The Government is lowering salary thresholds for specific occupations, leading to accusations it is “throwing the border wide open”. Treasury documents revealed the Government is dropping the salary threshold from “the median” to the “25th percentile” of wages.
Changes to salary thresholds
This means bosses will effectively be able to undercut British workers in a bid to fill vacancies. They will only have to hit the minimum salary threshold of £41,700.
The Conservatives increased the salary threshold for skilled workers to £38,700. And this increased again to £41,700 in July 2025.
But bosses were previously told they had to pay the “going rate”. This means that if the average wage for a profession was £45,000, firms would have to offer that to migrant workers.
Criticism and support
Supporters claimed the move will help businesses recruit workers for specific roles. But critics warned it means firms won’t have to train British workers instead.
Chris Philp, the Shadow Home Secretary, said: "This is a sell-out of British workers." Labour are slashing the salary bar so bosses can ship in cheap foreign labour instead of hiring and training people here.
“The Conservatives raised the threshold to bring the numbers down – Andy Burnham is tearing it up and throwing the border wide open. The Conservatives would bring in a binding cap on immigration, set by Parliament, so the numbers come down and stay down."
Graduate visa extension
In another significant change, graduates from selected UK universities will now be permitted to stay on two-year visas under updated Government plans. The post-study visa will be extended from 18 months to two years for eligible institutions with "strong labour market outcomes", according to the Budget document.
Hollie Chandler, director of strategic policy at the Russell Group, which represents some of the most selective UK universities, said: “It is encouraging to see the Government recognising the benefits that the world’s most talented international students and graduates bring to the UK. Avoiding the planned reduction in the length of the graduate visa for highly-compliant universities will help protect our reputation as a global study destination and maximise the contributions of these graduates to the UK workforce. We look forward to working closely with Government as they shape the details and implementation of this very welcome change.”
