On 22 July 2025, changes to the Skilled Worker visa route came into effect, making it a lot harder for migrants to be sponsored.

These changes were brought in off the back of the government’s white paper titled 'Restoring control over the immigration system', which was published just three months earlier, in May.

Our team have summarised the July 2025 changes and explained the changes to the increased salary and skills thresholds.

With the removal of around 180 job codes, the expansion of the Immigration Salary List, and introduction of the new Temporary Shortage List, advising on this route has become a lot more complex.

There are now eight different tables from which sponsored migrants might be able to “score” points from, with different salary thresholds in each. The applicability of the relevant table now largely depends on whether the (prospective) sponsored migrant:

• was initially sponsored under the Skilled Worker route under the rules in place before 4 April 2024;
• was initially sponsored under the Skilled Worker route under the rules in place before 22 July 2025; or
• is being sponsored under the Skilled Worker route for the first time from 22 July 2025.

This makes it a lot harder for HR teams and their advisers to recommend the best course of action, without first delving into an individual’s UK immigration history – in greater detail than was previously required. This is on top of the ongoing duties and obligations relating to the reporting and record-keeping requirements.

One thing that sponsors should note from the July 2025 changes is that neonatal care leave has now been added as a “permissible absence” under the Skilled Worker route – in line with the statutory leave entitlement available since April 2025.

What other changes might be expected?

Based on the May 2025 white paper, we might see some or all of the following proposed changes in the near future.

New advisory body

The white paper proposes to establish the Labour Market Evidence Group to influence policies. The government would also like to launch new requirements for workforce strategies – focusing on sectors with high levels of recruitment from abroad. The aim of both these proposals would be to reduce reliance on immigration.

Boosting domestic talent and skills

If implemented, employers would be expected to strengthen the resident labour market by training up domestic talent and skills. Employers who are not committed to doing this would likely face restrictions on their ability to sponsor migrants.

Immigration Skills Charge

Initially introduced in 2017, the government intends to increase the cost of the Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) (for the first time since inception) by 32%, in line with inflation.

For example, a medium-sized organisation which currently wants to sponsor a migrant for five years would need to pay £5,000 upfront. If this levy is increased as proposed, it would cost an extra £1,600 to the business for the same period, bringing the total to £6,600.

This is on top of the fee to assign a “Certificate of Sponsorship” which was increased to £525 in April 2025.

Indefinite leave to remain (“ILR”)

Currently, a sponsored Skilled Worker migrant needs to spend five years in the UK continuously in this route to be eligible to apply for ILR.

The proposals could see this time double to 10 years and may potentially affect migrants currently already in the UK as it may have retrospective effect. If implemented, this could mean that the same sponsor could go from currently paying £5,000 for the ISC for a five-year period to £13,200 over a 10-year period (based on the proposed changes).

This is a substantive change and could be costly to both employers and individuals. Whilst the above changes could be implemented relatively quickly, it is expected that this would need to go through a period of consultation – likely towards the end of this year before any proper changes come into effect which may be as early as April 2026.

Conclusion

It seems clear that the government will only make sponsorship even harder and more costly as time goes on – with an emphasis on employers to train and invest in domestic talent. As the goal posts keep moving and with increasing costs, it is recommended that businesses revisit their recruitment strategy and budget. This includes factoring in costs to discuss strategy and seeking advice from legal advisers. As further changes are anticipated, bringing forwards sponsorship might make sense to minimise risk of future changes removing or affecting this option.

For advice or support about the changes to immigration rules or assistance with submitting an immigration application, get in touch with our immigration team.

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