UK Skilled Worker Visa in 2025: important points for applicants
Do you believe you have the necessary skills and qualifications to fill a skill gap in the UK job market? Are you interested in knowing how you can migrate to the UK through a sponsored worker visa?
Well, if you must know, the Skilled Worker visa is one of the major legal routes that qualified professionals can seek employment in the UK. The first step is to check if you meet the requirements before you begin your application.
This article will explain the important points you need to know as an applicant, including how to know if you are qualified, the application process, and what to remember to ensure a smooth application.
How to Know if You Qualify for the 2025 Skilled Worker Visa
Before you even think of applying, you have to first secure a valid job offer from a UK employer licensed by the Home Office. This means that the employer/organization must have been granted permission by the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) to hire non-EEA or Swiss nationals to work in the UK.
This permission often materialises inform of a sponsor license. With it, the employer can offer a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) to the foreign national he/she has hired so that they can apply for the Skilled Worker visa.
Note that the job must be genuine and the required skill level must be met. To check if your occupation aligns with this requirement, you can check the SOC code for your job.
Jobs on the immigration list are categorized into 867 detailed occupations, and the Office for National Statistics uses the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes to classify workers into these specific occupational categories.
This allows them to align the necessary skills and salary threshold to know whether your job meets the specific conditions of the Skilled Worker visa. Hence, your job role must fall within an eligible SOC and meet the required skill level (i.e., RQF level 3 or above.
The SOC Manual or the CASCOT occupation coding tool will help you classify your job based on work performed so that you can select the correct SOC code for your job.
Meeting the salary requirement for your job is very important and can affect your visa application. Salary requirements differ based on the sector, job type, experience, and other criteria.
Nevertheless, the standard minimum salary is 25,000 for health and professionals and 38,700 for others. However, the salary requirement for recent graduates, applicants under 26, students, or those with specific qualifications such as a STEM PhD may be lowered to 70% of the going rate.
For the English Proficiency level, candidates must prove that they are proficient in English either by being a citizen of a majority English-speaking country, holding a degree-level qualification taught in English, writing and passing a Secure English Language Test (to demonstrate the CEFR level B1), or holding a GCSE, A-level, Scottish National Qualification level 4 or 5.
After you have secured a job offer with a licensed UK employer, you have to request your Certificate of Sponsorship. The CoS will inform the immigration authorities of your details as the employee, the details of the sponsoring organization, a unique CoS reference number, and a start and expiry date.
Hence, the information on your CoS has to align with other documents you have submitted.
After you have secured your CoS, you can start your application by going to the official online application portal. Ensure that the information you put in while filling out the form is accurate and complete.
Also, before you begin your application, gather all necessary documents so that you can easily upload as recommended. This will make your application process smooth and will reduce the likelihood of making a mistake.
There are two major fees you will be required to pay – the visa application fee, worth 769 pounds, and the immigration health surcharge (IHS), worth 1,035 pounds per year. With the IHS, you can get access to the UK’s National Health Service when you finally arrive.
Getting to the final stages, you will schedule and attend a biometrics appointment/interview at a visa application center. You will be required to provide a passport-sized photograph, your fingerprints, and the requested supporting documents.
