- Some migrant workers sponsored up to 15 family members after arriving in the UK.
- Conservatives call for tighter rules on dependants already eligible under existing visas.
- Home Office says recent reforms have helped drive down net migration.
UK skilled worker visas and migrant dependants are back in focus after new Home Office figures showed some overseas workers are still bringing large numbers of family members to Britain despite tighter immigration rules introduced over the past two years.
The latest figures show the trend continues because many workers who arrived before the restrictions remain eligible to sponsor dependants. The data has reignited political debate over whether the UK's immigration reforms have gone far enough.
Among the most striking figures were health and care workers from Cameroon, where 12 workers sponsored 180 dependants in the year to March, an average of 15 family members per worker.
Workers from Ghana also recorded high numbers, with 257 health and care workers bringing 2,131 dependants, averaging more than eight dependants each. Indian health and care workers sponsored 10,504 family members alongside 2,395 workers, while 139 Bangladeshi workers were joined by 747 dependants, averaging more than five each.
The Home Office banned newly arriving care workers from bringing dependants in March 2024 before extending similar restrictions to most migrant workers in jobs below degree level. However, those already living in Britain before the changes can still sponsor eligible family members under transitional arrangements.
Across all skilled worker visas, Pakistani nationals brought 6,155 dependants alongside 1,029 workers, while Nigerian workers sponsored 1,114 family members compared with 230 main visa applicants. Overall, the average across all nationalities stood at 1.3 dependants per worker.
By comparison, workers from many European countries brought significantly fewer family members. French nationals, for example, recorded 701 dependants for 1,804 skilled workers, a ratio of 0.4.
Pressure grows for tighter immigration rules
The figures have prompted fresh calls from the Conservatives to tighten immigration rules further. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp reportedly described the numbers as "shocking" and argued that worker visas should not become a route for large numbers of family members to enter the country. He also called for existing care workers already in Britain to lose the ability to sponsor new dependants, as quoted in a news report.
The latest figures also come as ministers review wider immigration reforms. Research by the Migration Advisory Committee found that 85 per cent of skilled workers who arrived in 2019 remained in Britain for at least five years, compared with 74 per cent of those who arrived in 2014. The study found long-term settlement rates were highest among migrants from Africa, southern Asia and non-EU European countries.
Those findings have influenced the government's proposal to increase the qualifying period for indefinite leave to remain from five years to 10 years, while allowing some migrants to qualify earlier based on public service work, higher earnings or contributions through volunteering.
However, ministers are reportedly considering transitional arrangements for an estimated 1.6 million migrants already living in the UK, including the possibility of exempting many care workers from the new settlement rules.
Responding to the latest figures, the Home Office said recent immigration reforms had already contributed to net migration falling by 82 per cent over the past three years. It added that restrictions on dependants, tighter English language requirements and the end of overseas recruitment for care workers had reduced foreign worker visa numbers by 50 per cent from their 2023 peak.
