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On 5 March 2026, the UK Government announced a new Statement of Changes that contained changes to many different parts of the immigration rules.
Many of the updates make the rules stricter, such as with the implementation of visa requirements and the introduction of the visa brake. However, a few less popular visas have had their rules loosened as well, such as those under the Global Business Mobility route.
Additionally, more protections are being put in place to ensure that sponsored workers are kept safe and to keep businesses compliant with sponsorship rules.
We will take you through the most important updates announced in the March 2026 Statement of Changes, the impact they will have, and what may come in the future.
Visa brake
The introduction of the visa brake came hours before the announcement of the March 2026 Statement of Changes, as it was implemented alongside its announcement.
Essentially, the visa brake is a way to pause visa applications from nationals of certain countries to specific visa routes. Whilst we do not yet know all of the situations it will be used in, at the moment, it is being used to prevent abuse of the visa system.
For example, nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan can no longer apply for Student Visas, with Afghans also no longer being able to apply for Skilled Worker Visas as well. This is because people from these countries enter the UK on visas, then apply for asylum.
We have already covered this in greater detail in our dedicated blog about the visa brake.
Visa requirement for Nicaragua and St Lucia
Nationals of Nicaragua and St Lucia will now have to apply for a visa to visit the UK, instead of the recently introduced Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA).
They have been removed from the list of countries on the ETA, which allows for easier travel, due to a high number of nationals of both countries claiming asylum by first claiming to be visiting the UK by getting an ETA.
Additionally, St Lucia has Citizenship by Investment, which allows people to gain citizenship by investing a large sum of money. The UK Government believes that this is an inherently risky practice, as bad faith actors can make use of it to gain St Lucian citizenship, then work or claim asylum illegally in the UK.
As a result of the visa requirement being introduced, nationals of both countries will need to apply for a Visitor Visa, which means they will be subjected to more stringent assessments to see if they can enter the UK or not.
English language requirement
One of the most notable and impactful updates introduced by the March 2026 Statement of Changes, is the harsher English language requirement for visa routes and settlement. It will not come into effect until 26 March 2027.
Currently, the requirement is at B1 under the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). With the announcement of this statement, the requirement will be increasing to B2. Basically, when people prove their language ability, it must be at a B2 level.
Last year, the Government announced that the English language requirement for visas was increasing in their Immigration White Paper, so this shows their commitment to enforcing their rules.
Ultimately, the reasoning behind this update is to ensure that people coming to the UK have a high knowledge of the English language.
Global Business Mobility
There have been updates to two routes that are under the Global Business Mobility route.
Service Supplier
As part of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the UK and India, nationals of India are eligible for the Service Supplier route, which will allow them to work in the UK for up to 12 months. There will be a cap of 1,800 applicants a year.
Essentially, this route has been expanded, so more people can work in the UK, though the number of people is limited.
Secondment Worker
Currently, the Secondment Worker route allows companies with investments or contracts in the UK that are worth at least £50 million, to temporarily send workers here. Previously, the employees must have worked at the company for at least 12 months.
Now, people who have been working at the company for at least six months can now apply for the Secondment Worker Visa.
This loosening of the rules will allow more people to apply for the visa, though it is unlikely that there will be a huge increase in applicants due to the specific purpose of this route.
Global Talent route expansion
The Global Talent route into the UK is a way for those who are particularly highly skilled in arts and culture, digital technology and science to work in the UK.
In the March 2026 Statement of Changes, the route is being expanded to include a design pathway to cater for those talented in design.
Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme expansion
On 1 September 2025, it was announced by the Home Secretary that the Ukraine Permission Expansion Scheme will be extended.
The March 2026 Statement of Changes formally introduces this extension, which makes it so the scheme lasts a further 24 months.
Additionally, due to feedback from the Ukrainian community in the UK, the period in which people can apply to the scheme before their permission to stay in the UK expires has been increased from 28 days, to 90 days.
All of these changes have been implemented to allow Ukrainian nationals to more easily stay in the UK whilst the war continues in their home country. Furthermore, it makes it so they will not need to make asylum applications to remain in the UK.
EU Settlement Scheme
As with most other statements, the March 2026 Statement of Changes includes updates to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS).
First, a new suitability requirement has been introduced to deal with European Economic Area (EEA) citizens who sponsor EUSS applicants by pretending to be their family members. Basically, EUSS applications can be refused if it is likely that an individual assisted someone in fraudulently gaining or attempting to gain entry, leave to enter or leave to remain in the UK.
Second, related to the previous paragraph are the new validity requirements for EUSS applications. Applicants must provide evidence of their sponsor’s EUSS status, as well as proof of their family relationship; for example, a marriage or birth certificate.
Second, provisions are being simplified so that those granted pre-settled status under the EUSS can make a further application at any point.
Finally, the existing provision that allows non-EEA applicants to use expired biometric residence cards as proof of their identity where it has been expired for up to 60 months; previously, this was set to 18 months. This update allows people to keep applying digitally instead of needing a biometric appointment.
Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse
There will no longer be a maintenance and accommodation requirement for children who are dependants in the UK under Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse.
Moreover, English language requirements and the Life in the UK test for dependent children will be removed for children aged 18 or over at the date of their application. This brings the rules in line with those that exist for parents and children under 18 years old.
Skilled Worker pay periods
Changes are being made so that sponsors of employees on Skilled Worker Visas must now pay the full salary in every pay period.
This assists UK Visas and Immigration in discovering and dealing with situations where employers are underpaying their sponsored employees, as before, they could only check annual salaries.
This provides extra protection to those in the UK on Skilled Worker Visas and helps to deal with any abuses of the system carried out by employees who are not staying compliant with the rules of their sponsor licence.
Identity reuse
In the past, every new visa application required applicants to attend a biometric appointment where they provide their fingerprints, photo, and other information at a Visa and Citizenship Application Service (VCAS) centre.
Now, applicants who have previously provided their biometrics to a VCAS centre, can reuse their biometric information instead of having to establish their identity again by providing an in-date identification document.
However, applicants will need to upload a live facial image through the Generic Identity Document Verification app, which will be compared to the image that was taken when they originally provided their biometric information.
Other minor changes
Alongside what we feel were the more major changes, there were many other minor changes to various aspects of the rules that would make this blog far too long.
There have also been some drafting changes to correct errors. For example, the Immigration Rules now replace references to “Ecctis” with the generic term “the qualification and language assessments provider”.
If you would like to learn more about the more minor changes released in the March 2026 Statement of Changes, then feel free to read the explanatory memorandum released by the Government.
Looking to the future
Like with the Statements of Changes released last year, the March 2026 Statement of Changes generally made the immigration rules stricter.
Plus, with the introduction of more rules originally outlined in the Immigration White Paper, it seems likely that the Government will continue to commit to the changes that they announced last year.
In the future, then, it is likely that the Government will continue to make the immigration rules more strict throughout the year.
We will aim to keep you updated of any future modifications to the rules, so that you know what may impact you.
Our immigration services
In these times of uncertainty with constantly changed immigration rules, it can be difficult to know what does and does not affect you. Luckily, our team of immigration experts are here to help you.
If you would like immigration advice, then you can contact us by phone, email, or by booking a free 10-minute assessment. After this initial step, you can book a paid 30-minute or one-hour long consultation during which you will be given legal advice.
Once you have had your consultation, we can begin planning the next steps if it is possible for us to help you.
Get in touch with us today for our immigration expertise.
Would you like to learn more about past updates? Then read our blogs on the Statements of Changes from the last few years, or read our 2025 immigration rules overview.
