Migrants who wish to live and work in the UK will soon be required to demonstrate significantly higher proficiency in English, as part of a sweeping immigration overhaul set to be unveiled in a white paper next week.
The Labour government's reform is aimed at curbing record-high migration levels, which reached 728,000 last year, while helping to move some of the UK's nine million unemployed residents back into the workforce.
New Language Standards for Work and Settlement
Currently, foreign nationals are only required to meet a basic level of English, roughly equivalent to a GCSE in a modern foreign language. Under the new plans, this bar will be raised to an A-level standard, meaning applicants must be able to speak fluently and write competently about complex topics in English.
This more rigorous requirement is also expected to apply to successful asylum seekers applying for permanent settlement in Britain, typically after five years. However, ministers are reportedly considering extending this period to 10 years unless individuals meet stricter conditions.
Embracing British Values
The white paper is also expected to introduce tougher assessments on applicants' alignment with British values. At present, questions on national principles like democracy, religious tolerance and rule of law only appear in the 'Life in the UK' test, which migrants complete after several years of residency.
Labour now plans to bring these standards forward, testing migrants' cultural compatibility much earlier in the visa process. The changes are designed to ensure that those settling in the UK not only speak the language but also share and respect its civic norms.
Visa Clampdown Targeting 'High-Risk' Nations
The proposals form part of a broader crackdown on visa access for countries deemed more likely to produce visa overstayers and asylum seekers. According to reports, nationals from Pakistan, Nigeria and Sri Lanka could face stricter scrutiny, with the measures also affecting student visa applicants.
These changes coincide with a report from the National Audit Office (NAO), which estimates that housing asylum seekers will cost UK taxpayers upwards of £15.3 billion over the next decade—a figure more than three times the Home Office's initial projection of £4.5 billion in 2019.
Tory Response: Too Late, Too Soft
The Conservative Party has dismissed Labour's reforms as insufficient. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp criticised the proposals, saying: 'Labour will once again be tinkering with the system via another cosmetic announcement which will make very little practical difference.'
He added: 'If they were serious about getting immigration down they would back the Conservative proposals which we will be pressing in the Commons on Monday: an annual binding vote in parliament to set a migration cap, repealing the Human Rights Act from immigration matters to end absurd claims in UK courts, and raising the migrant salary threshold across the board.'
Whether these measures will succeed in reducing net migration and boosting domestic employment remains to be seen, but they signal a clear shift in Labour's stance on immigration control.
