The Skilled Worker visa lets you work in the UK for an employer that holds a sponsor licence, in a job that meets the skill and salary rules. It is the main work route and leads to settlement after five years. The rules were tightened in July 2025 and January 2026, so advice from before then may be out of date.

What you need

A certificate of sponsorship from a licensed employer for a genuine job.
A job at graduate level (RQF 6 or above) in an eligible occupation code. Medium-skilled jobs now qualify only if they are on the immigration salary list or the temporary shortage list, or where you are extending a visa first granted before 22 July 2025.
A salary of at least £41,700 a year or the going rate for the occupation, whichever is higher. A reduced threshold of £33,400 applies in defined cases such as new entrants and some listed occupations, and health and education roles have their own national pay scale rules.
English at CEFR B2 for applications where the visa is first granted on or after 8 January 2026; people who held the visa before that date extend at B1.
Maintenance funds unless your sponsor certifies them, and a criminal record certificate for some jobs.

This is not a complete list. What you need depends on your circumstances, and the documents vary from case to case. Your solicitor will tell you exactly what applies to you.

Switching and extending

You can switch into the route from most visas inside the UK, including Student and Graduate. Extensions depend on the rules in force when you apply, with transitional protection for people whose first certificate was issued before the July 2025 changes; we check which rules apply to you.

Dependants

Partners and children can usually join you, with the health surcharge payable for each. Dependants on the Health and Care route have been restricted since 2024; see Health and Care Worker visa.

Settlement

After five years you can apply for ILR as a Skilled Worker. The government has proposed longer qualifying periods under "earned settlement"; as at 13 October 2026 that is a proposal, not a rule.

What we do

We check the job against the occupation code, salary and skill rules before the certificate is assigned, so the application is not refused on a point the employer could have fixed, and we run the application for the worker and the family.

Fees

Home Office fees and the immigration health surcharge change each April; we confirm the current figures when we advise you. Our fee is fixed and quoted before you instruct us; see our fees.

For employers

We act for employers as well as workers: sponsor licence applications, certificates of sponsorship, right-to-work checks and compliance. See sponsor licences.