Migrants aiming for permanent residency in the UK will soon face tougher English language requirements under new immigration rules expected to be unveiled next week, The Times has reported. Part of Sir Keir Starmer’s upcoming immigration white paper, the proposed reforms will mandate “fluent English” proficiency—significantly raising the bar from current standards and potentially delaying settlement by up to ten years for those who fall short.
At present, only a basic understanding of English is required. The new proposal, however, will increase the expected level to that of A-level English as a foreign language, moving beyond the existing GCSE benchmark.
According to the Home Office, this level of fluency means individuals must be able to “express themselves fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions” and communicate “flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes.”
Officials say the shift is aimed at ensuring better integration and addressing record-high net migration, which hit 728,000 last year. The white paper is also expected to propose reforms to encourage over nine million economically inactive Britons to re-enter the workforce.
The prime minister is set to argue that the current points-based immigration system, introduced post-Brexit by Boris Johnson, has not delivered and needs urgent reform to create a “controlled, selective and fair” system.
