Care homes face ban on recruiting workers from abroad in huge visa crackdown

Care homes will be ordered to recruit from the UK under a major shake-up of immigration rules.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the Government will close the care worker visa route to end the reliance on overseas staff as part of a package of reforms due to be unveiled on Monday.

But care operators warned the move could deepen persistent staffing shortages, risking harm to older and disabled people. The Homecare Association, which represents operators, said the sector was struggling to fill over 130,000 vacancies - despite more than 185,000 overseas recruits who joined the workforce between 2021/22 and 2023/24.

Ms Cooper told the BBC: "We will allow them [care operators] to continue to extend visas and also to recruit from – there’s more than 10,000 people who came on a care worker visa where the sponsorship visa was cancelled.

"Effectively they came to jobs that weren’t actually here or that were not of the proper standard, they are here and care companies should be recruiting from that pool of people rather than recruiting from abroad. So we are closing recruitment from abroad."

She added: "We're doing it alongside saying we need to being in a new fair pay agreement for care workers."

Dr Jane Townson, Chief Executive of the Homecare Association, said international recruitment was "a lifeline" for providers. She said: "Care providers are already struggling to recruit within the UK. We are deeply concerned the Government has not properly considered what will happen to the millions of people who depend on care at home to live safely and independently.”

She warned ministers the plans were being introduced in a "vacuum" as promised fair pay agreements for the sector designed to encourage Brits to join the workforce are still being worked on.

Dr Townson said: "We urge the government to consult with the sector and agree interim measures allowing care providers to recruit sufficient staff. Otherwise, we risk repeating the chaos of 2021, when care shortages increased hospital admissions, delayed hospital discharges and left thousands without the help they needed.”

The Liberal Democrats called on the Government to "step up" and pay care workers "properly". Health and social care spokeswoman Helen Morgan said: "Labour must step up and take proper action to address recruitment shortages including paying our care workers properly and rolling out a plan for career progression.

"This action must be taken without delay to ensure patients can receive the high quality care they need."

It comes as the Government prepares to unveil long awaited plans for a crackdown on immigration on Monday.

The Home Secretary said she was aiming for a "substantial" reduction in net migration figures - the difference between the number of people arriving in the UK and leaving each year. Net migration reached 728,000 in 2024, despite a string of Tory PMs promising to bring it down.

Ms Cooper refused to set a Tory-style target on the numbers, saying: "We're not going to take that really failed approach, because I think what we need to do is rebuild credibility and trust in the whole system."

But she said she expected around 50,000 fewer lower skilled visas to be approved next year due to changes to the care visa and the skilled worker visa.

Today, the Home Office confirmed that the skills threshold for visas will be increased to graduate level, with salary thresholds increasing to match. Officials will also set up a labour market evidence group to examine which sectors are reliant on overseas workers.

Ministers will also reform deportation rules so the Home Office is notified of all foreign nationals convicted of offences, which officials say will make it easier to remove people who commit offences.

It comes as Labour seeks to neutralise the threat from Nigel Farage after Reform UK swept to power in 10 councils in England and snatched a by-election win in Labour-held Runcorn and Helsby by six votes.