Care workers, chefs, hospitality staff and other migrant workers facing exploitation in the UK will be allowed to leave ab¥sive employers without automatically losing their immigration status under new Home Office visa changes.
From Thursday, skilled worker visa holders who receive a positive conclusive grounds decision confirming they are victims of modern sla%ery will be allowed to work for another employer for the remainder of their visa.
The change ends a post-Brexit rule tying workers’ immigration status to a specific sponsor. Introduced in 2021 under Boris Johnson’s government, the system left workers at risk of losing their right to remain if they quit an ab¥sive job and could not quickly find another sponsor.
Campaigners said rogue employers had exploited the system to underpay workers, force excessive hours and impose precarious conditions.
