HC 1691: Skilled Worker and work route changes laid on 5 March 2026

Statement of changes HC 1691 was laid on 5 March 2026. From 26 March 2026, Afghan nationals cannot apply for Skilled Worker entry clearance. From 8 April 2026, there is a pay-period salary rule and there are rules for prison officers in SOC 3314. English level B2 is needed for Skilled Worker settlement applications made on or after 26 March 2027.

What’s changing

The main changes are:

• Afghan nationals. A new rule, SW 3.3, bars Afghan nationals from applying for Skilled Worker entry clearance.
• Prison officers. New rules let prison officers in SOC 3314 be sponsored on the Skilled Worker route for up to 3 years. They do not apply to entry clearance applications.
• Pay periods. A new rule, SW 14.3B, says a Skilled Worker must be paid the required salary in each pay period.
• English for settlement. The English requirement for settlement goes up from B1 to B2 on a number of routes.
• Other work routes. There are changes to Global Business Mobility, Seasonal Worker, Global Talent and asylum seekers’ permission to work.

Who it affects

• Afghan nationals who want to apply for Skilled Worker entry clearance.
• Prison officers in SOC 3314, and their sponsors.
• Skilled Workers and their sponsors. The pay-period rule applies to the salary a worker must be paid.
• People applying for settlement on the routes in the English language table below.
• Indian nationals who are Service Suppliers, and Secondment Workers (see below).
• Asylum seekers who ask for permission to work (see below).

When it starts

Date	Changes that start
5 March 2026, 1500 GMT	Visit visa requirement for nationals of Nicaragua and St Lucia (APP VN1 to APP VN4, APP ETANL1)
26 March 2026	Visa brake (APP SW1, APP ST1), asylum seekers’ work restrictions in Part 11B, English language at settlement (APP SW5, APP SW8 and equivalent paragraphs), Global Business Mobility Service Supplier changes for Indian nationals (APP GBM1 to APP GBM5), Part Suitability and Part 8 changes
2 April 2026	Appendix Visitor: Permit Free Festival List (APP PFFL1)
8 April 2026	Prison officers and pay periods (APP SW2 to APP SW4, APP SW6, APP SW7), Secondment Worker (APP GBM6 to APP GBM8), Seasonal Worker (APP TWSW1, APP TWSW2), Global Talent appointments (APP GT2 to APP GT5), Youth Mobility Scheme quotas
29 April 2026	Appendix EU (APP EU1 to APP EU5)
1 July 2026	Global Talent design pathway (APP GT1)

The Implementation section sets these transitional rules:

• 26 March 2026 changes in Appendix Skilled Worker (APP SW1, APP SW5, APP SW8): an application made before 26 March 2026 is decided under the rules in force on 25 March 2026.
• 8 April 2026 Skilled Worker changes (APP SW2 to APP SW4, APP SW6, APP SW7): two kinds of application are decided under the rules in force on 7 April 2026. One is an application made using a certificate of sponsorship issued before 8 April 2026. The other is an application that does not need a certificate of sponsorship and was made before 8 April 2026.

The explanatory memorandum says the English language changes at settlement start on 26 March 2027. It says the date was put back to give people time to meet them.

What did HC 1691 change for Afghan nationals applying as Skilled Workers?

APP SW1 adds SW 3.3: “A person must not be applying for entry clearance as a Skilled Worker as a national or citizen of Afghanistan.”

APP ST1 adds a similar rule, ST 3.3, for entry clearance as a Student. It applies to nationals or citizens of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan.

The explanatory memorandum calls this the visa brake. It says:

• the brake starts on 26 March 2026
• it does not affect applications made before that date
• it is not meant to be permanent
• it will be reviewed regularly

What are the new Skilled Worker rules for prison officers in SOC 3314?

The explanatory memorandum says the arrangements apply to 3314 Prison service officers (below principal officer) in public and privately run prisons. The rules are SW 4.2(d), SW 6.1(g), SW 29.1A(a)(iii) and SW 32A.2(a)(iii).

Rule	What it says
SW 4.2(d)	An applicant can get points from option F if they are sponsored in SOC 3314, the date of application is before 1 January 2028, and the end date of the certificate of sponsorship is not more than three years after the start date
SW 6.1(g)	SOC 3314 is an eligible code if the application is for permission to stay and either (i) the date of application is before 1 January 2027 and the certificate of sponsorship end date is not more than three years after the start date, or (ii) the applicant was last granted permission as a Skilled Worker in SOC 3314 on a certificate of sponsorship assigned before 1 January 2027
SW 29.1A(a)(iii), SW 32A.2(a)(iii)	SOC 3314 is added where the application is for permission to stay

The explanatory memorandum adds these points:

• The RQF level 3 skills threshold applies to prison officers switching from other routes in the UK, for example from the Graduate route, until 31 December 2026. Workers already in the Skilled Worker route can extend under the existing transitional arrangements.
• The £31,300 salary threshold and the 25th percentile going rate apply to prison officers, including those who do not meet the transitional criteria, until 31 December 2027. The memorandum says the threshold and going rate are updated routinely in line with Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings data.
• The end dates refer to the last date certificates of sponsorship can be issued. Applicants can be sponsored for up to 3 years instead of the usual 5.
• The arrangements do not apply to entry clearance applications.
• Dependants already in the UK can apply to extend their stay. No new dependants can enter the UK under these arrangements.
• The measures are time-limited and come with conditions. They do not guarantee a route to settlement.

See salary thresholds, going rates and HC 259, which later changed the wording of SW 4.2(d)(ii) and SW 6.1(g)(i).

What is the new Skilled Worker pay-period rule in SW 14.3B?

APP SW4 adds SW 14.3B. The explanatory memorandum says a worker must be paid the required salary in each pay period, subject to the variations the Rules already allow. It says this means UK Visas and Immigration does not need to wait for a full year of salary where there are worries about underpayment.

Paragraph	Rule
SW 14.3B	A worker must be paid the required salary in pay periods of at least monthly frequency, or as their contract otherwise says
(a)	The salary paid in each pay period must equal or be more than the going rate for every hour worked in that pay period
(b)(i)	Where pay is monthly or less often, the salary over any three-month period must be at least a quarter of the required annual salary
(b)(ii)	Where pay is more often, the salary over any 12-week period must be at least 12/52 of the required annual salary
(c)	Where regular hours differ each week, so pay is uneven, the sponsor must confirm the working pattern. The salary over any 17-week period must be at least 17/52 of the required annual salary
(d)	If pay is below the (c) requirement because salary subtractions in SW 14.2(a) are made over a shorter period than the sponsorship, the sponsor must confirm this

What did HC 1691 change for English language at settlement?

The explanatory memorandum says the statement raises the English requirement for settlement from B1 to B2, for a number of routes where it is now B1. B2 is a level on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale.

It names the routes covered:

• Appendix KoLL
• Skilled Worker
• Tier 2 Minister of Religion
• Representative of an Overseas Business
• UK Ancestry
• Global Talent
• Scale Up
• Innovator Founder
• International Sportsperson
• Child Relative (Sponsors with Protection)
• Long Residence
• Bereaved Partner
• Private Life
• Settlement Family Life

It also names follow-on changes to Appendix English Language.

Route	Paragraphs	Before 26 March 2027	On or after 26 March 2027
Skilled Worker	SW 22A.1, SW 44.1	B1 (SW 44.1)	B2 in speaking and listening, unless an exemption applies
Scale-up	SCU 16A.1, SCU 37.1	B1 (SCU 37.1)	B2
Innovator Founder	INNF 39.1	B1	B2
Global Talent	GT 13.1, GT 32.1	B1	B2
Minister of Religion	MOR 35.1	B1	B2
Representative of an Overseas Business	ROB 17.1, ROB 36.1	B1	B2
UK Ancestry	UKA 15.1, UKA 34.1	B1	B2
International Sportsperson	ISP 16.1, ISP 37.1	B1	B2

SW 22A.2 says the applicant must show they meet the English language requirement as set out in Appendix English Language. The Appendix Skilled Worker page on GOV.UK puts SW 44.1 under “English language requirement for settlement as a dependent partner or dependent child of a Skilled Worker”. See settlement as a Skilled Worker and the English language guide.

What changed for other work routes?

Global Business Mobility

Service Supplier, India. The explanatory memorandum says the changes put into the Rules the UK’s commitments on entry and short stays in the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the UK and India, once it enters into force. Service suppliers in the contractual service supplier and independent categories, who provide a covered service, can enter for up to 12 months at a time.

SSU 3.3 caps granted applications by Indian nationals for the job roles traditional chef, classical musicians or yoga instructor at 1,800 in total in the annual allocation of places (1 January to 31 December). See the Service Supplier route.

Secondment Worker. SEC 7.2(b), SEC 7.3 and SEC 7.3(a) change “12 months” to “6 months”. The explanatory memorandum describes this as cutting the qualifying overseas employment period from 12 to 6 months. The route applies where there is a high-value contract or investment with a UK organisation worth at least £50 million. See the Secondment Worker route.

Seasonal Worker

SAW 4.1(g)(i) changes from £12.21 to £12.71. The explanatory memorandum says the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage go up from April 2026.

SAW 3.2 now uses the start date the sponsor states on the certificate of sponsorship, instead of the date of application, to work out the time spent outside the UK. See the Seasonal Worker route.

Global Talent

APP GT1 adds a Design Industry Endorsement (GTE 4A.1 to GTE 4A.4) from 1 July 2026.

APP GT2 to APP GT5 change GTE 8.6, the appointments route. The role must require a PhD or equivalent research experience, and the applicant must have responsibility for academic, research or innovation leadership, or do research or innovation as a primary function. See the Global Talent route.

Asylum seekers’ permission to work

Paragraphs 360A(i) and 360D(i) (Part 11B) now allow work only in a post that meets two tests when an offer is accepted. The post must be in Appendix Skilled Occupations. It must also be considered skilled to RQF level 6 or above on the Skilled Worker route. The explanatory memorandum says this lines up the restrictions with the Skilled Worker route.

Other changes in this statement

• Visit visa requirement for nationals of Nicaragua and St Lucia. Both are removed from the Electronic Travel Authorisation national list.
• Refugee and humanitarian protection permission to stay is cut from five years to 30 months, for people who claimed asylum or made further submissions on or after 2 March 2026. The explanatory memorandum says unaccompanied asylum-seeking children still get 5 years.
• Further submissions by failed asylum seekers are now set out in the Rules. There is also a public interest rule for saying that an asylum claim has been made.
• Child settlement under Part 8, paragraphs 297 and 298, is made clearer. A child can join a “close” relative.
• Part Suitability criminality grounds now cover suspended sentences of 12 months or more. Liability to deportation is updated to reflect the Sentencing Act 2026.
• Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme is extended by a further 24 months. The application window is widened from 28 to 90 days before permission ends.
• Appendix Visitor: Permit Free Festival List updated.
• Appendix Youth Mobility Scheme: 2025 country quotas replaced by 2026 quotas.
• Appendix EU and Appendix EU (Family Permit): a new suitability requirement and extra validity requirements.
• Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse: the maintenance and accommodation requirement is removed for dependent children. The English language and Life in the UK test requirements are removed for dependent children aged 18 or over.
• Appendix Hong Kong British National (Overseas): extended to adult children who were under 18 on 1 July 1997.
• Identity requirements in Rule 34(5)(a) updated to support identity reuse.
• “Ecctis” is replaced by “the qualification and language assessments provider” in the Rules.
• Small changes to Appendix Government Authorised Exchange schemes, Appendix Sports Governing Bodies and Appendix Settlement Protection, and drafting corrections.