UK’s new immigration rules to tighten tech talent in 2026
UK companies might find it harder to hire talented individuals in the tech space in 2026 as immigration rules continue to tighten.
This is according to legal firm Lewis Silkin, which notes that senior tech professionals will likely be delighted by the proposed changes to settlement in the UK, as anyone with a taxable income over £125,140 per annum may be able to settle after three years rather than five.
However, those who have any character issues or engineers on lower salaries could have to wait ten years or more. It’s also expected that adult dependants will need to meet taxable income and other eligibility criteria for settlement in their own right, the firm said.
This, along with raised skill and salary levels, could make the usual ability to hire who you want, when you want, significantly harder within the tech world.
A change for skilled workers
The UK’s Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) recently published a review of salary requirements across key UK work routes, including Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, Global Business Mobility, and Scale-Up.
While the review is not law, it is often treated by policymakers as a credible evidence base, explains legal firm Dentons. For businesses – particularly those holding sponsor licences – the recommendations are a useful indicator of where the Home Office could take the Immigration Rules next and therefore what to stress-test in workforce and remuneration planning now.
The most eye-catching recommendation is to keep the Skilled Worker general threshold at £41,700, Dentons said.
“Many sponsors will read that as a signal that the government may hold the line on the post-2024 tightening rather than pushing the general threshold materially higher again in the near term,” said legal. firm Dentons.
“However, the more practically significant change for many employers could be how occupation-specific thresholds (‘going rates’) are set. The MAC recommends setting these at the 25th percentile, rather than the median.
“If adopted, that may create additional room for some mid-market roles within certain occupations – particularly where median pay is materially higher than the lower quartile – while still aiming to manage undercutting risk,” Dentons said.
