Social care leaders sound alarm over 120% hike in sponsorship fees for overseas staff

Social care leaders have sounded the alarm over a planned 120% hike in the fees they must pay to sponsor overseas staff to work for them on skilled worker visas.

The government has tabled legislation to raise the certificate of sponsorship fee from £239 to £525, though it has not confirmed the implementation date.

Employers must obtain the certificates to enable people from abroad to apply for a health and care visa, enabling them to work in the sector. The fee also applies to overseas workers already in the UK, on any visa, applying to work in the care sector.

Providers face costs hike from tax and wage increases

The development comes in the wake of the planned rise to employers’ national insurance contributions due to come into force in April 2025.

This is due to cost providers £940m in 2025-26, according to think-tank the Nuffield Trust, with organisations also facing a £1.85bn bill next year from the 6.7% rise in the national living wage (NLW).

While councils fund 70% of care in the independent sector, local government leaders have warned that they have not been sufficiently resourced to cover their share of the bill.

‘Yet another blow to care providers’

Representative body Care England estimated that independent adult social care providers would have faced an additional bill of £10.3m in 2024-25 had the proposed certificate of sponsorship fee been in place. This is based on an estimate that providers will have recruited 36,000 overseas staff during the year – based on Skills for Care figures showing 18,000 were taken on in the first six months – and multiplying this by the £286 increase in fees.

“These proposed fee increases represent yet another blow to social care providers, compounding what is already a devastating situation for the sector,” said Care England’s chief executive, Martin Green.

He also raised concerns about the impact of the measure on international recruitment, which was significantly responsible for the fall in sector vacancy numbers, from 164,000 to 131,000, from March 2022 to March 24.

Since last March, the number of international recruits has plummeted on the back of a ban on overseas staff bringing dependants with them when taking up roles in the social care sector.

The 18,000 international staff independent providers recruited from April to September 2024 compare with 105,000 in the year to March 2024, a fall of roughly two-thirds in the quarterly average.

Government urged to reverse policy

Green added: “Targeting international recruitment with these fee increases is an attack at the very heart of the sector’s ability to function. Care providers are already fighting to sustain services, and these additional costs will push many to breaking point. The government must reconsider its position immediately.”

The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services also raised concern about the fee increase, with president Mel Williams saying: “Care workers recruited from overseas have played an essential role in supporting thousands of people and their families, filling many vacant posts across the sector over the last few years.

“Given the financial challenges they face, we know some care companies will be questioning the financial viability of continuing to provide care and support.”