partner visas | The minimum income requirement was increased from £18,600 to £29,000 in April 2024. This was the first of three proposed rises. The Conservatives have said they plan to raise the threshold until it reaches £38,700 in early 2025. The Conservative Party manifesto says this threshold would be automatically increased in line with inflation if the party is re-elected. | A Labour Party spokesperson has reportedly said that the Party has “real concerns” about the increase in the minimum income requirement to £38,700, and would ask the Migration Advisory Committee to review the change. |
| Immigration fees | Migrants applying for UK visas must usually pay fees. The main costs include: visa application fees; applications fees for in-country visa extensions; the Immigration Health Surcharge; and settlement and citizenship fees. More: | In October 2023, the Home Office increased the fees for various immigration and nationality applications. The Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) was increased in February 2024. The government suggested that the fee increase would indirectly help to fund a pay rise for the police, while the higher rate of IHS would reflect the estimated average cost of providing NHS services to migrants who face the surcharge. If re-elected, the Conservatives would increase immigration application fees by 25% and remove the Immigration Health Surcharge discount for international students. In addition, migrants would be required to undergo a health check before receiving an entry visa. Those who are more likely to use the NHS would either be charged a higher rate of IHS or would have to buy health insurance. | The Labour Party has not publicly commented on the increases to immigration charges. |
| Youth Mobility Scheme visas | The Youth Mobility visa scheme (YMS) gives non-renewable work visas to younger people (usually aged 18 to 30) with which the UK has signed an agreement. YMS holders do not need an employer to sponsor them and are not tied to specific jobs. There are caps on visa numbers for each nationality. In April 2024, the EU published a proposal to negotiate a YMS with the UK More: Work visas and migrant workers in the UK | A government spokesperson said that the party “are not introducing an EU-wide youth mobility scheme”. According to newspaper reports, it has previously offered bilateral YMS deals to individual EU countries, including Spain, Germany and Poland. | In response to the EU’s proposals, a Labour Party spokesperson said that the party has “no plans for a youth mobility scheme” with the EU. |
| Exploitation of migrant care workers | While it is not possible to quantify the scale of exploitation of migrants workers in the care sector, qualitative evidence suggests it is a widespread issue. Reported types of exploitation highlighted by the Migration Advisory Committee and ICIBI include modern slavery, unpaid hours, and bonded labour (i.e., being forced to work to pay off debts). | Since March 2024, care providers must be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to sponsor migrant care workers. | Labour has said it would launch a "full investigation" into the treatment of migrant care workers. More broadly, Labour would ban employers which breach employment law from hiring migrant workers. |
