Overview
A Skilled Worker visa allows you to come to or stay in the UK to do an eligible job with an approved employer.
This visa has replaced the Tier 2 (General) work visa.
It also allows you to work in UK waters.
Your job
To qualify for a Skilled Worker visa, you must:
- work for a UK employer that’s been approved by the Home Office
- have a ‘certificate of sponsorship’ (CoS) from your employer with information about the role you’ve been offered in the UK
- do a job that’s on the list of eligible occupations
- be paid a minimum salary – how much depends on the type of work you do and the date you got your CoS
The specific eligibility depends on your job.
You must have a confirmed job offer before you apply for your visa.
How long you can stay
Your visa can last for up to 5 years before you need to extend it. You’ll need to apply to extend or update your visa when it expires or if you change jobs or employer.
If you want to stay longer in the UK
You can apply to extend your visa as many times as you like as long as you still meet the eligibility requirements.
After 5 years, you may be able to apply to settle permanently in the UK (also known as ‘indefinite leave to remain’). This gives you the right to live, work and study here for as long as you like, and apply for benefits if you’re eligible.
What you can and cannot do
With a Skilled Worker visa you can:
- work in an eligible job
- study
- bring your partner and children with you as your ‘dependants’, if you meet the eligibility requirements
- take on additional work in certain circumstances
- travel abroad and return to the UK
- apply to settle permanently in the UK (also known as ‘indefinite leave to remain’) if you’ve lived in the UK for 5 years and meet the other eligibility requirements
- do voluntary work
Any voluntary work you do must be unpaid and for one of the following:
- a registered charity
- a voluntary organisation
- an associated fundraising body (an organisation that raises money for a charity or voluntary organisation)
- a statutory body (a government-appointed body, for example Historic England)
You cannot:
- apply for most benefits (public funds), or the State Pension
- change jobs or employer unless you apply to update your visa
If your application is successful, you’ll get a full list of what you can and cannot do with a Skilled Worker visa.
Salary requirements
You’ll usually need to be paid the ‘standard’ salary rate of at least £41,700 per year, or the ‘going rate’ for your job, whichever is higher.
Example
Your salary is £42,000 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
You might still be able to apply for a Skilled Worker visa if your job is eligible but your salary is less than the standard salary requirement of £41,700 or your job’s standard ‘going rate’.
You can be paid between 70% and 90% of the standard going rate for your job if your salary is at least £33,400 per year and you meet one of the following criteria:
- you’re under 26, studying or a recent graduate, or in professional training
- you have a science, technology, engineering or maths (STEM) PhD level qualification that’s relevant to your job (if you have a relevant PhD level qualification in any other subject your salary must be at least £37,500)
- you have a postdoctoral position in science or higher education
There are different salary rules if you work in some healthcare or education jobs or you’re extending your visa or updating your visa.
Your job is on the immigration salary list
The immigration salary list is a list of skilled jobs which have lower salary requirements.
If your job is on the immigration salary list you also pay a lower fee to apply for your visa.
You must be paid at least £33,400 per year if you are being sponsored for a job on the immigration salary list.
You must still be paid at least the standard going rate for your job.
Make sure you check whether your job is listed in the part of the UK you’ll be working in – UK-wide, or only in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
You’re under 26, studying or a recent graduate, or in professional training
You can be paid 70% of your job’s standard going rate if your salary will be at least £33,400 per year and one of the following applies:
- you’re under 26 on the date you apply
- you’re currently in the UK on a Student visa studying at bachelor’s degree level or above (or you have been in the last 2 years, and a Student or visit visa was your most recent visa)
- you’re currently in the UK on a Graduate visa (or you have been in the last 2 years, and a Graduate or visit visa was your most recent visa)
- you’ll be working towards a recognised qualification in a UK regulated profession
- you’ll be working towards full registration or chartered status in the job you’re being sponsored for
Your total stay in the UK cannot be more than 4 years if you apply for one of these reasons. This includes any time you’ve already spent in the UK on a Graduate visa.
You have a PhD level qualification that’s relevant to your job
If your job is eligible for a PhD salary discount, you can be paid 80% or 90% of the job’s standard going rate, depending on which subject you are qualified in.
If you have a science, technology, engineering or maths (STEM) qualification, you can be paid 80% of your job’s standard going rate, as long as you will still be paid at least £33,400 a year.
If you have a non-STEM qualification, you can be paid 90% of your job’s standard going rate, as long as you will still be paid at least £37,500 a year.
In both situations, you must:
- have a UK PhD or an equivalent doctorate-level overseas qualification – you’ll need to apply through Ecctis to check if an overseas qualification is equivalent to a UK PhD
- be able to prove your qualification is relevant to the job you’ll be doing in the UK – your employer can confirm this
If you work in healthcare or education
There are different salary rules if you work in some healthcare or education jobs. Your salary must be at least £25,000 – or more if your job’s ‘going rate’ is higher.
The going rates for these jobs are based on the national pay scales set by the relevant independent body, for example the NHS.
National pay scales tables
If your job is on the list, your salary must be at least the national pay scale rate for the job you’ll be doing.
These going rates apply whether you’ll be working in the public or private sector.
Check how much you’ll need to be paid in the:
- table of national pay scales for eligible healthcare jobs – listed by NHS pay band and area of the UK
- table of national pay scales for eligible teaching and education leadership jobs – listed by role and area of the UK
Ask your employer if you’re not sure what your role or pay band will be.
Knowledge of English
You’ll usually need to prove your knowledge of the English language when you apply. You can prove it in one of the following ways, by:
- having a UK school qualification
- having a degree from a UK institution
- having a degree from an institution that was outside the UK and taught in English
- passing an English test from an approved provider
If you have already proved your knowledge of English in a previous successful visa application, you may not have to prove it again.
Money to support yourself
You must have at least £1,270 in your bank account to show you can support yourself in the UK.
You will need to have had the money available for at least 28 days in a row. Day 28 must be within 31 days of applying for this visa.
You’ll usually need to show proof of this when you apply, unless either:
- you’ve been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months
- your employer can cover your costs during your first month in the UK, up to £1,270
Your partner and children will also need to prove they can support themselves while they’re in the UK.
If your employer can support you instead
Your certificate of sponsorship must confirm this. Your employer will need to complete the ‘sponsor certifies maintenance’ section on your certificate. This is under ‘Additional data’.
Criminal record certificate
You’ll need to provide a criminal record certificate if you’re applying from outside the UK and you work in:
- education, for example teachers, education advisers and school inspectors, childminders, teaching assistants
- healthcare, for example nurses, doctors, paramedics, managers, pharmacists, dentists and dental nurses, ophthalmic opticians
- therapy, for example psychologists, speech and language therapists, counsellors
- social services, for example social workers, managers, probation officers, welfare and housing officers
Taking on additional work
If you work overtime in the job you’re being sponsored for, you do not need to update your visa.
There’s no limit to how many hours of overtime you can do.
Working in another job or for your own business
You can work up to 20 hours a week in another job or for your own business as long as you’re still doing the job you’re being sponsored for.
The work you do must meet one of the following conditions:
- it has an eligible occupation code listed as ‘higher skilled’
- it is on the immigration salary list
- it is in the same sector and at the same level as your main job
You can only do additional work in a job with an eligible occupation code listed as ‘medium skilled’ if both of the following apply:
- you got your certificate of sponsorship for your first Tier 2 or Skilled Worker visa before 22 July 2025
- you have continually held one or more Skilled Worker visas since then
If you work more than 20 hours a week in another job
You’ll need to apply to update your visa so that you’re being sponsored to do both jobs.
You’ll need to:
- get a new certificate of sponsorship from your second employer
- include a letter with your application explaining that you want to change your current permission to stay
Voluntary work
You can do voluntary work while on the Skilled Worker visa. This must be unpaid (except for reasonable expenses such as travel) and for one of the following:
- a registered charity
- a voluntary organisation
- an associated fundraising body (an organisation that raises money for a charity or voluntary organisation)
- a statutory body (a government-appointed body, for example Historic England.
