BREAKING NEWS: Five-year settlement rights given to health and care workers
By Lee Peart
02 November 2026
In a major policy shift aimed at stabilizing the nation’s health and social care workforce, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced that thousands of migrant health and care workers will be granted a pathway to settlement after five years of service.
Delivering a statement to the House of Commons today, the Home Secretary confirmed that the government would overhaul immigration requirements, ensuring that the time spent waiting for permanent residency is determined by a worker’s professional contribution and character rather than arbitrary visa hurdles.
“I am providing a five-year settlement for care workers who lived up to the promise they made on coming to this country, worked hard, and answered our call when we needed them,” Mahmood stated.
Under the new reforms, care workers earning at least £25,000 who arrived in the UK prior to May 2025 will be eligible for the five-year settlement route. Additionally, the Home Secretary announced transitional arrangements for lower-income care workers who arrived between 2022 and 2025. These individuals will be offered a five-year “care visa” and provided with institutional support to secure roles with legitimate, high-standard care providers. Once these five-year visas expire, these workers will also have the opportunity to apply for permanent settlement status.
The policy change extends beyond the social care sector. Crucial public sector roles identified by the Migration Advisory Committee—including auxiliary nurses and specific positions within education—will be afforded the same protections. This measure ensures that healthcare support workers are finally treated equitably alongside their clinical counterparts, such as doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists.
The announcement has been met with widespread relief and praise from industry leaders, who have long campaigned against the uncertainty faced by migrant staff.
Simon Bottery, Senior Fellow at The King’s Fund, described the move as a long-overdue recognition of the essential role migrants play in the UK’s social care infrastructure. “It was unfair to invite people to come and work in social care only to change the terms on which they came to the UK after they had arrived,” Bottery noted.
Dr. Dora-Olivia Vicol, chief executive of the Work Rights Centre, echoed this sentiment, adding that the previous requirement for many workers to wait up to 15 years for settlement was “never right.”
Ben Morrin, chief executive of NHS Employers, highlighted the immediate impact on the health service, noting that the change will directly benefit over 10,000 current NHS healthcare support workers. By aligning the immigration status of support staff with that of doctors, midwives, and physiotherapists, the government hopes to improve retention and morale across the public sector.
Today’s announcement marks a significant pivot in government strategy, prioritizing stability for the workers who form the backbone of the nation’s most vital services.
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