Skills Shortages and Recruitment: What to expect from the Migration Advisory Committee’s (MAC) review?

The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) is an independent, non-statutory, non-time limited, non-departmental public body that advises the government on migration issues. MAC is an advisory non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Home Office. Any recommendations made by MAC are applicable in the same way for companies based in Belfast or London.

The new Government has asked the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review UK employers’ reliance on international recruitment for engineering, IT and telecommunications roles. This is expected to be the first of several reviews focusing on sectors heavily dependent on business immigration in Belfast, Northern Ireland, London or beyond.

The review will cover:

• Which roles are in shortage within the UK economy
• What influences these shortages, including training, pay, and conditions
• How sectors have adapted beyond recruiting internationally
• How the former Shortage Occupation List (SOL) impacted these skills shortages
• Whether the Immigration Salary List that replaced the SOL should remain in its current form
• How to stimulate domestic recruitment

The MAC will coordinate its activities with the newly formed Skills England the Industrial Strategy Council, the Department for Work and Pensions and the respective devolved authorities. Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales will be consulted to explore differentiated regional immigration approaches to salary requirements. The current national salary thresholds for sponsoring skilled workers are much easier to meet for companies paying London wages than those in other parts of the UK such as Belfast, where wages are lower. As immigration lawyers we regularly advise clients in Belfast and London on salary requirements for a Skilled Worker visa.

It should be remembered that the Home Office raised the general salary threshold for those eligible for a Skilled Worker visa from £26,200 per annum to £38,700 per annum. This rate is the same if your company is based in Belfast or London. The Shortage Occupation List for employers filling UK roles in short supply was abolished, along with the 20% going rate discount. The minimum income requirement to sponsor a partner on a family visa jumped from £18,600 to £29,000 in April 2024. Again these requirements are the same whether based in Belfast or London.

The MAC has been asked to present its findings within 9 months. This timescale should allow sufficient time for stakeholder feedback and engagement to the MAC. When the MAC has published its report, the Government will then consider which recommendations to implement into UK immigration policy. As immigration lawyers we advise that whether your company is based in Belfast, Northern Ireland or London that you should submit key stakeholder evidence to the MAC if you wish to influence recommendations and subsequent immigration policy.

As immigration lawyers based in Belfast, Northern Ireland and London it is important to understand that MAC is an advisory body without non-binding legal powers. Any changes to immigration policy will be made by the Home Office who will consider the recommendations made by MAC before deciding whether to implement changes into immigration policy. It is therefore important for stakeholders in Belfast, Northern Ireland or London to take the time to submit evidence to the MAC on how the likes of salary rates have impacted your business.

Often recommendations made by MAC are implemented into immigration policy. This is important to consider for any company based in Belfast, Northern Ireland or London if considering whether it is worth the time to compile and submit evidence to MAC. 9 months is a long time for a review to be commissioned by the Home Office upon MAC and so therefore we would predict that a raft of legal changes may take place in 2025. As a reminder any changes implemented by the Home Office will likely have the same impact anywhere in the UK. In other words if based in Belfast, Northern Ireland or London it is highly likely to expect the same uniform changes throughout the UK in 2025.

CMC Immigration Law is an immigration practice based in London and Belfast which provides UK immigration services and solutions to businesses and private individuals throughout the world.