The UK government will publish an immigration white paper later this year that will review the current rules around recruiting high-skilled workers from overseas.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced the plans at a breakfast event at the World Economic Forum in Davos today (22 January).

She said: “We are going to look again at routes for the highest skilled people, [looking at] visas particularly in the areas of AI and life sciences.

“Britain is open for business, we are open for talent, we’ve got some of the best universities, some of the best entrepreneurs in the world, but we also want to bring in global talent.”

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Shortly after the Labour government came into power, it pledged to take a “serious” approach to immigration, and tasked the Migration Advisory Committee with producing a series of reports from sectors highly reliant on overseas talent.

Migration policy would be linked to skills and wider labour market trends, it said, encouraging employers to focus on training domestic workers where possible.

Under the current visa system, employers can recruit staff from overseas if they qualify for a skilled worker visa and meet the salary threshold of £38,700 or £30,960 if a role is on the immigration salary list.

The Conservative government also introduced a number of policy changes whereby students were forbidden from bringing dependants into the UK on their visa, as were care workers. This contributed to a 20% decline in net migration in the year to 2024.

Karendeep Kaur, legal director at immigration law firm Migrate UK, said: “Although this may be welcome news for those sectors which require these specialist skills, many businesses will still shy away from the prospect of hiring overseas talent in the UK, given the strict employer guidelines in place and ever-increasing demands on visa costs.

“For this to be successful, businesses will need reassurance that the prospect of gaining specialist talent will outweigh the demands placed on them as sponsor licence holders.”

Ministers will now consult with businesses about potential changes to the regime to bring in top talent. British diplomats will also be tasked with highlighting the benefits of coming to live in the UK for highly skilled workers and entrepreneurs.

UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) is currently undergoing a transition to a fully digital immigration system, replacing physical documents with digital eVisas.

MAC’s most recent annual report, meanwhile, points to a need for a nuanced approach to reducing immigration – warning against a “one-size-fits-all” approach to skills and recruitment.

Kaur added: “Since 31 December 2024 UKVI announced that businesses will face instant revocation of their licence should they be found to be ‘clawing back’ certain sponsorship-associated costs such as the sponsor licence application fee.

“In addition, businesses are expected to have stringent policies in place to monitor their overseas workforce and with UKVI having the authority to conduct an audit at any moment, the increased pressure for compliance may deter businesses in applying for a sponsor licence.”

Kaur also pointed out that high visa fees, which must be paid alongside immigration health fees, were deterring many businesses.

She said: “As enticing as it may be to work and live in the UK, there is still demand for the government to reduce overall migration to the UK, which in turn places them in a precarious position on how lenient these routes can be.”

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