According to new immigration proposals, ‘low skilled’ care workers from the EU will lose the automatic right to work in the UK’s care sector post Brexit but they could apply for short-term visas lasting a year.
The government White Paper on immigration states:-
‘This route will allow people to come for a maximum of 12 months, with a cooling-off period of a further 12 months to prevent people effectively working in the UK permanently. We will engage extensively with business and stakeholders as part of the engagement process on the duration and cooling off periods.’
The Department have said the 12 month visa will provide access to the labour market, but no access to benefits. For the people arriving on this route they will not accrue rights to settle in the UK and will not be able to bring family members with them.
The proposals include an end to the current cap of 20,700 on workers classed as high-skilled including nurses and doctors coming to the UK from Europe and elsewhere, using “Tier 2” visas.
