UK architecture firms urge government action on visa salary thresholds amid talent shortage

Post-Brexit visa rules are making hiring tougher for UK architecture firms. The skilled worker visa salary threshold has jumped from £26,000 to £45,900, and architecture has been removed from the shortage occupation list.

Research from Bespoke Careers shows that 63% of UK hiring managers are struggling to find talent, 9% higher than the global average. Firms including BDP, Allies and Morrison, Hawkins\Brown, HTA and Chapman Taylor are calling for change, warning that international graduates trained in the UK are being forced to leave before they can qualify.

With newly qualified architects earning an average of £36,500, well below the new threshold, firms say these policies are cutting off access to skilled talent and damaging the industry’s diversity and global standing.

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