Skilled Worker Visa

• Sponsorship and certificate of sponsorshipThe worker must be sponsored by a UK employer approved by the Home Office, and hold a valid certificate of sponsorship confirming their name, the job, and the salary the sponsor is offering.
• Eligible occupation and skill levelThe job must be in an occupation code listed as eligible for the route at the required skill level, and the sponsor must choose the occupation code that most closely matches the actual job being done.
• Minimum salarySalary must equal or exceed both the route's general threshold of £41,700 a year and the published 'going rate' for the occupation code, whichever is higher. Lower published thresholds of £37,500, £33,400 or £25,000 a year, together with a lower percentage of the going rate, can apply to some PhD holders, new entrants, immigration salary list occupations, and health or education jobs.
• English languageThe worker must show English language ability across reading, writing, speaking and listening, normally to at least CEFR level B2, through a qualification, a Secure English Language Test, or in some cases an accepted professional-body assessment.
• Financial (maintenance) requirementThe worker must show personal savings of at least £1,270 held for a 28-day period, unless they have already been in the UK with permission for 12 months or more, or their certificate of sponsorship confirms their employer will maintain and accommodate them instead.
• GenuinenessThe worker must genuinely intend, and be able, to do the sponsored role, and must not intend to work outside that role except where the published conditions of grant allow it.
• Criminal record certificate (certain occupations)Applicants from outside the UK being sponsored for defined healthcare, education or social care occupation codes must provide a criminal record certificate from each qualifying country of residence, unless it is not reasonably practicable to obtain one.
• General suitabilityThe application must not fall for refusal under the general suitability requirements that apply across UK immigration routes.

• Certificate of sponsorship reference numberGiven by the employer; needed to start the online application.
• Valid passport or other identity documentShows identity and nationality.
• Proof of knowledge of EnglishFor example a qualifying degree certificate or a Secure English Language Test result.
• Evidence of personal savingsFor example bank statements, unless the certificate of sponsorship confirms the employer will support the worker instead.
• Proof of relationship with a partner or childWhere a partner or child is applying at the same time.
• Tuberculosis test resultsWhere required for applicants from a listed country.
• Criminal record certificateWhere required for the sponsored occupation code, from each qualifying country of residence.
• Certified translationsFor any document that is not in English or Welsh.

Apply outside the UK (up to 3 years)

£819

Apply outside the UK (more than 3 years)

£1,618

Apply inside the UK to extend, switch or update (up to 3 years)

£943

Apply inside the UK to extend, switch or update (more than 3 years)

£1,865

Job on the immigration salary list, up to 3 years (inside or outside the UK)

£628

Job on the immigration salary list, more than 3 years (inside or outside the UK)

£1,235

Immigration Health Surcharge

£1,035 per year of stay

Fees are set by the Home Office and can change. A partner or child pays the fee for the same length of stay as the main applicant, even if they apply separately. Source: GOV.UK https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/how-much-it-costs

Apply outside the UK

Usually within 3 weeks

Apply inside the UK (extend, switch or update)

Usually within 8 weeks

Standard service times published by the Home Office; a faster decision may be available for an extra fee.

• Hold the licence before you assign a certificateYou need a valid Skilled Worker sponsor licence before you can assign a certificate of sponsorship. You normally have to be A-rated at the time you assign. You cannot assign at all while your licence is suspended, dormant or revoked.
• Sponsor only a genuine jobThe job must be a real vacancy. The Home Office refuses the sponsorship points where it has reasonable grounds to believe the job does not exist. The same applies to a sham role, or one created mainly so the worker could apply. Assigning a certificate for a role that is not genuine means refusal for the worker and revocation for you.
• Check the right to work before the job startsYou check that the worker has permission to work in the UK, and to do that job, before they start. If you miss the check, the Home Office will normally revoke your licence.
• Report changes about a worker within 10 working daysYou report a change in a sponsored worker's circumstances within 10 working days of the event, unless the guidance sets another period. Examples are a worker who does not start, absence without your permission, a drop in pay, and stopping sponsorship. You are also responsible for checking they are doing the role you sponsored them for, and for monitoring attendance.
• Report changes to your organisation within 20 working daysChanges to your own organisation go to UKVI within 20 working days. That covers a merger, a takeover, insolvency, and a change in your organisation's size or type. Size and type set the skills charge you pay, and reporting late can lead to compliance action against your licence.
• Keep the sponsorship recordsAppendix D of the sponsor guidance lists the documents you keep for each sponsored worker. They include your right to work check evidence, the worker's contact details, and a record of absences. Paper or electronic is fine, as long as you can produce them on request.
• Do not recover sponsorship costs from the workerYou must not recoup the certificate fee, the immigration skills charge, or the associated administrative costs from a worker you sponsor. The Home Office will normally revoke the licence of a sponsor that does.

Certificate of sponsorship, Skilled Worker

£525

Immigration skills charge, small or charitable sponsor, period up to 12 months

£480

Immigration skills charge, small or charitable sponsor, each further 6 months

£240

Immigration skills charge, any other sponsor, period up to 12 months

£1,320

Immigration skills charge, any other sponsor, each further 6 months

£660

You pay both of these yourself and must not recover them from the worker. The skills charge is set by the size and type of your organisation on the date you assign the certificate. Sources: GOV.UK https://www.gov.uk/uk-visa-sponsorship-employers/certificates-of-sponsorship and https://www.gov.uk/uk-visa-sponsorship-employers/immigration-skills-charge