Published: 3 November 2026 | Category: Immigration Law | Reading time: ~9 mins
Care workers who entered or switched into the Health and Care route before the Immigration White Paper in May 2025 will keep a five-year route to indefinite leave to remain (ILR), provided they earn at least £25,000 a year and meet the sponsorship, employment and new minimum requirements. The Home Office confirmed this on 2 November 2026 in A Fairer Pathway to Settlement: Government Response to the Consultation. The 15-year wait first proposed for care workers has been dropped.
That is a major change from the November 2025 consultation, which proposed 15 years for anyone sponsored below degree level (RQF 6). But the protection is not automatic. Your start date, your salary and your sponsor all decide which route you are on. This guide explains care worker ILR under the new rules, step by step.
Key points at a glance
- Care workers on the route before May 2025 keep a 5-year ILR route if they meet the £25,000 salary, sponsorship and employment requirements.
- Those who do not meet the requirements at five years get a second chance: a further five-year Health and Care visa, restricted to genuine care work, with no recourse to public funds.
- Care workers who entered or switched in after May 2025 move to the standard 10-year route.
- From 1 February 2027, care workers whose sponsor loses its licence get up to 180 days to find a new sponsor and sort out their status.
- Every applicant must meet new minimum requirements: no UK criminal record as an adult, no government debt, the Life in the UK test and B2 English (from 26 March 2027).
- Nothing has changed in law yet. The current five-year rules apply until new Immigration Rules are laid before Parliament.
What has the government decided about care worker ILR?
The government has decided to treat care workers already in the UK as a special group and keep their five-year route, while doubling the standard settlement period for most other migrants to 10 years. The decision was published on the GOV.UK earned settlement consultation page on 2 November 2026.
The consultation had proposed a 15-year baseline for workers in roles below RQF 6, which includes care workers (SOC 6135) and senior care workers (SOC 6136). After the consultation, the Home Office concluded that care workers recruited from overseas came to the UK under different expectations. It describes the new measures as giving them “a second chance” to settle.
The 15-year route has been dropped altogether. Other workers below RQF 6 who do not fall into the care worker group now face the standard 10-year route instead.
Who keeps the 5-year route to ILR?
You keep the five-year route if you entered the care worker route, or switched into it, before the Immigration White Paper was published in May 2025, and you meet the salary, sponsorship and employment requirements. The Immigration White Paper, Restoring Control over the Immigration System, was published on 12 May 2025.
According to the government response, you will need to:
- Have been on the care worker route (entered or switched in) before May 2025.
- Earn at least £25,000 a year.
- Meet the sponsorship and employment requirements — that is, be working in genuine care work for a licensed sponsor.
- Meet the new minimum requirements on criminality, debt, English and the Life in the UK test, unless an exemption applies.
The Home Office estimates that around 146,000 care workers and 136,000 dependants may qualify through this five-year arrangement.
Care worker ILR at a glance
| Your situation | Route to ILR | What you must show |
|---|---|---|
| On the care route before May 2025, earning £25,000+ with a licensed sponsor | 5 years | Salary, sponsorship, employment and minimum requirements |
| On the care route before May 2025 but not meeting the requirements at 5 years | Further 5-year Health and Care visa (about 10 years in total) | Genuine care work with a licensed sponsor; no recourse to public funds |
| Entered or switched into care work after May 2025 | 10 years (standard route) | Earned settlement requirements, including earnings of £12,571+ in five of the last seven years |
| Nurse, doctor or social worker on a national pay scale | 5 years (public service route) | Five years in an eligible public service occupation |
What if I do not meet the requirements at five years?
If you do not meet the requirements when you reach five years, you will not simply be refused and asked to leave: you can apply for a further five-year Health and Care visa. This second visa is restricted to genuine work in the care sector, and you will have no recourse to public funds while you hold it.
In practice, this means settlement after about 10 years instead of five. The Home Office estimates that around 50,000 care workers and 50,000 dependants may need this route. The government says it will support them to move into genuine, sponsored care employment.
This route is most likely to matter if you:
- earn less than £25,000 a year, for example because of part-time hours;
- have had gaps in sponsored employment; or
- were sponsored by an employer that did not provide the work promised.
Care workers who joined after May 2025: the 10-year route
Care workers who entered or switched into the route after the White Paper in May 2025 do not get the five-year protection and will follow the standard 10-year pathway. The Home Office estimates this affects around 6,000 care workers and 5,000 dependants.
Overseas recruitment for care workers and senior care workers closed on 22 July 2025 under Statement of Changes HC 997. People already in the UK can still switch into care roles until 22 July 2028. Anyone switching in now should plan on the 10-year route.
On the 10-year route, the government response requires earnings of at least £12,571 in five of the previous seven years. Couples can combine income to reach £25,142 between them. Claiming public funds in the five years before applying removes you from the 10-year route and points you to a 20-year wait, so check before claiming any benefit. GOV.UK lists what counts in its public funds guidance.
What happens if my sponsor loses its licence?
From 1 February 2027, a care worker whose job ends because the sponsor’s licence was revoked will have up to 120 days to secure a new job offer, then a further 60 days to resolve their visa and employment status. That is up to 180 days in total.
If you miss the 120-day deadline, or your status is not resolved within 180 days, your visa will be curtailed and you will have to leave the UK. Sponsor licence revocations have been common in the care sector, so this is one of the most important protections in the response.
If your sponsor has lost its licence:
- Keep your contract, payslips and the Home Office curtailment letter.
- Start looking for a licensed care sponsor straight away. Check employers on the register of licensed sponsors on GOV.UK.
- Get advice before your deadline. A gap in sponsorship can affect whether you meet the employment requirement for five-year ILR.
Does the new route cover my partner and children?
Children under 18 settle with their parents and are exempt from the income, debt, English and Life in the UK requirements, though the criminality rules still apply. A partner who came with you can settle at the same time if they meet the requirements. A partner who joined later must complete the same qualifying period as a dependant.
Care workers who applied on or after 11 March 2024 cannot bring dependants on the Health and Care Worker visa. Dependants already in the UK before that date can usually extend with the main applicant. The detailed dependant rules for the care worker five-year route will be set out when the new Immigration Rules are published.
The new minimum requirements every care worker must meet
Even on the protected five-year route, care workers must meet the earned settlement minimum requirements on conduct, debt and integration. These are set out in the government response:
- Criminality: any adult with a UK criminal record will be refused settlement.
- No government debt: no unpaid NHS charges, tax debt or litigation costs owed to the Home Office.
- English: B2 level in speaking and listening for settlement applications made on or after 26 March 2027. B1 still applies to applications made before that date.
- Life in the UK test: still required, with the existing exemptions.
People aged 65 or over, children, and those whose physical or mental condition prevents them from meeting a requirement keep the existing exemptions.
When do the new care worker ILR rules start?
No start date has been announced: the government response is policy, and the law changes only when a Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules is laid before Parliament. Until then, care workers who reach five years can apply under the current rules. New statements are published in the Immigration Rules statement of changes collection on GOV.UK.
Three dates are already fixed:
| Date | What changes |
|---|---|
| 1 February 2027 | 180-day protection for care workers whose sponsor loses its licence |
| 26 March 2027 | B2 English needed for settlement applications |
| 22 July 2028 | In-country switching into care worker roles ends |
The current ILR fee is £3,226 per person. Check the fee on GOV.UK before you apply.
What care workers should do now
If you are close to five years on the care route, check your eligibility now and, if you qualify, consider applying under the current rules before the new rules take effect. A practical checklist:
- Find your start date. Your first Health and Care visa grant, or your switch into a care role, decides whether you are before or after May 2025.
- Check your salary. Add up your gross annual pay from your sponsor. Is it at least £25,000?
- Check your absences. Long trips abroad can break continuous residence.
- Book your English test. If you will apply on or after 26 March 2027, aim for B2.
- Clear any debts. Settle unpaid NHS charges or tax before you apply.
- Keep records. Payslips, P60s, your Certificate of Sponsorship and your employment contract.
How Adam Bernard Solicitors can help
Our immigration solicitors help care workers and their families check their eligibility, prepare ILR applications and deal with sponsor licence problems. We are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and act for clients from our offices in High Holborn and Upton Park, and by video call.
We can:
- confirm which route applies to you and your family;
- prepare and submit your Skilled Worker and Health and Care settlement application;
- advise if your sponsor has lost its licence or your visa has been curtailed; and
- challenge a refusal through administrative review, appeal or judicial review.
Speak to our immigration solicitors on 0207 100 2525 or contact us online.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. It reflects the government’s published policy as of 3 November 2026. The Immigration Rules have not yet changed, and the final rules may differ.
