UK Immigration Statement of Changes – September 2026

A detailed guide to the September 2026 UK Immigration Statement of Changes

On 3 September 2026, the Home Office laid Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules HC 584 before Parliament. The statement introduces a broad package of targeted amendments affecting suitability, Skilled Workers who are victims of modern slavery, fee-waiver and biometric procedures, domestic-abuse applications, Erasmus+, the EU Settlement Scheme, Hong Kong BN(O) families, students, visitors, religious workers and long-residence applications.

Most changes take effect on 8 October 2026, but separate provisions will come into effect on 29 October, 30 November and 9 December 2026. Please see further detail below.

Key commencement dates

• 8 October 2026: most changes, including Part Suitability, Skilled Worker modern-slavery protections, the Family Returns Process, fee-waiver and biometric rules, Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse, Erasmus+, most EU Settlement Scheme amendments, Hong Kong BN(O), Child Relative, Long Residence, Start-up and visitor provisions;
• 29 October 2026: changes to T2 Minister of Religion and Temporary Work – Religious Worker;
• 30 November 2026: increases to the student route maintenance requirement; and
• 9 December 2026: removal of the ability to use certain Biometric Residence Permits as evidence of identity and nationality in EU Settlement Scheme applications.

1. Part Suitability: a broader definition of breach of immigration laws

HC 584 amends paragraph SU 11.4 to confirm that an individual may be treated as having breached immigration laws where they previously acted to frustrate immigration controls. The Home Office explains that the amendment is intended to ensure equivalent treatment of individuals applying from within the UK and those seeking entry clearance from abroad.

The practical examples identified by the Home Office include a previous failure to report while on immigration bail and absconding from bail or custody. Such conduct may therefore provide a basis for refusal even where the individual is now applying from overseas.

This amendment increases the importance of obtaining a complete immigration history before filing any application. Individuals should disclose previous reporting failures, bail issues and enforcement encounters accurately and address proportionality, context and available mitigation in the application. Failure to confront a known issue may compound the underlying suitability concern.

2. Skilled Workers confirmed as victims of modern slavery

Under the ordinary Skilled Worker framework, permission is tied to a specified sponsored role and supplementary work is restricted. HC 584 creates an important exception for Skilled Workers identified by a Home Office Competent Authority as victims of modern slavery.

A person with a positive Conclusive Grounds decision will be permitted to work for any employer for the remainder of their existing Skilled Worker permission. The purpose is to prevent an exploitative sponsor from using the worker’s immigration dependency as a means of control and to encourage victims to engage with the National Referral Mechanism.

This significant but limited change:

• depends on a positive Conclusive Grounds decision, rather than merely a referral or an initial Reasonable Grounds decision;
• removes the employment restriction for the remainder of the person’s existing permission;
• does not automatically extend permission;
• does not itself grant settlement, create a new immigration category or remove the need to regularise status before the existing permission expires; and
• does not necessarily resolve issues concerning a sponsor’s licence, reporting duties, salary arrears or employment claims.

Affected workers should obtain prompt advice on their immigration expiry date, future route, employment rights and any protective or compensation remedies. Sponsors should update safeguarding and escalation procedures so that suspected exploitation is not treated solely as a routine compliance issue.

3. Fee-free human rights claims in the Family Returns Process

HC 584 amends Appendix FM and Appendix Private Life for families in the Family Returns Process. A family in that process may raise an Article 8 claim based on family or private life directly with Home Office staff without submitting a formal valid application, paying an application fee or using a specified form.

The process was already operating administratively. The amendment places it on an express footing in the Immigration Rules and aligns the treatment of families in the Family Returns Process with individuals in immigration detention for whom comparable provisions already exist.

The stated objective is to reduce delay and limit repeated fee-waiver requests where no substantive human rights claim follows. The change removes procedural barriers but does not dilute the substantive Article 8 test. Families must still provide coherent evidence addressing their family and private life, the position of any children, the best-interests assessment and the consequences of removal.

4. Fee waiver requests, application dates and section 3C leave

Where an online application follows a fee waiver request, the date of application will only be treated as the date of the fee waiver request if the subsequent application is made on the same route as the request itself. If an individual makes a fee waiver request for one route, but then submits an application for permission to stay on another route, the date of application will be the date that later application is submitted, not the earlier fee waiver request date.

The Home Office says the amendment is intended to prevent individuals from using a human-rights fee waiver request to preserve or extend section 3C leave and then switching to a different route not connected with human rights. The practical consequence is that the route specified in the fee waiver request must be selected carefully. A later attempt to pursue a different category may not retain the earlier application date, potentially exposing the individual to a break in leave.

5. Variation applications and biometric enrolment

A new paragraph 34BB(2A) confirms that varying an application does not restart the period allowed for biometric enrolment. There is one biometric-enrolment period, even if the application is subsequently varied.

This formalises a policy already reflected in the Immigration (Biometric Registration) Regulations 2008. The individual must not assume that changing route or varying the application generates a new biometric deadline. Missing the original deadline may result in invalidity or rejection notwithstanding the later variation.

6. Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse extended to adult dependent children

Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse currently provides a settlement route for specified partners and dependants whose relationship with the relevant sponsor has broken down because of domestic abuse. HC 584 extends eligibility to adult dependent children whose relationship with their sponsoring parent has broken down because of domestic abuse.

Individuals will still need to establish that they fall within the relevant dependent cohort, that their previous immigration permission was linked to a qualifying sponsor and that the relationship broke down because of domestic abuse. Evidence may include police or court material, medical evidence, social services records, refuge or specialist support evidence, communications, financial evidence and a detailed witness statement.

7. Immigration changes supporting the UK’s return to Erasmus+

A substantial portion of HC 584 prepares the immigration framework for the UK’s association with Erasmus+ from 2027. Rather than creating a single new Erasmus visa, the Rules adapt the Visitor, Student, Child Student and Government Authorised Exchange routes.

New definitions

The Immigration Rules will define Erasmus-related activities, including job shadowing, participative observation, skills competitions and traineeships. A definition of “youth worker” is also added, and the meaning of a course of study is expanded.

Visitor route

Erasmus+ visitors will be permitted to study at state-funded schools and academies on placements lasting up to six months. Safeguards require evidence that the participant is genuine and, where relevant, has consent from a parent or legal guardian and approval from their home institution.

Provisions pertaining to permitted activities will be broadened. Visitors may attend workshops, debates and skills competitions. Erasmus+ participants may additionally:

• provide or receive training at a UK organisation or educational institution;
• take courses at a UK organisation or educational institution;
• undertake a traineeship of up to 30 days;
• undertake job shadowing, including at sports organisations; and
• participate in coaching or training assignments at a UK sports organisation.

Visitor status remains unsuitable where the proposed activity amounts to employment outside the permitted activities or where the participant intends to remain beyond the visit.

Student and Child Student routes

The amendments permit sponsors participating in Erasmus+ to sponsor courses that do not lead to an otherwise approved qualification. Erasmus+ programmes may also be offered at lower qualification levels, including RQF level 2 in specified circumstances.

The Rules create exemptions from ordinary restrictions on work placements. Erasmus+ programmes may include placements even where the sponsor is a Probationary Sponsor, the course does not lead to an approved qualification or the placement represents a larger proportion of the course than would normally be allowed. Licensed state-funded schools and academies will also be able to sponsor qualifying Erasmus+ students.

Government Authorised Exchange

“Erasmus+” is added to the list of approved Government Authorised Exchange schemes. This uses the existing GAE route and sponsorship structure rather than creating a new route. The scheme will be administered through an overarching sponsor appointed by the Department for Education.

The Home Office notes that approximately 60,000 Erasmus+ participants came to the UK in 2019 and expects future participation to exceed that level. Although the overall effect on Visitor and Student volumes is expected to be moderate, the increase in GAE applications may be significant relative to that route’s current volume.

8. EU Settlement Scheme reforms

HC 584 makes several distinct changes to Appendix EU, Appendix EU (Family Permit), Appendix AR and Appendix AR (EU).

Pre-settled status where removal would be disproportionate

The Rules recognise that a person with pre-settled status may cease to meet the ordinary eligibility conditions, for example, because of a sudden change in family circumstances. Where removing status would be disproportionate, the amendments allow the person to remain within the EUSS framework and potentially qualify for settled status later.

Deadline for first-time joining family members

The application deadline for a first-time joining family member will be three months from their latest lawful entry to the UK after 31 December 2020. Anti-abuse provisions apply where the person previously entered without an EUSS family permit and an earlier EUSS application was rejected or refused. In that situation, the individual may need to show reasonable grounds for delay or leave and re-enter with an EUSS family permit to obtain a new three-month period.

Travel permits and passport updates

The EUSS travel-permit route is deleted. An EUSS status holder with a new passport should instead use the “Update My Details” service from outside the UK to link the new passport to their digital status.

Administrative review

The EUSS administrative review route closed to new applications in April 2024. As the remaining reviews have now been concluded, HC 584 removes Appendix AR (EU) and the related provisions from the Rules. Individuals receiving an adverse decision must therefore identify whether they have a right of appeal, can submit a fresh application or require another public-law remedy.

Biometric residence permits

From 9 December 2026, individuals will no longer be able to rely on the specified expired biometric residence permit concession as proof of identity and nationality in an EUSS application. The Home Office considers the concession obsolete because almost all BRPs expired by 31 December 2024.

9. Hong Kong BN(O): dependent children and settlement

HC 584 removes the requirement for an eligible dependent child on the Hong Kong BN(O) route to complete a separate five-year period of continuous residence before settlement. The child may settle with their parents where the parents meet the settlement requirements and the child satisfies the remaining requirements.

This avoids families being split between settled and temporary status merely because a child joined the route later or did not independently complete five years of residence. A related drafting change replaces the term “BN(O) Household Member” with “BN(O) Adult Child”.

10. Student maintenance increases

From 30 November 2026, the monthly maintenance requirement under the Student route increases:

• London: from £1,529 to £1,570 per month;
• Outside London: from £1,171 to £1,203 per month.

The requirement ordinarily applies for up to nine months, meaning the maximum maintenance evidence rises to £14,130 for study in London and £10,827 for study outside London, subject to the detailed Rules and any permitted deductions. The maximum accommodation payment offset is also increased correspondingly.

Applications made before 30 November 2026 are subject to the transitional wording and should be assessed under the Rules in force on 29 November 2026. Individuals filing on or after commencement must ensure that the correct sum has been held for the required period. Funding based on the previous threshold may be insufficient.

11. Visitors, artists and business training

HC 584 makes additional clarifications to permitted visitor activities. A visitor undertaking intra-corporate training will no longer need to show that equivalent training is unavailable in their home country. Artists, entertainers and musicians may attend rehearsals and defined entertainment staff may assist with permitted artistic or entertainment activities.

A new definition of “entertainment staff” is intended to prevent the category from being interpreted too broadly. The changes expand legitimate activities but do not create a general right to work in the UK.

12. T2 Minister of Religion and Religious Worker routes

Changes taking effect on 29 October 2026 amend both religious work routes.

For T2 Minister of Religion:

• members of religious orders are exempted from the restriction preventing roles consisting mainly of non-pastoral duties;
• the financial requirement is adjusted where the individual is exempt from the National Minimum Wage and receives no salary;
• the corresponding approach for dependants is amended; and
• the maximum period a person may remain in the route is removed, aligning it more closely with other sponsored work routes.

For Temporary Work – Religious Worker:

• the resident-labour advertising requirement is replaced with an affiliation requirement demonstrating an established connection with the sponsoring faith organisation; and
• the financial requirement is revised for unpaid individuals exempt from the National Minimum Wage and their dependants.

Other route-specific and technical amendments

• Tier 1 routes: obsolete entry-clearance and extension provisions for Tier 1 (Investor) and outdated points provisions for Tier 1 (Entrepreneur), are removed;
• Start-up: references to main individuals are removed because the route has been closed to new main individuals since April 2023. Qualifying dependants may still apply;
• Government Authorised Exchange: the discontinued Ofgem International Staff Exchange Scheme is removed;
• Long Residence: the treatment of varied permission-to-stay applications is aligned with the existing rules for varied settlement applications, including consequences relating to the Immigration Health Charge; and
• Child Relative (Sponsor with Protection): an express under-18 eligibility requirement is introduced so that an over-18 individual can be refused on eligibility grounds, including in entry-clearance cases where the former validity mechanism could not operate effectively.

Practical steps before the changes take effect

1. Identify the exact commencement provision: Do not treat HC 584 as having a single effective date.
2. Review pending applications: Determine whether filing before 8 October, 29 October or 30 November 2026 produces a material advantage.
3. Check transitional protection: Confirm whether the relevant application, claim or administrative review is expressly preserved under the previous Rules.
4. Audit immigration histories: Address previous bail breaches, failures to report or conduct said to frustrate immigration control before a suitability decision is made.
5. Protect vulnerable workers: Skilled Workers with positive Conclusive Grounds decisions should obtain advice on immediate employment freedom and longer-term immigration status.
6. Recalculate student funds: Individuals filing from 30 November 2026 must use the increased maintenance figures.
7. Update EUSS documents: Status holders with new passports should use the digital update service, and individuals should not plan to rely on the BRP concession after 9 December 2026.
8. Review sponsor systems: Education providers, religious organisations and employers should update internal guidance, recordkeeping and safeguarding processes.

Conclusion

HC 584 is not a single headline reform. It is a wide-ranging package that closes procedural gaps, responds to litigation, supports the UK’s return to Erasmus+, strengthens protection for certain victims of exploitation and domestic abuse, and updates several mature immigration routes.

The central practical issue is timing. Individuals and sponsors should identify the precise provision affecting their case, confirm the applicable commencement date and read the transitional wording before filing or changing strategy.

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