Netherlands
Stricter requirements for Turkish nationals applying for permanent residence
The Dutch immigration authorities have announced that, effective 1 January 2025, Turkish nationals applying for permanent residence must be able to present a civic integration certificate. That date will mark the end of the transitional period which has been in effect since this requirement was introduced in January 2022.
In addition to a permanent residence permit, this also applies to an EU residence permit for long-term residents and a residence permit on non-temporary humanitarian grounds after a stay as a family member or a relative.
Turkish people who fall under the so-called standstill clause of the association law between the EU and Turkey will not have to show an integration diploma after 1 January 2025 if they apply for a residence permit on non-temporary humanitarian grounds after residing as a family member or a relative. This may be relevant to, Turkish citizens who work in the Netherlands as employees or their family members, for example.
If the application for a permanent residence permit is submitted before 1 January 2025, it is not necessary to submit an integration diploma. The condition here is that the other requirements have been met before 1 January 2025, for example that someone has sufficient income.
In some cases, someone can receive an exemption or waiver from the measure. For example, if someone is younger than 18 or qualifies for an old age pension.
United Kingdom
Government pauses salary threshold increases
The new Home Secretary has announced in a statement to Parliament that the government will freeze the minimum income requirement for Skilled Worker visas at the current level of GBP 29,000 until the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has reviewed the financial requirements in the family immigration rules.
The previous government planned to increase the Skilled Worker salary threshold by 48% from GBP 26,200 to GBP 38,700.
The Home Secretary states that the government will continue to implement other changes introduced by the previous government in 2024, including:
- Restricting most overseas students from bringing family members to the UK.
- Restricting the ability of care workers and senior care workers to bring dependants with them and requiring all care providers sponsoring migrants to register with the Care Quality Commission.
- Abolishing the 20% going rate discount, so that employers can no longer pay migrants less than UK workers in shortage occupations.
The government has also commissioned the MAC to review the IT and engineering sectors. These sectors have consistently, over a decade or more, been included on shortage occupation lists and relied on significant levels of international recruitment. They are in the top 10 occupational groups in the UK that have the highest percentage of their workforce made up of new foreign workers who have been issued visas.
