Skilled Worker visa
Your job
You must meet all the following requirements to be eligible for a Skilled Worker visa:
- your job is eligible for this visa
- you’ll be working for a UK employer that’s been approved by the Home Office
- you’ll be paid at least the minimum salary rate for the type of work you’ll be doing
The minimum salary for the type of work you’ll be doing is whichever is the highest of:
- £38,700 per year
- the ‘going rate’ for the type of work you’ll be doing
The minimum salary may be lower if you’re extending your Skilled Worker visa or updating it because you have a new job or employer.
Your employer must make sure your job pays at least the minimum wage and follows the UK rules for how many hours a week you work. If your employer does not do this, your application will be refused.
Check if your job is eligible
Before you can find out if your job is eligible, you need to know its 4-digit occupation code.
If you already have a job offer, ask your employer for your occupation code.
Look up your job’s occupation code
If you do not know your code, you can search for your job in the CASCOT occupation coding tool.
Not every job title is included. If you cannot find your exact job title, try searching for similar jobs.
Make sure the job description matches what you’ll be doing. Some similar jobs have different codes, for example chefs and cooks. Chefs are eligible for a Skilled Worker visa, but cooks are not.
Check if an occupation code is eligible for this visa
When you know your occupation code, view the table of eligible jobs to see if it’s included.
The table is very large. It’s sorted in order of occupation code, with the smallest numbers at the top. You may be able to use your web browser to search for your code on the page.
Salary requirements
You’ll usually need to be paid the ‘standard’ salary rate of at least £38,700 per year, or the ‘going rate’ for your job, whichever is higher.
Example
Your salary is £39,000 per year, but the annual going rate for the job you’ll be doing is £45,000. You do not meet the usual salary requirements for this visa.
Each occupation code has its own annual going rate. Check the going rate for your job in the going rates table.
If you work in healthcare or education
There are different salary rules if you work in some healthcare or education jobs, where the going rate is based on national pay scales.
When you can be paid less
If you do not meet the usual salary requirements, and you do not work in healthcare or education, you might still be eligible if your salary will be at least £30,960 per year.
Check when you can be paid less.
You may also be able to meet lower salary requirements if you’re:
- extending your Skilled Worker visa
- updating your Skilled Worker visa - for example if you have a new job or employer
Approved UK employers
You must have a job offer from an approved UK employer before you apply for a Skilled Worker visa. Approved employers are also known as sponsors, because they are sponsoring you to come to or stay in the UK.
View the list of approved UK employers.
If your employer is not currently approved, they can apply for a sponsor licence if they’re eligible.
They’ll need to pay a fee - £536 for small businesses and charities or £1,476 for medium and large organisations. It usually takes around 8 weeks to process a licence application.
If you’re a care worker or senior care worker
Your employer must be registered with the Care Quality Commission if you’re a care worker (code 6135) or senior care worker (code 6136) working in England.
Check if your employer is registered with the Care Quality Commission.
If you already have a job offer from an approved employer
Your employer - also known as your sponsor - will check that you meet the eligibility requirements. They’ll give you a ‘certificate of sponsorship’ (CoS) to prove this.
The certificate of sponsorship is an electronic record, not a physical document. It will have a reference number, which you’ll need for your visa application.
You must apply for your visa within 3 months of getting your certificate of sponsorship.
Check which documents you’ll need to apply.