A senior Labour minister has warned the Home Office that UK prisons could lose hundreds of experienced officers within weeks because of a summer-rule change that raised the Skilled Worker salary threshold to £41,700. Average starting pay for prison officers outside London is about £33,000. As foreign staff apply to renew their visas, they are being refused for falling short of the new pay floor. Letters seen by prison governors instruct affected officers to stop working immediately once permission expires.
The policy is already hitting remote and high-security jails that rely heavily on international recruits. Nigeria alone supplied some 700 officers last year—almost one-third of the total intake. Governors fear that forced departures will worsen violence, drug smuggling and staff burnout in a system that has struggled with chronic vacancies since the pandemic.
![Salary-Rule Shock: Foreign Prison Officers Face Deportation as £41,700 Threshold Bites]()
Lord Timpson, who raised the alarm in the House of Lords, has urged Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to grant an exemption or transitional concession. Justice Secretary David Lammy supports a carve-out, arguing that security could be compromised if trained staff are removed en masse. The Home Office, however, says domestic recruitment must be prioritised and points to record applications from UK nationals after a recent pay review.
For corporate mobility teams, the episode is a sharp reminder that announced policy shifts can create hidden operational risks where migrant workers occupy hard-to-fill roles. Employers sponsoring Tier R (Religious), Charity Worker or Global Business Mobility visas should stress-test their salary grids against future uplifts and build contingencies for sudden workforce gaps.
If no exemption is agreed, prisons may be forced to raise salaries or re-grade roles to retain staff—moves that could cascade into other parts of the public sector competing for similar skills. Private security contractors and facilities-management firms that support prisons are monitoring the situation closely, fearing knock-on labour shortages and cost inflation.
The policy is already hitting remote and high-security jails that rely heavily on international recruits. Nigeria alone supplied some 700 officers last year—almost one-third of the total intake. Governors fear that forced departures will worsen violence, drug smuggling and staff burnout in a system that has struggled with chronic vacancies since the pandemic.
Lord Timpson, who raised the alarm in the House of Lords, has urged Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to grant an exemption or transitional concession. Justice Secretary David Lammy supports a carve-out, arguing that security could be compromised if trained staff are removed en masse. The Home Office, however, says domestic recruitment must be prioritised and points to record applications from UK nationals after a recent pay review.
For corporate mobility teams, the episode is a sharp reminder that announced policy shifts can create hidden operational risks where migrant workers occupy hard-to-fill roles. Employers sponsoring Tier R (Religious), Charity Worker or Global Business Mobility visas should stress-test their salary grids against future uplifts and build contingencies for sudden workforce gaps.
If no exemption is agreed, prisons may be forced to raise salaries or re-grade roles to retain staff—moves that could cascade into other parts of the public sector competing for similar skills. Private security contractors and facilities-management firms that support prisons are monitoring the situation closely, fearing knock-on labour shortages and cost inflation.
