She said those who do not come under the various exceptions would be on a 10-year path to settlement status. This will still affect many people who came to the UK expecting to qualify after five years.
One of those affected is Ashfak Juned, a Bangladeshi chef working in Birmingham, who told the BBC he was “crying” when he heard the new rules, which will double his wait for settled status.
The changes will move those earning less than £50,000 a year onto a 10-year path to settlement status, unless they are exempt, so he will have to wait until 2033, five more years than expected, before he can qualify for permanent settlement.
Mahmood also told MPs the government would provide a five-year path to settlement for care workers who “answered our call when we needed them” following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mahmood said: “Those who earn £25,000 a year working in the social care sector, which was the condition of their visa, will therefore be able to settle on their existing five-year path.”
She added those care workers who did not meet the conditions of their visa will be offered “a second chance to make the contribution that they came to this country to make”. They can apply for another five-year visa and seek settlement after this.
The home secretary confirmed a number of groups would see their settlement path remain as it is today – including Hong Kong British nationals overseas, armed forces members, people with a British connection and those on legacy routes including the Windrush scheme.
MPs were also told:
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higher earners on salaries of more than £50,000 and those who have contributed in healthcare and education, such as doctors and teachers, will be able to qualify for settlement after five years
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the highest rate taxpayers earning more than £125,000 will be able to apply after three years
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refugees who arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel by small boat or another illegal route will have to wait 20 years if they work or study, and 30 years if they do not.
Mahmood said: “Our changes ensure those who are net contributors are encouraged to come to this country and stay here.”
She added: “As a result, the Department for Work and Pensions estimates that our reforms will reduce the benefits bill by billions of pounds.”
The original version of the plans announced by Mahmood last year would have delayed 799,000 people from gaining permanent residency.
Under the updated plans announced on Monday, that number will now drop to 517,000.
The Refugee Council’s Imran Hussain condemned the plans for those who had travelled to the UK illegally or by small boat and do not work or study to wait 30 years for indefinite leave to remain as “unfair and unworkable”.
He said the plans would “condemn refugees to decades of deep insecurity” and “create another bureaucratic nightmare” for the Home Office.
“There is no evidence to suggest that harming refugee integration will act as a disincentive to refugees fleeing the Taliban or brutal conflicts like Sudan,” he said.
“The fairest reforms would be making fast and good quality asylum decisions, with those refugees granted protection being helped to rebuild their lives and to contribute, and those with no right to remain helped to leave with dignity.”