Migration: supporting the future of Scotland's economy and communities

Delivering a Tailored Approach for Scotland

Scotland’s demographic and economic circumstances require a different approach to migration policy. The evidence suggests that in a Scottish context, immigration policy should consider contributions to economic growth, public services and community sustainability, rather than focusing on reductions in net migration alone or set salary or skill thresholds.

The tailored migration proposals presented in this paper are representative of the fact that Scotland’s requirements of the immigration system differ from the policy priorities currently pursued by the UK Government.

Whilst an independent Scotland or the full devolution of immigration powers, would allow the Scottish Government to devise its own immigration system, these tailored migration proposals have been developed to meet Scotland’s specific needs whilst being deliverable within the existing UK immigration system.

Scottish Visa

The Scottish Government proposed a Scottish Visa, with a detailed evidence base and rationale for policy change, in the January 2020 publication ‘Migration: Helping Scotland Prosper’.^[49]

Overview

Countries including Canada and Australia have successfully used regional immigration schemes to allow states and provinces to attract and retain people with the skills and attributes needed to benefit specific local economies and communities. Learning from these international models has helped the Scottish Government to develop a tailored proposal for migration to address the distinct needs of Scotland, in the form of a ‘Scottish Visa’.

The conditions of the Scottish Visa would allow migrants to enter the UK in order to live and work in Scotland. Holders of the visa would need to have a Scottish tax code as one condition.

A Scottish Visa would present an additional option for people who want to live, work and eventually settle in Scotland. The Scottish Visa would be an additional route within the UK immigration system, and the Scottish Government would work in partnership with the UK Government to deliver this visa route.

Delivery

The following models show some of the different ways a Scottish Visa could be delivered in practice, and the Scottish Government is ready to engage the Home Office on how to take these forward.

• Model 1. The UK Government creates an additional route for migration to Scotland, where the Home Office defines the criteria and rules, receives and assesses applications, and issues a visa to successful applicants.
• Model 2. The Scottish Government considers and proposes criteria for an additional route for migration to Scotland for the UK Government to establish, with the Home Office receiving and assessing applications, and issuing visas to successful applicants.
• Model 3. The Scottish Government defines the criteria for an additional route for migration to Scotland, receives and assesses applications, and then nominates successful applicants to the UK Government, where the Home Office receives and assesses the application at this second stage, and issues a visa to successful applicants.
• Model 4. The Scottish Government has powers to establish additional routes for migration to Scotland and define eligibility criteria, it receives applications and assesses them, and then refers applications to the UK Government, where the Home Office will verify for identity and security only, before then issuing visas to successful applicants.

Visa sponsorship

Endorsement and sponsorship are established concepts in the UK immigration system, and nomination in this way would be similar to those processes, albeit the nominating body would be the Scottish Government rather than an employer. The proposed Scottish Visa would not have a sponsorship role for employers, removing a significant burden from the small and medium enterprises which make up a higher share of the economy in Scotland than in the rest of the UK.

Residence in Scotland as a requirement

A condition for admittance on a Scottish Visa route should be residence in Scotland. Residence is already the basis of existing obligations and entitlements. For example, the Scottish tax code is based on residence, as is eligibility for many public services and benefits delivered by the Scottish Government and local government in Scotland.

The Scottish Government would consider carefully what compliance framework would need to be put in place to ensure proportionate, risk-based control for the requirement that holders of this visa stay in Scotland, including information and data- sharing arrangements with UK authorities; particularly Immigration Enforcement, but also other bodies such as HMRC, who are responsible for the Scottish tax code.

Employers are already required to undertake right to work checks to confirm an individual’s immigration status and any conditions attached to their permission to work. Scotland-specific conditions could be clearly recorded as part of the individual’s immigration status. This would provide an additional layer of assurance by, for example, enabling employers to verify that an individual is complying with any geographic conditions of their visa. Building on existing compliance and enforcement mechanisms offers a proportionate and practical approach to assurance within the current UK immigration system.

Salary threshold

There would be no salary threshold associated with this visa route, although earnings could be part of the selection process. This could encourage highly skilled people to take up quality jobs in Scotland but not exclude anyone solely on the basis of salary alone.

Length of stay and permanent settlement

The Scottish Government wants to ensure that there would be a clear and accessible pathway from a Scottish Visa to settlement. While the UK Government is currently consulting on proposals to move towards a more complex ‘earned settlement’ framework, including potentially extending standard settlement routes beyond the current five-year period, the Scottish Government has been clear in its opposition to proposals which lengthen routes to settlement or create additional barriers for people who wish to make their long-term home in Scotland.

Accordingly, the policy intention for a Scottish Visa would be to retain a route to settlement following five years of residence and compliance with visa conditions in Scotland. This reflects the Scottish Government’s view that earlier access to settlement supports integration, community cohesion, economic participation and long-term population sustainability.

It is currently envisaged that a holder of a Scottish Visa would apply to the UK Government for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), although alternative arrangements recognising permanent residence in Scotland could be explored should these form part of an agreed approach between the Scottish and UK Governments.

To support this objective, the Scottish Visa could be issued for a period of five years and three months from the outset, providing applicants with a clear and straightforward route to settlement and allowing sufficient time for an ILR application to be made at the conclusion of the five-year qualifying period. This would remove the need for unnecessary interim applications and provide greater certainty for migrants, employers and communities.

Rural Visa

The Scottish Government proposed a Rural Visa pilot scheme, with a detailed evidence base and rationale for policy change, in September 2022.^[50] This followed MAC support for the introduction of a Rural Visa pilot, and an indication from the Home Office to Parliament that they would consider a proposal. Details of the pilot were developed in partnership with the Scottish Government’s Expert Advisory Group on Population and Migration, local authorities, and key industry and business sector partners.

Overview

The Scottish Government has repeatedly emphasised the urgency of the challenge for rural and island communities, with restricted immigration following the ending of free movement threatening the economic and social viability of many areas. Many of these areas are particularly dependent on migration, but very few job roles in rural and island geographies meet the required salary thresholds or other criteria to recruit through existing visa routes.

The over-arching and long-term goal of a Rural Visa would be to deliver improved outcomes at a community level in rural and island areas facing depopulation and/or skills shortages, by attracting migrants with the skills and profile that would best address the social and economic challenges created by population decline.

The Rural Visa would be a community-driven, employer-based migration route, operating within the UK immigration framework. The approach would spread the benefits of immigration to smaller rural and island communities in Scotland, enabling migration based on genuine employment opportunities that best meet the economic and service delivery needs of a community, whether to address acute shortages, support future growth and regeneration, or maintain crucial local services and community viability.

Delivery

Participating employers within identified geographic areas referred to as the ‘community’ would be able to advertise for vacancies (using bespoke entry criteria). Those employers would assess prospective candidates, before recommending chosen candidates to the Home Office for security checks and final decision. Once a decision was approved, the migrant would be sponsored by their employer.

Throughout the pre-arrival and arrival period, community partners (including the employer, local services and third sector bodies) would provide an integrated package of settlement support for newcomers.

Participating employers, in collaboration with Scottish Government and UK Government organisations, would have responsibility for ensuring that terms and conditions of the scheme continued to be met.

Users of the scheme would be required to adhere to clear conditions of employment within the community as set out across the duration of the pilot. These conditions would be gradually eased over a period of four years, with a route to permanent residency with no mobility restrictions upon completion.

Locations

It is anticipated that decisions about the geographic size and boundaries of a participating ‘community’ would need to be taken in a shared forum between the UK Government, Scottish Government, MAC, and local authorities. However, this proposal makes an initial suggestion that participating ‘community’ areas could be drawn using Travel to Work Area (TTWA) geographic units to ensure appropriate size and configuration.

Whilst the Scottish Government have made the offer to pilot a Rural Visa, the route could be expanded to include rural areas facing demographic challenges across any of the four nations of the United Kingdom, and the Scottish Government would be willing to engage in any discussions around a shared pilot approach.

Scale

It is anticipated the scheme should establish between three and five pilot communities across rural and island areas of Scotland, trialled over an initial period of five years. This will enable comparisons between different areas during an ongoing evaluation of the pilot. Following the five-year period, a review could be undertaken to establish whether the pilot should be extended or be formalised into a wider programme.

Caps or quotas on migrants entering the scheme would need to be discussed during the design phase. However, for a pilot of the scheme, a working initial cap of 300 migrants per designated Community Pilot Area would be permitted to enter via the scheme across the pilot’s duration.

Scottish Graduate Visa

The Scottish Government proposed a Scottish Graduate Visa in the January 2025 publication ‘Migration – Meeting Scotland’s Needs’.^[51]

Overview

International students have a positive economic impact on Scotland. We want to attract and retain international students in Scotland. However, the restrictions on dependants and the significant increase in the salary threshold for the Skilled Worker Visa are significant disincentives to making this a realistic or attractive proposition for international students.

The planned reduction of the existing Graduate Visa route from 24 to 18 months from 2027 exacerbates the challenges facing international students in gaining a role which meets the salary threshold for a Skilled Worker Visa immediately following completion of their studies, especially students outside of London.

A Scottish Graduate Visa would act to ensure that international talent is not lost from Scotland due to the cliff-edge transition from the existing Graduate Visa to a Skilled Worker Visa. The conditions of the visa would ensure that users of the route live and work in Scotland, contributing to Scotland’s economy and communities.

We propose the establishment of a Scottish Graduate Visa which would act as a bridge between the existing Graduate Visa and a Skilled Worker Visa, giving international students in Scotland an additional two years to develop their career to meet the salary threshold.

Delivery

To be eligible, individuals would need to have completed, and been awarded, a relevant qualification through a Scottish institution, such as a degree, Master’s degree or PhD. They would need to currently be in the UK on a Graduate Visa, and intend to live and work in Scotland for the duration of their Scottish Graduate Visa.

As with the Scottish Visa, the Scottish Graduate Visa would be linked to a Scottish tax code and be based on a requirement to live and work in Scotland.

Eligibility criteria

Applicants for this visa route would be required to have:

• completed and been awarded a relevant qualification through an eligible Scottish institution, including a Higher National Diploma, UK recognised undergraduate degree, Master’s degree or PhD;
• currently be in the UK on a Graduate visa;
• have lived in Scotland for “an appropriate period of time” whilst studying;
• intend to live in as well as seek and take employment in Scotland (including self-employment) – linked to a Scottish tax code.

What a successful applicant would be able to do:

• work in most jobs in Scotland (no salary requirement);
• be self-employed – to recognise and encourage entrepreneurship;
• live in Scotland with a partner and/or dependant children.

Duration

A Scottish Graduate Visa would be granted for up to two years. The Scottish Graduate Visa would provide a further opportunity for individuals to gain the professional experience required to qualify for roles on the Skilled Worker Visa route, as the current salary threshold for this visa route is a barrier to access for graduates in many locations and sectors. Whilst living and working in Scotland on the Scottish Graduate Visa, individuals would then be able to apply for other visas, such as a Skilled Worker Visa.

Possible visa pathway

• Individual applies for, and is awarded, a Student Visa.
• Following completion of their studies an individual is eligible to apply for a Graduate Visa. A Graduate Visa lasts for two years or three years for those with a PhD or other doctoral qualification. (NB: from 2027, the Home Office intend to reduce the length of the Graduate Visa from 2 years to 18 months).^[52]
• an individual who applied for, and secured, a Graduate Visa could then apply for a Scottish Graduate Visa as a further step after their Graduate Visa
• a Scottish Graduate Visa would last for two years.

Scotland-specific provisions for existing visa routes

Overview

In our 2025 proposals to the Home Office, submitted during the development of the Immigration White Paper, we set out a series of proposed Scottish exemptions within existing visa routes.^[53]

As with our broader proposal for the development and introduction of tailored migration routes for Scotland, the rationale for these exemptions reflects Scotland’s distinct demographic and economic circumstances. Immigration policies designed primarily to address the needs of London and the South-East of England risk having a disproportionate impact on Scotland’s economy, public services, and long-term population sustainability.

There is therefore a strong case for introducing targeted Scotland-specific exemptions within existing immigration routes.

A summary of the Scotland-specific provisions proposed in that paper is provided below.

• Student Visa Dependants. An exemption from restrictions on dependant visas for international students studying at Scottish higher education institutions, helping to support Scotland’s universities and maintain their international competitiveness.
• Family Visa Financial Requirements. A Scotland-specific exemption or lower financial threshold for Family Visas, reducing barriers to family migration and supporting population growth, particularly in rural and island communities. This builds on views outlined in the Scottish Government response to the Migration Advisory Committee’s call for evidence on family visa financial requirements.^[54]
• Skilled Worker Visa Salary Thresholds. A lower salary threshold for Scotland within the Skilled Worker route, reflecting differences in earnings, labour market conditions and recruitment needs across Scotland.
• Care Workers. Previous versions of this proposal also included a Scottish exemption to dependant restrictions for care workers. However, following the closure of the overseas recruitment route for new care worker and senior care worker applications by the Home Office in July 2025, the Scottish Government considers that a Scottish-specific visa route, as set out elsewhere in this paper, would provide a more appropriate mechanism for addressing workforce challenges in the social care sector.