Who qualifies for the Skilled Worker visa
To qualify for the Skilled Worker visa, you need four things: a job offer from a UK employer with a Home Office sponsor licence, a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) issued by that employer for the specific role, a salary that meets the thresholds, and English language proficiency at CEFR B1 or above. You also need to be applying for a role that is on the eligible occupation list — the UK categorises jobs using Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 2020 codes, and the Skilled Worker visa covers several hundred occupations rated at RQF level 3 or higher.
English requirements are met automatically if your degree was taught in English or you hold a passport from a majority-English-speaking country. Otherwise, an approved Secure English Language Test (SELT) like IELTS UKVI or Trinity College London ISE is required. The academic threshold is deliberately low — the bigger qualifying hurdle is usually the salary threshold combined with the going rate for the role.
Salary thresholds (the 2025 reset)
Salary is the most common sticking point. In April 2025 the general threshold rose from £38,700 to £41,700 per year. You must meet both this floor and the published "going rate" for your SOC occupation code — whichever is higher.
Not every applicant pays the full threshold. Graduates and under-26 new entrants qualify under a reduced £33,400 + 70% going rate. Health and Care Worker visa holders use a separate £25,000 floor. Roles on the Immigration Salary List use £33,400 + 80% going rate. PhD-relevant roles in certain SOC codes have a £37,500 route. If your role falls into one of these reduced categories, your chances of qualifying dramatically improve.
| Route | Salary threshold | Going rate |
|---|---|---|
| General Skilled Worker | £41,700 | Full going rate |
| New entrant (graduate, under-26) | £33,400 | 70% of going rate |
| Health and Care Worker | £25,000 | Going rate applies |
| Immigration Salary List occupation | £33,400 | 80% of going rate |
| PhD-relevant role | £37,500 | 90% of going rate |
The sponsor + Certificate of Sponsorship workflow
Your UK employer must hold an active sponsor licence before they can offer you a visa-qualifying job. This licence is issued by the Home Office and costs the employer £574 (small or charity sponsor) or £1,579 (large sponsor) every four years. You can look up any UK employer on the public Register of Licensed Sponsors to confirm they are licensed — our free Sponsor Licence Checker makes this a one-click search.
Once you accept a sponsored job offer, the employer issues you a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS). A CoS is a unique 8-character reference number linking you to the specific role. It costs the employer £525 and carries a 3-month expiry — you have that window to submit your visa application. Under 2024 changes, employers can no longer pass this fee on to the employee for defined CoS.
Application process and timelines
Once your CoS is issued, you apply online through gov.uk. Applications made outside the UK take around 3 weeks for standard processing; inside the UK (e.g. switching from a Graduate visa) they take up to 8 weeks. You can pay £500-£1000 extra for a priority service reducing to 5 working days outside the UK. You submit biometrics at a Visa Application Centre (VAC), upload documents, and receive a decision by email.
Beyond the CoS fee and visa fee (£719 to £1,639 depending on duration), you pay the Immigration Health Surcharge at £1,035 per year for adults (£776 for children). A 5-year visa therefore carries around £5,175 in IHS — payable upfront and in full. Health and Care Worker visa holders are exempt from the IHS entirely, which is a major cost advantage for NHS and social care routes.
Family dependants
Your partner (spouse, civil partner, or unmarried partner of 2+ years) and dependent children under 18 can apply as your dependants. Each dependant pays their own visa fee and IHS. Adult dependants can work in any job without their own sponsor and without salary thresholds — in practice this makes the Skilled Worker visa one of the most family-friendly work visas globally.
The family evidence required is stricter than the main applicant's: proof of relationship (marriage certificate, birth certificates), proof of cohabitation, maintenance funds (£285 for partner + £315 per first child + £200 each additional child). Employers can "certify maintenance" on your CoS, waiving the funds requirement for all dependants.
The 5-year path to settlement
The Skilled Worker visa is a direct route to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). After 5 years of continuous residence in the UK on a Skilled Worker visa, you can apply for ILR provided you still meet the salary/role requirements, pass the Life in the UK test, and meet continuous-residence rules (absences under 180 days per year).
Once you hold ILR, you become eligible for British citizenship after 12 more months (total 6 years from Skilled Worker arrival, assuming you met the residency requirements). The Skilled Worker route is one of only a handful of UK work visas with this direct ILR pathway, which is why it is worth understanding in detail even at the start of your UK journey.
Common reasons for refusal
The most frequent refusal reasons we see in 2026 are: salary below the combined threshold + going rate (especially common when candidates negotiate a salary that clears £41,700 but falls below the SOC going rate); CoS issued for a role that does not match the actual job description; documents missing or mismatched (especially financial evidence for maintenance); English certificate from an unapproved provider; and employer sponsor licence suspended between CoS issue and visa decision.
Our Salary Checker tool cross-references your job title, salary offer, and SOC code to flag the combined-threshold problem before you apply. If you get refused, you have 14 days to request an Administrative Review — this is not a full appeal but a paper review for caseworker errors. Fresh applications are generally faster and more reliable than overturning a refusal.