Home secretary James Cleverly is expected to announce curbs on healthcare visas in the House of Commons later today.

The moves could include raising the minimum salary for a skilled worker visa from £26,200 to above £35,000.

There are also expected to be restrictions on the number of dependants migrants can bring to the UK.

The anticipated measures follow rising pressure on the government to curb net migration after figures confirmed it reached record levels in 2022.

Nadra Ahmed, chair of the National Care Association, said: “The sector will be hugely challenged by this increase which will require additional financial commitments at a time when there is no investment visible into the sector.

“It is imperative to remember that international recruitment is a last resort for providers when they cannot recruit from the domestic workforce. We must start to address the heart of the issue by investing in social care to enable providers to recognise the skills of our teams.

“This giving with one hand and taking away with the other will further damage the stability of the support for vulnerable people. 

“We must also remember that the way in which these visas have been issued by the government to unregistered agencies rather than recognised providers, is the reason for the issues on which this government has based their decisions.”