British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that there will be no "golden ticket" to settle in the UK and that refugees will be required to "earn" their right to long-term residence in the country, DPA and PA Media reported, BTA reported.
The government plans to end the right to automatic family reunification of people granted asylum in the UK and change the requirements for permanent settlement in the country for refugees. New applications under the existing refugee family reunification scheme were suspended in September.
Starmer will hold talks on plans and ways in which European countries can cooperate to tackle irregular migration at today's Copenhagen summit of the European Political Community - a forum aimed at promoting political dialogue and cooperation beyond the 27-member European Union.
"I believe that if you want to come to the UK you should contribute to our society. That is the tolerant and fair approach to migration that our societies are founded on, but the current system is not fit for purpose. That is why we are making fundamental changes to what will be provided to those granted asylum in the country," Starmer said.
"The right to stay must be earned by contributing to our country, not by paying people smugglers to cross the Channel by boat", he stressed, adding that the UK will continue to accept "genuine refugees fleeing persecution", but must also tackle the factors that make the country attractive to irregular migrants and that encourage their illegal arrival in small boats across the Channel.
"There will be no golden ticket to settle in the UK, people will have to earn it," Starmer said.
Later today, the British Prime Minister will also announce a new partnership to tackle the causes of migration from the Western Balkans. This will happen during a meeting with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. The plan, backed by up to £3m ($4m) in funding, will include encouraging people to stay in the region and take up work there.
British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood will unveil the full package of reforms later this autumn, under which some procedures for refugees in the UK will be extended.
The changes will introduce requirements for refugees to contribute to the UK and will not give them the automatic right to bring their families to the country. Refugees will continue to be entitled to "core protection" and will not be deported under the changes, the government said, but they will have to take a longer path to be granted settled status, which requires them to make a contribution to the country and which will replace the current five-year path.
Earlier this week, Mahmood told a Labour Party conference that stricter conditions would be introduced for gaining the right to stay indefinitely in the UK. Migrants will have to be employed, not receive welfare benefits, have a high level of English and no criminal record. They will also have to meet a certain level of conditions related to social security contributions and make a contribution to the country, such as working in the municipality where they live.