The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has warned that thousands of migrant nurses in the UK are planning to leave the country because of new immigration measures announced by the government. In a survey of 3,000 internationally educated nurses, 42% said they were thinking about leaving the UK.
Among those who planned to go, 70% blamed low pay, while 40% pointed to harsh immigration policies as part of their reason. The RCN report also showed that many of these nurses would move to a different country—not their homeland—suggesting they still want to work abroad, just not in the UK.
This warning comes after Prime Minister Keir Starmer introduced stricter immigration rules on Monday. These include stopping overseas recruitment through care worker visas and adding tighter rules for foreign students coming to the UK. You can read more about Starmer’s new immigration rules here.
Professor Nicola Ranger, the RCN’s general secretary, said these changes will hurt key services. “Thousands of migrant nurses are ready to leave. The new government rules could make things even worse,” she said. She described the new measures as a “hostile environment on steroids” and said that migrant workers deserve better treatment, including fair access to benefits.
The report included comments from a nurse from the Philippines, who shared how much she loved working and living in the UK, but said it’s hard to keep defending the country when it doesn’t show support to immigrants. Many migrant nurses have already moved to the US, Canada, or Australia, where they feel more valued.
Why are migrant nurses planning to leave the UK?
Many migrant nurses are leaving because of low pay and stricter immigration rules, including new policies that make it harder for them to stay and access benefits.
A government spokesperson said the UK values migrant workers and their contributions to the National Health Service (NHS). However, they also said the country relies too much on overseas staff, especially from countries on the World Health Organization (WHO) red list. The government now plans to build up the local care workforce and offer better pay and career growth through new fair pay agreements.
As these changes unfold, there is growing concern that cutting back on foreign staff could lead to serious staff shortages in the NHS, unless more support isgiven to homegrown healthcare workers.