2025 Immigration Uncertainty and how to Navigate Changes to the Immigration Rules
As UK Immigration Solicitors, we aim to provide the best immigration legal advice. With all the immigration rule changes and announcements about further rule changes, it is not surprising that visa applicants, UK business owners reliant on overseas workers, those living in the UK with pre-settled status or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme or those in the UK on visas hoping to secure Indefinite Leave to Remain, feel that they are facing an uncertain immigration future. Even those who already hold Indefinite Leave to Remain are worried about being asked to leave the UK if the Reform UK Party wins the next general election.
In this blog, our London Immigration Lawyers look at the immigration rule changes and the forthcoming changes and explain what you can do to prepare for the changes.
Contact OTS Solicitors Today for Expert Immigration Legal Advice.
Visa statistics
The statistics show a reduction in the number of UK Work Visas and Student Visas granted. The September 2025 statistics published in October 2025 reveal:
- Applications for Skilled Worker Visas have gradually reduced, with 2,700 applications in September 2025. In contrast, between June 2022 and March 2024, about 6,000 applications were submitted per month, before rising as employers and applicants sought to submit applications before the 2024 immigration rule changes.
- Applications for Dependant Visas for the dependants of Skilled Worker Visa applicants have matched the reduction in Skilled Worker Visa applications, with 3,400 applications made in September 2025.
- In September 2025, there were 700 Health and Care Worker Visa applications, a vast fall from the pre-July 2025 immigration rule changes.
- Applications for Student Visas in the year ending September 2025 were 7% higher than the year ending September 2024. However, the figure fell from 2023. The most significant change in annual Student Visa applications is the fall in Dependant Visa applications where the primary visa applicant is applying for a Student Visa. There were 22,500 applications from students' dependants in the year ending September 2025. This amounts to an 85% fall in Dependant Visa applications compared to the year ending 2023. This is due to immigration rule changes that came into force in January 2024, which restricted the eligibility criteria for Dependant Visa applications when the primary applicant is applying for a Student Visa.
The only visa applications on the increase are Family Visa applications, with September 2025 statistics showing 8,400 applications. This is an increase from mid-2024, when the number of applications fell to 5,100 in June 2024 due to the increased financial requirements for Family Visa applications.
Forthcoming immigration rule changes
In May 2025, the UK government published its White Paper ‘Restoring Control Over the Immigration System’. The aim is to introduce rule changes to limit net migration figures and the number of visa holders eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after meeting a five-year residence requirement.
The forthcoming immigration rule changes include:
- An enhanced English language requirement for some visa applicants.
- An increase in the immigration skills charge payable by UK employers who sponsor overseas workers (the increase will be implemented in December 2025 and amounts to over a 30% increase).
- Increasing the residence requirement for many Indefinite Leave to Remain applicants from five to ten years.
- Changing the settlement eligibility criteria to introduce an ‘earned element’ to UK settlement.
- Reducing the length of the Graduate Visa from two years to 18 months.
These immigration rule changes are in addition to:
- Sponsor licence holders can now only sponsor recruits on the Skilled Worker Visa if the job is a degree-level job (RQF level 6 or above) instead of an A-level grade job.
- Businesses with sponsor licences can only sponsor jobs below RQF level 6 if the job is on the Temporary Shortage List. The shortage list is in addition to the Immigration Salary List. A sponsored job qualifies for inclusion on the Temporary Shortage List only if the RQF levels 3 to 5 job is classified as in shortage or critical need in the UK.
- The end of Health and Care Worker Visas for carers and senior carers.
Who will be affected by the planned settlement rule changes?
The proposed earned settlement rules and an extended residence requirement of ten years will affect:
- Skilled Worker Visa holders.
- British national (overseas) Visa holders.
- Some other visa holders on the five-year route.
The government has said that the ten-year earned settlement proposals will not impact:
- Family Visa holders where their partner is a British citizen.
- Victims of domestic violence who are currently entitled to use the domestic violence concession to secure early Indefinite Leave to Remain.
- Those with settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme.
The government intends to consult on the planned rule changes to the settlement process. Much has been said in the media about the reduction in the state benefits bill if the settlement period is doubled from five to ten years. However, UK Immigration Solicitors argue that everyone will be financially affected by the proposed settlement rule changes because:
- Some visa holders will need to wait an extra five years before they qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain. The delay in settling in the UK will result in additional visa application fees and an additional five years of paying the immigration health surcharge. The other main issue is that those with a visa status, rather than ILR, cannot claim state benefits or sponsor a family member to come to the UK on a Spouse Visa, Unmarried Partner Visa, or Adult Dependent Relative Visa.
- Employers with sponsor licences will need to sponsor Skilled Worker Visa holders for an additional five years, increasing their sponsor licence reporting and recording duties, payment for certificate of sponsorship allocation and the immigration skills charge and potentially making the recruitment of overseas workers harder because the brightest and best overseas recruits may be more attracted to work in countries where the route to settlement is less than ten years.
- Consumers and the general public will be adversely financially affected as employers will need to pass on the increased cost of recruiting overseas workers on Skilled Worker Visas, with increased prices of their goods or services.
At present, it is unclear whether the planned earned settlement rule changes will apply to Skilled Worker Visa holders in the UK before the changes take effect. If the government introduces changes to settlement that affect existing sponsored employees, this may prompt them to leave the UK or explore switching to non-sponsored visa routes.
Navigating immigration rule changes
At present, many visa holders are in limbo, unsure whether they will qualify for ILR after five years of UK residence or if they will need to wait ten years. Equally, business owners, recruiters and HR directors are struggling to formulate business plans and properly cost them, strategise overseas recruitment and training plans and plan for growth or increased sponsorship overheads.
At a time of immigration uncertainty, what can individuals and UK employers do? Our UK Immigration Lawyers recommend:
- Individual visa applicants take specialist immigration legal advice before applying for a UK visa to work out the best visa route for their circumstances and for settlement advice.
- Existing visa holders take advice from an expert Immigration Solicitor on how to ensure they meet the five-year residence requirement and general eligibility criteria for Indefinite Leave to Remain so they can make their application before any changes to the ILR rules.
- Those in the UK with ILR status consider applying for British citizenship as soon as they meet the eligibility criteria because the Reform UK Party has said that it would abolish Indefinite Leave to Remain status if it wins the next general election.
- Employers with sponsor licences or those looking to apply for a sponsor licence speak to Sponsorship Licence Lawyers about how best to manage the increased focus on sponsor licence compliance, the heightened risk of sponsor licence suspension or revocation, and how to plan a business, employment, immigration and recruitment strategy in changing times as well as how best to support their sponsored and overseas employees in times of uncertainty.
At OTS Solicitors, our personal immigration and business immigration teams can help you navigate the current and potential immigration rule changes.
OTS Solicitors is recommended in the 2026 editions of the Legal 500 and Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession. We provide expert immigration legal advice that is tailored to your needs.
Contact OTS Solicitors Today for Expert Immigration Legal Advice.
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