Home Office has no idea how many people have stayed in UK after their visas expired, report warns
Home Office migrant worker visa failure revealed
- A cross-party committee of MPs, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), has found the government failed to gather basic information on skilled worker visa holders, including whether they leave the UK after their visas expire.
- The PAC report criticised the Home Office for not analysing exit checks since the skilled worker visa route was introduced in 2020, leading to a lack of data on how many people return home or stay illegally.
- The committee highlighted widespread exploitation of migrant workers, particularly in the social care sector, attributing this vulnerability to the sponsorship model that ties a worker's right to remain to their employer.
- The Home Office's response to tackling migrant worker exploitation was deemed "slow and ineffective" by the PAC, which noted a lack of reliable data on the extent of abuses.
- Concerns have been raised that new legislation to end the recruitment of care workers from abroad could exacerbate existing staff shortages in the social care sector, which has a high reliance on migrant labour.