UK Skilled Worker Shortage Lists 2026: Three Ways a Job Can Qualify and What Ends on 31 December

A UK job can qualify for Skilled Worker sponsorship in three ways today: it is classed at degree level (RQF 6 or above), it is on the Immigration Salary List, or it is on the Temporary Shortage List. Only the first is permanent. The other two are interim lists that the Immigration Rules say fall out of use on 31 December 2026, and the government has not yet said what replaces them. If you are searching for UK Skilled Worker visa jobs with sponsorship in 2026, the real question is which of the three your job fits, and whether it will still count when an employer assigns your certificate of sponsorship.

Last checked against official sources: October 2026.

1. How a Job Qualifies for a UK Skilled Worker Visa in 2026

Since 22 July 2025, the Skilled Worker route has been open by default only to jobs classed at RQF level 6, which means degree level. Jobs at levels 3 to 5, roughly A-level up to just below a degree, can use the route only if they appear on the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List. GOV.UK sets this out on its Skilled Worker “your job” page, and the only other exception is a narrow one for prison officers.

The standard salary requirement is £41,700 a year, or the going rate for your occupation code if that is higher. A reduced general threshold of £33,400 applies in some cases, including jobs on the Immigration Salary List. Your employer must hold a sponsor licence and give you a certificate of sponsorship.

You must prove English at level B2 when you apply. Anyone extending or updating a visa held before 8 January 2026 only needs B1. Nigerian passport holders are not on the list of exempt nationalities, so most Nigerian applicants will prove English with an approved test such as IELTS, or with a degree taught in English that has an Ecctis assessment.

Quick Answer: Degree-level job, listed medium-skilled job, or no sponsorship. There is no fourth way for a job at RQF levels 3 to 5 that is not on a list.

The table below puts the three routes side by side. It shows the position in October 2026.

2. The Immigration Salary List: What It Does and Which Jobs Are On It

The Immigration Salary List replaced the old Shortage Occupation List in April 2024. A job on it gets a lower salary requirement and a lower visa fee than the same job would get on the standard route. The GOV.UK page lists 25 occupation codes, of which 22 apply across the UK and three apply only in Scotland.

The list is mixed. It includes some graduate-level jobs and some medium-skilled trades, and the medium-skilled ones are the reason it still matters to readers below degree level.

• Building trades: bricklayers, carpenters and joiners, roofers, stonemasons and retrofitters.
• Science and technical roles: biological scientists, archaeologists, pharmaceutical technicians, and laboratory technicians with at least three years of experience.
• Creative roles: graphic and multimedia designers, artists, arts officers, and top-level ballet dancers and orchestral musicians.
• Fishing, plus Scotland-only entries for fishing boat masters, nuclear-industry chemical scientists and boat builders.
• Health and care: care managers, nursing auxiliaries where registered nurses also work, and care and senior care workers.

Important Note: Care worker and senior care worker codes still appear on the list, but that does not mean you can be recruited from abroad into them. See section 5.

Listed jobs carry their own lower salary figures. The GOV.UK page describes the idea as roughly 80 per cent of the usual minimum rate, and fees drop to £628 for up to three years or £1,235 for longer. The Home Secretary told the Migration Advisory Committee in July 2025 that discounts tied to this list will be abolished, and the list falls out of use at the end of 2026. You can check the current entries on the official Immigration Salary List.

3. The Temporary Shortage List: 52 Jobs Open to Medium-Skilled Workers

The Temporary Shortage List started on 22 July 2025. It is an interim list of 52 occupation codes at RQF levels 3 to 5, picked by the Department for Business and Trade and the Treasury because they matter to the government’s Industrial Strategy and to critical infrastructure. Unlike the Immigration Salary List, it gives no salary discount, so you need the full £41,700 or your occupation’s going rate if that is higher.

Some codes cover only certain job titles. Design occupations, business associate roles, financial administration and general construction trades are limited to the specific roles named on the official Temporary Shortage List, so your job title matters as much as the code.

Some popular guides online get this wrong. Bricklayers, carpenters, roofers and nursing auxiliaries are on the Immigration Salary List, not the Temporary Shortage List, and care workers are not open to new overseas hires under either list. Match your job title and code to the official pages before you pay for anything.

Medium-skilled jobs on either list also come with family limits. Under the GOV.UK family rules, a partner or child can join or stay with you in a medium-skilled job mainly if you have worked continuously on a Skilled Worker visa in a medium-skilled job since before 22 July 2025. A child born in the UK is also covered. A new worker abroad in a listed medium-skilled job should assume they will arrive alone.

4. What Ends on 31 December 2026 and What the MAC Has Recommended

The Home Secretary’s letter of 2 July 2025 describes both lists as interim and says they fall out of use on 31 December 2026 under the Immigration Rules. The Migration Advisory Committee, known as the MAC, was asked to advise on a longer-term Temporary Shortage List. Its first report on 9 October 2025 shortlisted 82 occupations, and its final report followed on 23 July 2026.

The final report recommends 28 occupations for access lasting 18 months, expected to run from 1 January 2027 to 30 June 2028. No occupation earned the standard three years. Another 18 were not recommended, and dancers and musicians are handled separately so that only genuinely elite performers can use the standard route. The full document is on the MAC’s Stage 2 report page.

None of this is law yet. The report is advice, and the Home Office decides which parts to accept and then has to change the Immigration Rules, usually through a Statement of Changes. The government has not yet published its decision, so the January 2027 list could differ from the MAC’s version.

Key Statistic: The MAC estimates the 82 shortlisted occupations account for about 10,000 visas a year, and the 28 it recommends account for about 4,000.

The Immigration Salary List has no equivalent recommendation, so its discounts are due to end. Several trades on it, such as bricklayers, roofers and carpenters, appear in the MAC’s proposed Temporary Shortage List. Stonemasons do not appear in it.

5. UK Skilled Worker Visa Jobs From Abroad: What You Can and Cannot Do Now

Overseas recruitment of care workers and senior care workers closed to new applicants on 22 July 2025. Employers cannot sponsor someone from outside the UK into those jobs. A transition period running to 2028 lets people already working in adult social care in the UK extend or switch, but it does not reopen the door from abroad.

If anyone offers you a UK care worker visa from outside the country, treat it as a warning sign. GOV.UK guidance also says agencies should not charge you to find work in the UK, and that sponsor licence fees, certificate of sponsorship fees and the Immigration Skills Charge are employer costs. Those costs are not yours to pay.

Important Note: Never pay anyone for a “guaranteed” certificate of sponsorship or a “slot” on a shortage list. Check that the employer appears on the Home Office register of licensed sponsors, and speak to a regulated adviser if anything feels wrong.

If your job is at degree level, the end of the two lists does not change your route. If your job is on the Temporary Shortage List, ask the employer when the certificate will be assigned, because sponsors generally need the job to be on the list when they assign it. After 31 December 2026, what counts will depend on the rules the government publishes.

6. What a UK Skilled Worker Visa Costs the Applicant

The fees below come from GOV.UK and apply to each person on an application. Your employer pays its own charges separately, including the Immigration Skills Charge, which rose by about a third for certificates assigned from 16 December 2025.

Add an English test, travel and your first weeks in the UK. Our guide to cheap temporary housing in the UK covers short-term housing. Compare money transfer rates before moving funds, and consider travel insurance for the gap before you arrive.

If you are comparing the standard route, our article on UK sponsorship employers and the salary threshold explains how sponsors set pay. For a complicated case, see how to choose a UK immigration solicitor before you pay anyone.

7. Settlement: What Is Law and What Is Only Proposed

Under the rules in force today, a Skilled Worker can apply for indefinite leave to remain after five years if they meet the other requirements. The MAC’s report notes that visas in Temporary Shortage List occupations currently lead to settlement. From 26 March 2027, the English requirement for most work-route settlement applications rises from B1 to B2.

The proposal to lengthen the wait is not law. The Home Office ran an “earned settlement” consultation from 20 November 2025 to 12 February 2026, floating a 10-year baseline that could shorten or lengthen with a person’s circumstances. The consultation floated 15 years for medium-skilled workers, but no final policy has been published. The revised policy is due before the end of 2026.

The open question is whether any change will apply to people already in the UK. Transitional arrangements are being considered, but none is confirmed. Do not make a decision on the assumption that either five years or ten years will apply to you.

Pro Tip: If settlement matters to you, a degree-level role on the standard route is a safer base than a medium-skilled role on an interim list, because the list can change and the settlement rules are being reviewed.

8. Frequently Asked Questions

Is there still a UK shortage occupation list?

The old Shortage Occupation List ended in April 2024 and was replaced by the Immigration Salary List. A Temporary Shortage List now sits beside it for medium-skilled jobs. Both are interim and are due to fall out of use on 31 December 2026.

Can I get a UK Skilled Worker visa for a medium-skilled job in 2026?

Only if the job is on the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List, and you still need a licensed sponsor and a certificate of sponsorship. Salary and English rules still apply. Check your exact job title and occupation code, not just the general job type.

Can I bring my family on a Temporary Shortage List job?

Generally not if you are a new applicant in a medium-skilled job. GOV.UK limits dependants mainly to people who have worked continuously on a Skilled Worker visa in a medium-skilled job since before 22 July 2025. A child born in the UK is also covered.

Will the Temporary Shortage List continue after 2026?

The current interim list ends on 31 December 2026. The MAC has recommended a smaller list of 28 occupations for 18 months from January 2027, but the government has not yet confirmed whether it will accept that advice.

Can I still get a UK care worker visa from abroad?

No. Overseas recruitment of care workers and senior care workers closed to new applicants on 22 July 2025. Only people already working in adult social care in the UK can still extend or switch during the transition period.

9. Next Steps

Start with the occupation code on your job offer, then match it against the official standard route, Immigration Salary List and Temporary Shortage List pages. Ask the employer to confirm in writing that it holds a sponsor licence, which list your job falls under, and when the certificate will be assigned.

Book an English test early if you need one, and read the UK Skilled Worker visa requirements for 2026 on GOV.UK before you pay any fee. Because the rules for 2027 are still being decided, a regulated immigration adviser is worth the cost if your plans depend on a medium-skilled job.