• UK Skilled Worker Visa

UK Skilled Worker Visa

A Skilled Worker Visa grants you permission to travel to or stay in the UK to work for up to five years in an eligible job for an approved company. You can extend it as many times as you want as long as you continue to meet the eligibility criteria. 

When you apply for a Skilled Worker Visa, the Home Office will use the UK’s points-based system when making a decision whether or not to grant a visa.

If you hold this visa and have lived in the UK for at least 5 years, you may be able to apply for permanent settlement in the UK, also known as ‘indefinite leave to remain’. If you’re granted indefinite leave to remain, you become eligible to apply for certain extra public benefits and are able to stay in the UK for as long as you like.

The visa is replacing the General Work Visa (Tier 2).

Eligibility Criteria

To be granted a UK Skilled Worker Visa, you will need to meet the following mandatory criteria:

  • have a confirmed job offer for a role listed as eligible by UK Visas and Immigration before you apply for the visa
  • work for a Home Office-approved UK employer (also known as ‘sponsors’) and be able to present a ‘certificate of sponsorship’ that describes your intended role
  • show evidence that you have an English language ability of at least B1 level on the CEFR scale (or are from certain countries or territories where English is widely-spoken)

Additionally, you will need to meet minimum salary requirements. You should:

  • be offered a minimum salary of at least £38,700 per year or the ‘going rate’ for the work you’ll be doing, whichever is higher (salary requirements subject to change).
  • You may be allowed to be paid less if:
    • you are intending to work in certain healthcare or education roles, salaries for which are based on nationally-set pay scales
    • you are extending or updating an existing Skilled Worker Visa
    • your job is on the Immigration Salary List (previously called the Shortage Occupation List)
    • you are aged 25 or younger and are studying, a recent graduate or currently in professional training
    • you have a relevant science, technology, engineering or maths qualification at PhD level
    • you have a postdoctoral position in higher education or in science

If you are allowed to be paid less than the standard minimum salary requirement of £38,700, you will still have to be paid more than £30,960 per year and, depending on your specific circumstances, either 70%, 80% or 90% of your job’s going rate.

The Points-Based System

Your application will be scored according to the UK’s points-based immigration system and will need to receive at least 70 points in order to be succesful.

You will receive 50 points for meeting the three mandatory criteria. You can make up the remaining 20 by being paid at least £38,700 per year, filling a ‘shortage occupation’, or holding a PhD in a STEM subject relevant to the job you are being sponsored for. Alternatively, you could make up the remaining points by being paid less than £38,700 a year and holding a non-STEM PhD in a subject relevant to the job you are being sponsored for.

If you do not meet the points requirements for a Skilled Worker Visa, you may still be able to get a visa to work in the UK via another route, such as the Health and Care Worker Visa.

Check your eligibility for this visa

Skilled Worker Visa Application Process

The precise application process for the UK Skilled Worker visa will depend on whether you are applying from outside the UK, extending your current visa from inside the UK, or are already inside the UK and intending to switch from a different visa. The application process can take up to 8 weeks and you can apply for this visa up to 3 months prior to the date you’re due to commence work in the UK.

If you want to change job or employer, you need to reapply to update your visa.

If you have family members who want to join you on this visa in the UK, they may apply as your ‘dependants’ if they are deemed eligible to do so.

Documentation Requirements

To apply for a UK Skilled Worker Visa, you will need to provide the following:

  • The reference number of your ‘certificate of sponsorship’
  • English language test results (if applicable)
  • A valid document that shows your identity and nationality
  • Your job title, occupation code, and annual salary
  • The name of your employer and their sponsor licence number
  • Evidence that you have enough personal savings (unless your ‘certificate of sponsorship’ shows your employer can support you)
  • Proof of your relationship with your dependants if they’re applying with you
  • A criminal record certificate (if you’ll be working in certain sectors like education, healthcare, therapy, or social services)
  • A certificate from each country you have lived in (exact requirements depend on your age and period of stay)

Language Requirements

You will need to prove your ability to read, write, speak, and understand English to at least level B1 on the CEFR scale unless you’ve done this in a previous successful visa application. 

You do not need to prove your English language ability if:

  • you’re a doctor, nurse, midwife, or vet and have already passed an English language assessment that is accepted by the relevant regulated professional body
  • You are from one of the following countries or territories:
    • Antigua and Barbuda
    • Australia
    • The Bahamas
    • Barbados
    • Belize
    • any of the British Overseas Territories
    • Canada
    • Dominica
    • Grenada
    • Guyana
    • Jamaica
    • Malta
    • New Zealand
    • St Kitts and Nevis
    • St Lucia
    • St Vincent and the Grenadines
    • Trinidad and Tobago
    • USA
Check your eligibility for this visa

Costs

Depending on your individual situation, you (and your dependants, if applicable) will each need to:

  • pay the application fee (fee ranges from £719 to £1,639 depending on your circumstances)
  • pay the healthcare surcharge for each year of your stay
  • prove you have enough personal savings to support yourself when you arrive in the UK (usually at least £1,270 available for at least 28 days in a row within 31 days of applying for the visa, (unless you are exempt due to your employer covering your costs during your first month in the UK or because you’ve been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months)

If you’re unsure how to apply for the UK Skilled Worker Visa or whether this visa is right for you, you can seek advice from one of our qualified immigration solicitors.

Demetris Demetriou

Demetris is a dual-qualified lawyer in the UK (Solicitor) and Cyprus (Advocate) with 10+ years of experience in UK immigration. He completed his legal studies at University College London and City University London. Over the course of his career, he held key roles as Head of Immigration at Legal 500 firms and within the Big4, overseeing teams of 15+ fee earners handling 2000+ applications annually.

Demetris went on to co-establish his firm in London and continues to offer innovative solutions and strategic immigration planning to multinationals, SMEs, and private clients.

He personally represented 1500+ clients in 30+ visa routes including investors, entrepreneurs, innovators, sole representatives, students, family visas, global talent, UK ancestry, administrative reviews and appeals. Demetris has managed corporate relocations, conducted immigration law training and implemented post-Brexit immigration policies for corporate clients.

Demetris has been featured in various events and publications focusing on UK immigration, notably at the Cambridge Network, the Westminster Policy Forum and most recently at DGEMS, a global mobility summit hosted by Forbes India.

If you would like to discuss your UK immigration matter or have any questions about your options for immigrating to the UK, you can book a consultation here.

Tatiani Preifelt

Tatiani has a wealth of expertise in global mobility and corporate immigration. Her ample skills were acquired within leading immigration practices including three out of the Big4 firms in both the UK and Sweden. Tatiani went on to co-establish her firm in London where she continues to advise clients predominantly in corporate, business and skilled work migration.

Having personally relocated to 10 different countries, Tatiani understands the importance of an expedient and successful immigration process and takes pride in delivering a seamless experience to her clients as well.

Over the course of her career, she has assisted over 500 individuals and businesses to obtain the appropriate visa permits in the UK.

Her awarded academic work at The University of Oxford, The London School of Economics, and at The Geneva University is in the fields of Political Science, International Human Rights Law, and Global Migration Governance.

She regularly provides immigration training and has recently participated as a speaker and panellist at DGEMS 2023, a global mobility summit hosted by Forbes India.

If you would like to discuss your UK immigration matter or have any questions about your options for immigrating to the UK, you can book a consultation here.