Dog groomers and DJs eligible for skilled worker visas under post-Brexit rules

New analysis shows more than 300 UK visas were granted for ‘animal care service occupations’ between 2021 and 2024. Canine beauticians and dog walkers are among a slew of unexpected jobs eligible for skilled worker visas under post-Brexit immigration rules, it has emerged. With Labour promising to crack down on legal migration, an Oxford academic has found DJs and pilates instructors are also among those eligible to come to the UK for work.

Home Office data from 2021 to 2024 show there were 334 visas granted for “animal care service occupations”, which includes dog groomers, dog walkers, stable hands, kennel assistants and veterinary nursing assistants. And there were 167 visas issued to fitness and wellbeing instructors, including pilates and yoga teachers and lifestyle coaches. The research, seen by The Guardian, showed “costume interpreters”, who wear period dress to greet visitors at museums, were also on the list of eligible occupations.

Robert McNeil, a researcher at the University of Oxford’s Centre on Migration, Policy and Society, who discovered the roles, said: “Many of these roles may well be challenging and require particular skills, but they might not be the sort of things that are front of mind for most people when they imagine roles that are critical for UK employers to recruit from overseas.”. Mr McNeil said the jobs were eligible for skilled worker visas because of post-Brexit immigration changes, adding: “At the same time as ending free movement, the government reduced the skills threshold to allow middle-skilled jobs to qualify for work visas. Previously, only graduate jobs qualified in the system that applied to non-EU citizens.

“When people think about such middle-skilled jobs, roles like plumbers, bricklayers or engineering technicians spring to mind. But defining what is actually middle-skilled is not straightforward. “Some of the results are surprising.”. Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to cut “sky-high” net migration and accused the Conservatives of having run “a one-nation experiment in open borders” while in power.

The government is to publish a white paper this spring which will bring down the number of people entering the UK. Office for National Statistics figures showed net migration hit a record 906,000 in 2023, almost four times the level of 2016, when Britain voted to leave the EU due in part to the promise of lower migration. The list of “middle-skilled” workers also includes roles such as cabin crew and airline staff, with 869 visas issued for the jobs in the year to last March.

Cemetery managers, homeopaths and cycling instructors are also on the list, The Guardian reported. Labour is increasingly focusing on efforts to cut legal and illegal migration in a bid to counter the growing threat of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which has overtaken Sir Keir’s party in a series of polls. As well as seeking greater publicity of its illegal working raids and deportation flights, the party is continuing Tory measures to cut legal migration including restrictions on overseas students bringing family members to Britain and limiting care workers bringing dependents to the country.

Home secretary Yvette Cooper has also commissioned a review by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) focused on international recruitment. A Home Office spokesman said: “We are grateful for the work skilled international professionals do in the UK. However, it is clear that we must end reliance on overseas labour and boost economic growth. “That’s why, under our Plan for Change, we will publish a White Paper to set out a comprehensive plan to restore order to the broken immigration system, as we aim to link our immigration, skills and visa systems to boost the domestic workforce.”.