On 4 December 2023, the UK government announced changes to the immigration system which are now in effect.
Full details on the transition are available on the GOV.UK website .
When applying for a sponsorship licence you will be asked to provide an estimate of the number of certificates of sponsorships you expect to use for the next year. This can be reduced or increased if necessary. If your licence is due to expire after 6 April 2024, you no longer need to apply to renew . The Home Office will extend all licences from the date by 10 years. More information on sponsoring a worker can be found on the GOV.UK website .
A full list of eligible professions for the Skilled Worker Visa and their standard occupational classification (SOC) code can be found on the GOV.UK website . This list was updated in April 2024 to 2020 SOC codes, so please refer to the UKVI guidance for the most up to date list of eligible professions.
The Health and Care Visa is a subsection of the Skilled Worker Visa. The Health and Care Visa applies to qualified doctors, nurses, allied health professionals, and other professionals working in either health or social care. The minimum skill level is RQF level 3 (A-level equivalent). Lower thresholds and other exemptions are available for applicants on a Health and Care Visa.
An outline of the differences is available on the Health and Care visa webpage.
The Skilled Worker Visa requires applicants to have certain characteristics, three of which are fixed, and six which are tradeable however 70 points in total is required.
Individuals will need to attract the following three fixed characteristics (for 50 points):
In order to reach 70 points, they will also need to:
This table outlines the characteristics, whether they are tradable or fixed and the number of points allocated to each:
All of the above are required.
May score one entry from each section below:
Salary of at least £23,200 – applies to:
* new entrant to a health and care role
Salary of at least £29,000 – applies to:
And in a health and care specified role (such as health services and public health managers)
Salary of at least £30,960 – applies to:
relevant PhD in a STEM subject
* new entrant to all other skilled worker roles
*The salary of a new entrant will depend on their occupation code, qualification level, age, and other factors. Applicants taking out a Skilled Worker Visa as a new entrant will need to meet the requirement of £30,960. However, new entrants on a health occupation code based on the national pay scale will need to meet the requirement of £23,200.
Case worker information and examples are available in the Skilled worker case worker guidance, from page 33.
The application fee for a Skilled Worker Visa varies from £719 - £1,639 per person depending on if the applicant is applying within or outside the UK and the length of visa required. Full Information including pricing is available on the GOV.UK website.
Heath and Care Visa applicants pay a lower application fee, which also applies to partners and dependants.
Decisions on visa applications are normally made within three weeks if the applicant is outside the UK. A faster decision can be made on applications by using the priority service (within five working days) or the super-priority service (by the end of the next working day), both of which come with an additional fee. Applicants can start to apply for a visa up to three months before the date they are due to start work, as stated on the certificate of sponsorship.
You might have to pay the immigration skills charge additional when assigning a certificate of sponsorship to someone applying for a Skilled Worker or Senior or Specialist Worker Visa.
You must pay the immigration skills charge if they’re applying for a visa from inside the UK, or outside the UK to work in the UK for six months or more.
You will not need to pat the charge if you’re sponsoring someone with certain occupation codes or if the certificate of sponsorship was assigned before 6 April 2017.
Those with a general Skilled Worker Visa need to also pay an IHS of £1,035 per year.
Applicants applying for the Health and Care Visa and their immediate family are exempt from having to pay the immigration health surcharge. Family is classed as those who are dependents of the applicant who is eligible for the health and care visa. It does not cover extended family or anyone living independently of the applicant.
Information on how individuals can claim a reimbursement for immigration health surcharge fees paid after 31 March 2020 is available from the Department of Health and Social Care on the GOV.UK website .
Switching visas is streamlined under the new system and most migrants will be able to apply to switch from one immigration route to another without having to leave the UK. This will help to support the retention of talented staff and prevent unnecessary travel.
The Skilled Worker Visa allows an employee to work in a sponsored role for one sponsor/employer. If someone wishes to change employers, they can do so if they receive a new qualifying job offer and Certificate of Sponsorship from another employer with a sponsor licence. The employee will have to make a new visa application.
If the employee will be doing a different job for the same employer, they will need to apply to update their visa if the new job is in a different occupation code .
