Immigration

Immigration

Migrant workers employed legally in the UK generally have the same rights, such as to be paid the national minimum wage and to be protected from discrimination, as workers who were born in the UK. This topic looks at how immigrants may obtain the right to work legally in the UK.

The main statute in this area is the Immigration Act 1971, which provides for the content of the Immigration Rules and for them to be subject to parliamentary scrutiny. The Immigration Rules are made by the Secretary of State for the Home Office and set out detailed requirements regarding people coming to the UK for employment. They are supplemented by policy guidance for immigration officers on how the rules should be interpreted.

The Home Office has responsibility for controlling migration to the UK.

Immigration White Paper 2025

Practice Note: Immigration White Paper 2025—summary, tracker and resources considers the White Paper ‘Restoring control over the immigration system’, published on 12 May 2025, which sets out a large number of significant changes to numerous areas of immigration policy. Many of these reflect the Labour government’s stated aim to reduce net migration,

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