Eligible jobs
The Home Office lists the eligible jobs for the Skilled Worker route in Table 1 of Appendix Skilled Occupations on the UK government website. You will see that eligible jobs are grouped into a wider occupation code, Higher education and teaching professionals (2311), which are listed in the first column and the job titles themselves are listed under related job titles, university lecturer, in the second column. The minimum skill level of the eligible jobs titles is RQF3.
Required salary
The absolute minimum required to qualify for the Skilled Worker route is £38,700 (or £19.85 per hour, whichever is higher) for 'experienced workers' and £30,960 (or £15.88 per hour, whichever is higher) for 'new entrants'. These salaries are called the 'base rate'.
However, please note that the required salary is in most cases higher than the 'base rate' because each eligible job has a minimum salary called the 'going rate', that must also be met. Therefore, in order to qualify for the Skilled Worker route, the salary of your job must be equal to or higher than, both the
- 'base rate’ salary that applies to you
and
- 'going' rate salary that applies to your job or 70% of the 'going rate' if you qualify as a 'new entrant'.
You will qualify as a 'new entrant' (and therefore need to earn less than the standard rates) if at the date of your Skilled Worker application:
- you have current Student or Tier 4 immigration permission (or your most recent immigration permission was as a Student or Tier 4 and expired less than two years ago); and
- the current Student or Tier 4 immigration permission (or the previous Student or Tier 4 permission you held) was granted for you to study a UK bachelor's degree, UK master’s degree, UK PGCE or UK PhD.
You will also be defined as a 'new entrant' if at the date of your Skilled Worker application you:
- are aged under 26; or
- have a job offer which is a postdoctoral position in specific job codes; or
- have a job in which you will be working towards full registration/chartered status with the relevant professional body; or
- you have a valid Graduate Route visa or it expired less than two years ago.
If you qualify as a 'new entrant', you should look under the column '70% of the going rate' in Table 1 for the relevant role to find the 'going rate' that applies to you. There are different salary rules if you work in some healthcare or education jobs. The ‘going rates’ for these jobs are based on the national pay scales set by the relevant independent body, for example the NHS.View the national pay scales for healthcare jobs and eligible teaching and education leadership jobs by area of the UK.
There is a maximum period of four years in which you can be a 'new entrant' under the Skilled Worker route. Importantly, this includes any time (two or three years) you may have spent under the Graduate Route. Therefore, if you apply to switch from the Graduate Route to Skilled Worker, you will only have two years available as a 'new entrant' under the Skilled Worker route. In order to obtain further permission under the Skilled Worker route after these two years, you will need to meet the higher 'experienced worker' base and going rates.
Finance requirements
If you apply in the UK
If at the date of application, you have lived in the UK for 12 months or more with a valid visa, you will not need to meet the finance requirement i.e. show bank statements confirming you hold a certain level of funds. If this has not been the case, your employer can certify on your CoS that it will cover your living costs in the UK in the first month of your employment.
If your employer certifies your maintenance, you will meet the finance requirement and you will not need to provide bank statements. If your sponsor does not do this, you will need to show that you have held at least £1,270 in your name for at least 28 consecutive days before the date of application. The figure is higher if you have dependants with you.
If you apply outside the UK
Your employer can certify on your CoS that it will cover your living costs in the UK in the first month of employment. If your employer does this, you will meet the finance requirement and you will not need to provide bank statements.
If your sponsor does not do this, you will need to show that you have held at least £1,270 in your name for at least 28 consecutive days before the date of application. The figure is higher if you have dependants applying with you.
Further details
ATAS requirement: Required for the jobs in specific occupation codes
Where can you apply: In the UK or overseas
Duration: Depends on length of contract
Conditions: Work restricted to sponsored job
Work is permitted but only in the job for which the CoS was issued, except for some 'supplementary' and 'voluntary' work.
Study is permitted, but as you will work, usually full-time, in the sponsored job, it is unlikely you will be able to study full-time.
How to apply: via the UK government website.
You can either apply in the UK to 'switch' from your Student or Tier 4 visa, which must be valid when you make the application, to the Skilled Worker route or you can apply in your country of residence overseas.
Fees: vary depending on circumstances
The Skilled Worker application fees depend on where you make your application and the duration of your job. They are less if your job is on the ‘Immigration salary list’.
The immigration health surcharge (IHS) for each applicant is currently £1,035 per year of the job.
The charge for dependant partners is £1,035 and £776 for each dependant child per year of the job.
Dependants: Permitted
If you have dependants (a spouse, civil or unmarried partner, children) and they already have Dependant immigration permission, they will be able to apply at the same time as you, when you apply to switch to the Skilled Worker route in the UK. Alternatively, if you make your Skilled Worker application outside of the UK they can apply at the same time as you or if you obtain Skilled Worker permission first, they can apply to join you in the UK at a later date.
If you are applying in the UK with your dependant(s) and at the date of application your dependant(s) has lived in the UK for 12 months or more with a valid visa, your dependant(s) will not need to meet the finance requirement i.e., show bank statements. If this has not been the case, or your dependant(s) is applying outside of the UK, they will need to meet the finance requirement of having sufficient funds described on the UK government website.
For further information please see UKCISA’s guidance.
If you do not qualify for the Skilled Worker route, you may qualify for the Graduate route.