Statement of Changes HC 1691, laid on 5 March 2026, changes the Immigration Rules on set dates between 5 March and 1 July 2026. Most changes start on 26 March or 8 April 2026.
Key facts
- Who: Applicants and sponsors under the routes and parts of the Rules named in the statement, including Skilled Worker, Global Talent, the EU Settlement Scheme (Appendix EU), Appendix KOLL, Part 11 (asylum) and Part 12
- From: Staged: 5 March 2026 (15:00 GMT) for some paragraphs, 26 March 2026 for many, with later dates up to 1 July 2026
- Source: Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules: HC 1691, 5 March 2026
The statement was presented to Parliament on 5 March 2026 and published on 6 March 2026. Its implementation section sets a start date for each group of paragraphs.
From 26 March 2026
Part 11 sets the minimum length of permission to stay on a protection route. For refugee status or humanitarian protection granted after an asylum claim or further submissions made on or after 2 March 2026, the minimum is 30 months (paragraphs 339QAA and 339QBA). It is 5 years for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, and for people who would have met that definition had they not turned 18 before the grant. For claims or submissions made on or before 1 March 2026, paragraphs 339QA and 339QB keep a minimum of 5 years. Applications for further permission to stay should be made within the last 28 days of leave.
Paragraphs 360A(i) and 360D(i) in Part 11B say employment may only be taken up in a post that, when the offer is accepted, is in Appendix Skilled Occupations and is skilled to RQF level 6 or above on the Skilled Worker route.
Paragraphs 13.1.1(a) and 13.2.1 in Part 13 now also cover a suspended sentence of at least 12 months given on or after 22 March 2026.
INTRO1 deletes the definition of "Ecctis" and INTRO3 inserts a definition of "Qualification and language assessments provider". INTRO2, paragraph 8.1 in Part 8, APP FM1, APP FM-SE1 and APP KOLL1 replace "Ecctis" with "the qualification and language assessments provider".
In Appendix KOLL, paragraphs 2.2(ba), 2.2(c)(ii) and 3.2(ca) set a B2 level on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages for applications made on or after 26 March 2027, subject to the other conditions in those paragraphs. For applications made before that date, B1 continues to apply.
From 8 April 2026
New paragraphs 353AA to 353AF in Part 12 require a person making further submissions to attend an in-person appointment at a Service and Support Centre. The person must be in the UK, be a failed asylum seeker and have no outstanding asylum or protection claim or appeal. Submissions that do not meet these requirements may be rejected as invalid. They may be treated as implicitly withdrawn in listed circumstances, such as failing to keep in contact or to attend reporting events.
From 29 April 2026
In Appendix EU, two parts of the definition of "specified relevant document" change from 18 months to 60 months. A new EU16(f) allows refusal where it is more likely than not that, after the specified date, the applicant helped another person fraudulently obtain or attempt to obtain entry clearance or leave.
Other changes
The statement also changes other appendices, each with its own start date. Global Business Mobility GBM1 to GBM5 and Innovator Founder INNF1 start on 26 March 2026. Global Business Mobility GBM6 to GBM8 and Youth Mobility Scheme YMSEN1 and YMSEN2 start on 8 April 2026.
What this means for applicants
Check the start date for the paragraphs that apply to your route. For some groups of paragraphs, an application made before the start date is decided under the Rules in force the day before. These include Part 11B, Part 13, APP KOLL2 to KOLL7, APP SW1, SW5 and SW8, and GBM1 to GBM5 (26 March 2026), and GBM6 to GBM8 and GT2 to GT5 (8 April 2026).
For Skilled Worker paragraphs SW2 to SW4, SW6 and SW7, the earlier Rules still apply to an application made using a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) issued before 8 April 2026. They also apply to an application that does not need a CoS and was made before that date.
Sources
- Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules: HC 1691, 5 March 2026, Home Office, published 6 March 2026