In a major policy shift, the UK government has announced plans that could prevent migrants from accessing welfare benefits unless they become full British citizens. The radical proposals were unveiled by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood in the House of Commons on Wednesday, November 20.
End of Automatic Eligibility
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood informed Members of Parliament that the government is launching a consultation to examine whether welfare support should be limited exclusively to British citizens. This move would end the automatic eligibility currently granted to foreign nationals when they obtain settled status in the UK.
Mahmood firmly stated that settlement in Britain is a privilege and not a right, and it must be earned. She defended the proposed changes by warning that years of record migration have placed immense pressure on local communities across the country.
The consultation explicitly raises the question of what rights should be provided to migrants and proposes that benefits might no longer be available to those with settled status. Instead, state support would be reserved for those who have earned British citizenship through naturalization.
The Toughest Reform in Decades
Mahmood described this plan as part of the toughest reform of the UK settlement system in nearly five decades. She strongly criticized the previous Conservative government, accusing them of running an open border experiment that led to more than 2.6 million arrivals since 2021.
Referring to what she termed the Boris wave, the Home Secretary revealed that minimum salary rules were drastically lifted during that period. She highlighted a particular care-sector visa program, initially designed to fill as few as 6,000 posts, which ultimately admitted 616,000 people. Shockingly, over half of these individuals were not even working in the care sector but were dependants of those who were.
New Settlement Rules and Penalties
Under the government's new blueprint, the minimum waiting period for settlement will increase significantly from five years to ten years. Applicants will face a comprehensive assessment process that will examine their English language proficiency, National Insurance contribution history, criminal records, and any outstanding debts.
The government has outlined specific penalties for those who rely on the welfare system. Migrants who have claimed benefits for less than 12 months will face a mandatory 15-year wait for settlement. Those who have claimed benefits for more than a year could wait up to 20 years. Illegal entrants may face the longest delays of up to 30 years, even if they later regularize their status.
Lower-skilled workers who entered the UK under the post-Brexit health and care visa rules are also set to face a baseline 15-year wait. This represents a significant lengthening of the path to settlement for many already living in the country.
Crucially, Mahmood confirmed that the new rules will apply retrospectively to anyone in the UK who has not yet secured indefinite leave to remain. However, she provided reassurance that nothing will change for those who already hold settled status.
In her defense of these sweeping reforms, the Home Secretary stated: For those who believe migration is part of modern Britain's story and should always continue to be, we must prove that it can still work. That those who come here contribute, play their part and enrich our national life.
