Skilled Worker Visa Salary Threshold 2026: What Employers Must Pay

The Skilled Worker visa salary threshold for most new applications is £41,700 a year or the going rate for the job, whichever is higher, and has been since 22 July 2025. Some workers can be paid less, down to £33,400, such as new entrants, relevant PhD holders or jobs on the immigration salary list. Only guaranteed basic pay counts.

The figures below come from GOV.UK’s Skilled Worker job requirements, the Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Worker and the Home Office’s Skilled Worker caseworker guidance. We explain the employer side. Whether a particular person qualifies is a question for an OISC-regulated adviser or a solicitor, and the Home Office makes the visa decision.

How is the Skilled Worker minimum salary worked out?

For each role you check two figures and pay at least the higher of them:

1. The general threshold: £41,700 a year. This is fixed and isn’t reduced for part-time work.
2. The going rate for the job’s 4-digit occupation code, pro-rated to the weekly hours on the certificate of sponsorship (CoS).

GOV.UK gives an example. Someone offered £42,000 for a job with a going rate of £45,000 doesn’t meet the requirement, even though £42,000 is above £41,700.

The job also has to be eligible. Jobs listed as “higher skilled” qualify. “Medium skilled” jobs qualify only in limited cases, such as being on the immigration salary list or the temporary shortage list. The salary must also meet the national minimum wage, and the job must follow UK working hours rules. If not, the visa application will be refused.

When can a worker be paid less?

GOV.UK’s when you can be paid less page sets out the discounted thresholds:

Situation	Share of the going rate	Salary floor
Under 26, a recent Student or Graduate visa holder, or working towards a recognised professional qualification or full registration/chartered status	70%	£33,400
Relevant STEM PhD	80%	£33,400
Relevant non-STEM PhD	90%	£37,500
Postdoctoral position in certain science or higher education codes (2111–2115, 2119, 2162, 2311)	70%	£33,400
Job on the immigration salary list	Full standard going rate	£33,400

Some conditions apply:

• New entrants and postdocs at 70% can stay in the UK for a total of no more than 4 years on these terms, including any time on a Graduate visa.
• PhD discounts need a UK PhD, or an overseas doctorate confirmed as equivalent through Ecctis. The employer can confirm that the qualification is relevant to the job.
• Immigration salary list jobs must be checked for the right part of the UK, whether UK-wide or only England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

Some healthcare and education jobs use national pay scales and have their own rules. Some people extending or updating an existing visa, including some who first got a CoS before 22 July 2025 or before 4 April 2024, may also be on transitional lower thresholds. Check these case by case with your adviser.

What counts as salary?

This is where many employers get caught out. Rule SW 14.1 counts guaranteed basic gross pay. The caseworker guidance says you can also include payments like London weighting, but only if they are guaranteed and treated the same as basic pay for tax, pension and National Insurance.

Rule SW 14.2 says salary does not include:

• pay that can’t be guaranteed because hours vary
• shift, overtime or bonus pay, even if it’s guaranteed
• employer pension and employer National Insurance contributions
• allowances, such as accommodation or cost of living allowances
• benefits in kind, such as shares, health insurance, school fees, company cars or food
• one-off payments such as “golden hellos”
• payments towards immigration costs, such as visa fees or the Immigration Health Charge
• payments for business expenses, such as travel, equipment or subsistence

Money the worker pays back to you, through salary deductions, loan repayments or investments, is normally subtracted from their salary. A genuine optional salary sacrifice arrangement is the exception.

How do working hours affect the threshold?

Going rate: pro-rate to the actual hours. Most going rates assume a 37.5-hour week. Divide the annual going rate by 37.5 and multiply by the weekly hours on the CoS. The caseworker guidance example is a £39,000 going rate at 25 hours a week: £39,000 ÷ 37.5 × 25 = £26,000. All the hours count here, even above 48 a week.

General threshold: no pro-rating, and a 48-hour cap. The £41,700 isn’t reduced for part-time work. If someone is sponsored for more than 48 hours a week, only pay for the first 48 hours counts towards it. SW 14.3 gives this example: 60 hours a week at £15 an hour counts as £37,440 (£15 × 48 × 52), not £46,800.

For irregular rotas, hours above 48 in some weeks can count, as long as the average over a regular cycle of up to 17 weeks is no more than 48.

Pay periods matter too

The worker must be paid at least monthly, or as set out in the contract. Pay in each period must cover the going rate for every hour worked. For monthly pay, any 3-month period must add up to at least a quarter of the required annual salary. Your payroll has to show this, month by month.

How much does it cost an employer to sponsor one Skilled Worker?

These Home Office fees come from GOV.UK’s sponsorship guidance. The Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) is £1,320 for the first 12 months then £660 for each extra 6 months for medium or large sponsors. For small or charitable sponsors it’s £480 then £240. You pay it in full when you assign the CoS.

Visa length	Small or charitable sponsor	Medium or large sponsor
CoS fee	£525	£525
ISC, 3 years (12 months + 4 × 6 months)	£1,440	£3,960
Total, 3-year visa	£1,965	£4,485
ISC, 5 years (maximum)	£2,400	£6,600
Total, 5-year visa	£2,925	£7,125

The sponsor licence itself costs £611 (small or charitable) or £1,682 (medium or large) for a Worker licence. You pay this once, not per worker. You must pay the licence fee and ISC yourself and must not pass them on to the worker. Our sponsor licence application guide covers the licence in detail.

Don’t forget the normal employment costs

A sponsored worker costs the same to employ as anyone else on top of the sponsorship fees. Here is a worker on exactly £41,700 in 2026/27:

• Employer National Insurance: (£41,700 − £5,000) × 15% = £5,505 a year
• Minimum employer pension contribution: (£41,700 − £6,240) × 3% = £1,063.80 a year

So the yearly cost is about £48,269 before sponsorship fees, holiday cover or benefits. You can model your own figures with our employer cost calculator.

A practical checklist before you assign a CoS

1. Confirm the occupation code and that it’s eligible.
2. Look up the going rate and pro-rate it to the contracted hours.
3. Check the pay against £41,700, or the discounted threshold if one clearly applies, using only guaranteed basic pay.
4. Check that payroll will pay at least that amount in every pay period, with no deductions that bring it below the threshold.
5. Budget for the CoS fee and ISC for the full visa length.

We set up payroll so that sponsored salaries are paid exactly as stated on the CoS, and we keep the records a compliance visit will ask for. See our sponsor licence support. For advice on a particular case, we work alongside your OISC-regulated adviser or solicitor.