Skilled Worker visa

The most common work route, and the least flexible — your permission is tied to one employer and one job.

If your job is ending, read this first

A sponsored worker whose employment is ending has an immigration problem and an employment problem at the same time, and they interact. Most people deal with one and discover the other too late.

Your sponsor must tell the Home Office when your employment ends. Your permission is then curtailed, usually leaving a limited period to find a new sponsor, switch route or leave. That period is shorter than most people assume and it runs from the curtailment, not from your last day.

The dates are negotiable, and they are worth money. Your termination date, your notice period, whether notice is worked or paid in lieu, and when the sponsor notifies UKVI all affect how long you have. These are terms in an exit negotiation, and almost nobody realises they are the most valuable ones.

Do not sign a settlement agreement without immigration advice. A settlement agreement negotiated on employment terms alone can leave you with money and no time. The two pieces of advice have to be given together.

Start looking for a new sponsor immediately, in parallel with everything else. A new Certificate of Sponsorship takes time you may not have.

If this is your situation, telephone rather than email.

What the route requires now

A licensed sponsor and a Certificate of Sponsorship for a specific job.

Skill level — RQF 6. Since 22 July 2025 the job must be at degree level. Roles below that are eligible only if the occupation is on the Temporary Shortage List.

Salary. The general threshold is £41,700 since 22 July 2025 — or the going rate for the occupation code, whichever is higher. Lower thresholds apply in defined cases:

The compliance change sponsors keep missing

From 8 April 2026, the required salary must be met in each pay period — not averaged across the year.

An employer paying an annualised salary against variable hours, or running an unpaid period, can now breach the requirement in a single month even though the annual figure is correct. Limited averaging remains available for genuinely variable-hours contracts, but it has to be properly documented.

For the worker this matters because a sponsor’s compliance failure becomes your problem. For the sponsor it is a licence risk.

Is this the right route for you?

Frequently not, and it is worth an hour before anything is submitted.

Global Talent requires endorsement rather than a job offer. No sponsor, no minimum salary, no tie to one employer, and you can change job or start a business freely. If you qualify, it is almost always better — and more people qualify than realise.

Innovator Founder suits someone building a business rather than taking a role.

A partner route may be available and carries none of the sponsorship constraints.

The choice has consequences for the next decade. Making it properly is the most valuable thing you can do at the start.

Settlement

Five years remains the qualifying period. A ten-year “earned settlement” baseline has been proposed and consulted on — the consultation closed on 12 February 2026 — but it has not been enacted and no implementation date has been confirmed. Whether people part-way through a five-year route will be protected is undecided.

One change is confirmed: from 26 March 2027 the English requirement for settlement rises from B1 to B2.

What follows is practical: keep absences within the limits, avoid gaps in permission, and apply in good time. Those are within your control and they matter under any version of these rules.

What we do

Advise on which route is actually right before anything is submitted. Applications, switches and extensions. And where employment is ending, handle the immigration and employment positions together — which is the situation this firm is arranged for.

What it costs

A fixed fee per application, quoted before we begin. Home Office fees and the Immigration Health Surcharge are additional and we confirm the current figures for your route first. Where a matter is more complex than a standard application — a previous refusal, a gap in residence — we say so and quote separately.

Questions

Questions people ask us

I am being made redundant. How long do I have?

Less time than most people expect. Your sponsor must report the end of your employment, your permission is curtailed, and a limited period follows. The termination date, notice arrangements and when the sponsor notifies UKVI all affect it — and all are negotiable. Take advice before agreeing an exit.

Can I switch to a new sponsor?

Yes, but the new employer needs a licence and must assign a Certificate of Sponsorship, and you generally need permission before starting. Begin immediately rather than after your notice ends.

My salary is below £41,700. Is my visa at risk?

Not necessarily — lower thresholds apply to new entrants, PhD holders and listed occupations, and you must also meet the going rate for your code. But since 8 April 2026 the salary must be met in each pay period, so a shortfall in a single month can create a problem even where the annual figure is right.

Is Global Talent better than Skilled Worker?

If you qualify, almost always. No sponsor, no salary threshold, no tie to an employer. The barrier is endorsement rather than eligibility, and the standard is met more often than people assume.

Does the ten-year settlement rule apply to me?

Not at present. Five years remains the qualifying period. The ten-year proposal has not been enacted and no date has been set. Anyone telling you confidently that you are safe, or that you are not, is guessing.

The hub

Immigration →

Also in this area

Global Talent visa →

Also in this area

Innovator Founder visa →

Start with a conversation

A free 20-minute call. Tell us what has happened and we will tell you whether we can help, what it would involve and roughly what it would cost.

No charge

A free 20-minute call

Tell us what has happened and we will tell you whether we can help, what it would involve and roughly what it would cost. No advice is given on this call and there is no charge for it.

£350 plus VAT

A paid strategy session

One hour with a partner, followed by a written summary of your position and options. For people who want proper advice without instructing a firm yet. Credited in full against your fees if you go on to instruct us.

Or reach us directly

0207 112 8818

WhatsApp +44 7476 045967

[email protected]

We answer enquiries the same working day.