UK Skilled Worker visa: rules, requirements and application

The Skilled Worker visa is the main UK route for people who have a job offer from a licensed sponsor. To qualify you must have a job offer from a Home Office-licensed sponsor, a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), a job at the required skill level, and meet the English language and salary requirements. The exact salary threshold, fee amount, and maintenance funds figure are not stated on the GOV.UK work visa overview page, so you must check the specific Skilled Worker guidance on GOV.UK for those numbers before you apply. This article sets out what the official official guidance confirms about the route and what you need to verify separately.

What the Skilled Worker visa is

The Skilled Worker visa is one of the UK’s main work routes. It replaced the Tier 2 (General) work visa. It is listed on GOV.UK under “Work in the UK” alongside the Health and Care Worker visa, the Global Business Mobility routes, and the temporary work visas.

The route is for people who have been offered a skilled job by a UK employer that holds a sponsor licence. You cannot apply for this visa without a job offer and a sponsor. The GOV.UK work visa overview page groups it under “Popular work visas” and lists it separately from visas you can apply for without a job offer, such as the Graduate visa, High Potential Individual visa, and Global Talent visa.

The core eligibility requirements

GOV.UK does not publish the full Skilled Worker eligibility checklist on the work visa overview page, but the route’s structure is clear from the way the Home Office presents it. To be eligible for a Skilled Worker visa you must have:

• A job offer from a UK employer that holds a valid sponsor licence.
• A Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) issued by that sponsor, which contains details of the job, the salary, and the job’s occupation code.
• A job that meets the skill level required for the route.
• Enough money to support yourself in the UK, unless you are exempt.
• A knowledge of English at the required level.

These are the same categories of evidence the Home Office asks for on the Skilled Worker application form. The exact skill level, salary threshold, and English language level are not given in the official guidance, so you must check the Skilled Worker visa guidance on GOV.UK for the current figures.

What the official guidance does not tell you

The official guidance for this article consists of the GOV.UK work visa overview page and the Student visa guidance pages. It does not contain the Skilled Worker-specific numbers. This is an important limitation. The following are not stated in the official guidance and you must not assume them:

• The minimum salary threshold for the Skilled Worker route.
• The fee for a Skilled Worker visa application.
• The maintenance funds amount you must show.
• The English language test level or accepted qualifications.
• The list of eligible occupation codes.
• The processing time for a Skilled Worker application.

These are all published on the dedicated Skilled Worker visa guidance pages on GOV.UK. The Home Office updates them, so you should check the live page rather than rely on any third-party summary.

How the Skilled Worker route relates to other work visas

The GOV.UK work visa overview page places the Skilled Worker visa within a wider family of routes. Understanding where it sits can help you decide whether it is the right route for you.

Category	Visa examples
Visas requiring a job offer	Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, Senior or Specialist Worker (Global Business Mobility), Scale-up Worker
Visas without a job offer	Graduate, High Potential Individual, Global Talent, Youth Mobility Scheme, India Young Professionals Scheme
Temporary work visas	Seasonal Worker, Government Authorised Exchange, Creative Worker, Religious Worker, Charity Worker, International Agreement
Business and start-up	Innovator Founder, UK Expansion Worker (Global Business Mobility)
Closed to new applicants	Entrepreneur (Tier 1), Investor (Tier 1), Turkish Businessperson, Turkish Worker, Start-up

The Skilled Worker visa is not the same as the Health and Care Worker visa, which is a separate route for eligible health and care professionals. It is also distinct from the Graduate visa, which you can apply for after completing a course in the UK and does not require a job offer.

Switching from a Student visa to a Skilled Worker visa

If you are in the UK on a Student visa, you may be able to switch to a Skilled Worker visa without leaving the UK. The Student visa guidance confirms that you may be able to “switch to a Student visa from another visa” if you are already in the UK, and the work visa overview page lists the Skilled Worker visa as a route you can apply for. The official guidance does not set out the specific conditions for switching from a Student visa to a Skilled Worker visa, so you must check the Skilled Worker guidance for the rules on switching.

One point the official guidance does confirm is that if you are on a Student visa and you complete your course, you may instead apply for a Graduate visa. The Graduate visa allows you to stay in the UK for:

• 2 years if you apply on or before 31 December 2026.
• 18 months if you apply on or after 1 January 2027.
• 3 years if you completed a PhD or other doctoral qualification.

This is a separate route from the Skilled Worker visa and does not require sponsorship.

The role of the sponsor

The sponsor licence is the single most important structural feature of the Skilled Worker route. Your employer, not you, holds the licence. If your sponsor loses its licence, your immigration status may be affected. GOV.UK has a dedicated page for employees whose visa sponsor loses their licence, which is listed under “Sponsors and sponsorship” on the work visa overview page.

You cannot self-sponsor for a Skilled Worker visa. The job offer and the CoS must come from an employer that the Home Office has licensed. If you are considering applying, your first practical step is to confirm that your prospective employer holds a valid sponsor licence and is willing to assign you a CoS.

What you can and cannot do on a work visa

The official guidance does not set out the specific conditions of the Skilled Worker visa. However, the Student visa guidance shows the kind of restrictions that apply to UK visas generally. On a Student visa you cannot claim public funds, work as a professional sportsperson or sports coach, be self-employed, or study at a maintained school. Work restrictions on the Skilled Worker visa are different and are set out in the Skilled Worker guidance. You should check that page for the specific conditions, including whether you can change jobs, work a second job, or bring dependants.

What to do next

Before you apply for a Skilled Worker visa, you need to confirm four things on the official GOV.UK Skilled Worker guidance pages:

1. The current minimum salary threshold for your occupation code.
2. The current visa application fee.
3. The maintenance funds requirement and whether you are exempt.
4. The English language requirement and accepted evidence.

You should also confirm that your employer holds a sponsor licence and is willing to issue a Certificate of Sponsorship. The Home Office publishes the sponsor licence register, and GOV.UK has a page explaining UK visa sponsorship for employers.

Do not rely on any summary of the Skilled Worker rules, including this article, for the numbers. The Home Office changes fees and thresholds, and the figures that applied when you first looked may have changed. Check the live GOV.UK Skilled Worker visa guidance before you submit your application.