Thousands of migrant carers, many from India and other developing countries, have found themselves victims of a growing scandal in the UK’s Health and Care Worker visa scheme. These workers paid up to £10,000 in illegal recruitment fees, hoping to build a better life and secure stable work. But instead, they arrived in the UK to discover no jobs, no housing, and no support, leaving them vulnerable and at serious risk of deportation.
Since 2022, the UK government has revoked sponsorship licenses from over 470 care providers for labour violations, affecting around 40,000 migrant workers. Many of these providers failed to offer the promised jobs after collecting huge payments. The victims, often unaware of their rights or UK laws, are now stuck in a system that has turned its back on them.
To make matters worse, when carers lose their sponsor, they are given just 60 days to find a new employer willing to take over their visa sponsorship. If they fail to do so, they face forced removal from the UK, even if they followed the visa rules from the start. Many are now homeless, unemployed, and deeply in debt after borrowing to pay recruitment agents.
While the UK government introduced a job-matching scheme to help these displaced carers, the results have been disappointing. Less than 4% of affected workers have been successfully matched with new jobs. Most continue to struggle while waiting for support that often never comes.
According to several advocacy groups, some of the main challenges faced by migrant carers include:
- High illegal recruitment fees, often £8,000–£10,000, paid to secure sponsorship.
- Revoked sponsor licenses, which leave workers stranded without jobs.
- Limited government help, with only a few carers being re-employed.
- Deportation risk, as workers have only 60 days to find new sponsors.
- No financial compensation, despite clear exploitation.
Human rights campaigners are calling for urgent changes, including stricter punishments for exploitative employers, proper financial compensation for victims, and more transparent recruitment systems. They stress that migrant carers are essential to the UK’s healthcare system, and they deserve fair treatment and protection, not abuse and uncertainty.
Many victims feel betrayed after making huge sacrifices to support their families and care for vulnerable people in the UK. Some sold property or took loans to afford the visa process, only to be left abandoned in a foreign country without support. “We followed all the rules, but we were still thrown away like we don’t matter,” one Indian caregiver shared anonymously.
Experts say this is a clear reminder to those interested in working abroad—especially in the UK—to use verified, legal channels for recruitment. It is also important for workers to understand their rights, ask for written contracts, and avoid paying high fees to unlicensed agents.
Until the system is fixed, thousands of honest and hardworking migrant carers continue to suffer. Without urgent reforms, the UK’s care sector risks losing trust and valuable workers who only wanted to make a difference, and now face deportation through no fault of their own.