Visas Requiring Sponsorship

Skilled Worker’s Visa

A Skilled Worker visa allows an individual to come to or stay in the UK to do an eligible job. This visa has replaced the Tier 2 (General) work visa. A visa can be for up to five years.

Criteria

Under the Skilled Worker route, anyone you want to hire from outside the UK will need to demonstrate that:

• They have a job offer from a Home Office licensed sponsor.
• The job offer is at the required skill level – RQF 3 or above (A Level and equivalent).
• They speak English to the required standard.

In addition to this, the job you are offering must meet the applicable minimum salary threshold. This is the higher of either:

• The general salary threshold of £38,700.
• The specific salary requirement for their occupation, known as the ‘going rate’.

Each of the criteria above is awarded points; a total of 70 points are required for an individual to be able to apply to work in the UK. See the UKVI guidance on Workers and Temporary Workers: sponsor a skilled worker for more information.

You will need to check the UKVI website to find out the going rates for eligible occupation codes.

Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Codes

All jobs have a corresponding Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code. Each SOC code has a designated skill level. This determines whether the job meets the requirements of the Skilled Worker route.

To help you match jobs to the correct occupation code, the Office for National Statistics has created an Occupation Coding Tool.

Immigration Salary List

An occupation on the Immigration Salary List results in lower application fees and reduced salary requirements, for skilled workers filling jobs which are in shortage. This does not, however, exempt jobs from the wider mandatory requirements of the Skilled Worker Route, including the skills threshold and the English language requirement.

There are different salary rules for workers in certain health or education jobs, and for ‘new entrants’ at the start of their careers.

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Health and Care Visa

The Health and Care visa is part of the Skilled Worker route. It enables individuals to come to the UK to work if they are:

• A qualified doctor, nurse, health professional or adult social care professional.
• Work in an eligible health or social care job.
• Have a ‘certificate of sponsorship’ from NHS Lothian with information about the role they’ve been offered in the UK.
• Paid a minimum salary – please refer to the UKVI website for the latest ‘going rates’ for eligible jobs.

You will need to refer to the SOC codes to find out if the role is eligible for a Health and Care visa. Not every job title is included, if the exact job title isn’t there, try searching for similar jobs.