What is the Skill level for Skilled Worker visa (work visa)
As of 22 July 2025 to qualify for a Skilled Worker visa, a job offered to a migrant applying for skilled worker visa for the first time has to be at least RQF Level 6 or above. It is explained on gov.uk website What qualification levels mean: England, Wales and Northern Ireland – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) . In a nutshell, the job has to be at least university graduate level. This means that the job requires at least that skill level, not that a worker must always have university degree. To get an idea what jobs are accepted is to read the Home Office Skilled Occupations appendix. As a tip from us, when you check the Appendix, please do not overlook the Table that lists the occupations that do NOT qualify.
What jobs are eligible for Skilled Worker visa
The list of jobs that qualify for Skilled Worker visa are in the Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations – Immigration Rules – Guidance – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) . The Table 1 is where most of the qualifying jobs are listed. It includes highly skilled jobs, such as software programmers, IT managers, Accountants, HR Managers, etc.
There are other Tables in the Appendix Skilled Occupations that still have lower skill level jobs BUT those are mainly for skilled worker visa holders who are already in the UK working in that job and either extending their visas or changing sponsor employer.
It is worth noting that Care workers and home carers got included in the eligible professions in early 2022. You can read more about this in our blog here Care workers added to Health and Care Visa – Thaxted Legal In July 2025 Home Office announced change in their rules. Applicants from overseas are no longer accepted for Soc Code 6135 and 6136.However those in the UK may still be issued a COS for those Soc Codes until July 2028.
| 6145 Care workers and home carers | • Care assistant • Care worker • Carer • Home care assistant • Home carer • Support worker (nursing home) |
