What has been announced
On 2 November 2026 the Home Office published "A Fairer Pathway to Settlement: Government Response to the Consultation". It sets out how indefinite leave to remain (ILR), also called settlement, will work in future.
These changes are not yet in force. The Home Office will change the Immigration Rules and publish guidance before implementation, and has not given a date. Until then the current ILR rules apply.
Care workers already in the UK
Care workers who "entered, or switched into, the route before publication of the Immigration White Paper in May 2025" keep a five-year route to settlement, provided they:
earn at least £25,000 a year
meet the sponsorship and employment requirements of their route
meet the new minimum requirements that apply to everyone (below)
A care worker in this group who does not meet the requirements after five years will not qualify at that point. They will be able to apply for a further five-year Health and Care visa, "restricted to genuine work in the sector", to give them more time. They will still have no recourse to public funds on that visa.
Care workers who entered or switched into the route after the White Paper was published will be on the standard 10-year route.
Other sponsored individuals
For everyone else on a work route, the starting point becomes 10 years, with shorter routes for:
5 years: earnings of at least £50,271 a year in three of the last five years
5 years: an eligible public service occupation, such as registered nurses, social workers, doctors and teachers
3 years: earnings of at least £125,141 a year in three of the last four years
The 10-year route needs earnings of at least £12,571 a year in five of the seven years before applying.
Health and education roles below degree level (RQF 6) that are paid on a national pay scale, such as nursing auxiliaries, keep a five-year route if the individual came to the UK before the May 2025 White Paper.
Minimum requirements for everyone
All applicants will need:
no UK criminal record (any adult with one "will be refused settlement")
no outstanding government debt, including NHS and tax debt
English at B2 level
a Life in the UK test pass
sustained contribution to the UK
Anyone who has accessed specified public funds in the five years before applying, or committed a specified immigration breach as an adult (such as overstaying or breaching a visa condition), will be on a 20-year route.
Partners and children
A partner who arrives with the main applicant can settle at the same time. A partner who joins later must complete the same qualifying period. Children under 18 can settle with their parents. Couples can combine earnings to meet a household threshold of £25,142.
Longer window after a sponsor licence is revoked
From 1 February 2027, care workers who lose their job because their sponsor's licence has been revoked will have "up to 120 days to get a secure job offer, and a further 60 days to resolve their visa and employment status". If they do not secure an offer within 120 days, or resolve their status within 180 days, their visa will be curtailed.
Until then the current 60-day period applies. See What Happens When a Sponsor Licence Is Revoked.
Individuals sponsored before 4 April 2024
The lower transitional salary rates for this group were due to end in 2030. The government will let them "extend their visas on their current terms until 2035".
What this means for you now
Your sponsor duties and the current ILR rules are unchanged until the Immigration Rules change. Worth checking now:
which of your care workers entered or switched into the care route before May 2025
whether those care workers are paid at least £25,000 a year
whether individuals approaching settlement hold B2 English evidence (see English Language Requirements for the Skilled Worker Visa)
We will update this article when the Immigration Rules are published.