What is the Immigration Salary List
The main benefit of inclusion on the Immigration Salary List (ISL) is an up to 20% reduction on the general pay thresholds, i.e. the Skilled Worker visa minimum salary rates. Job roles on the ISL also have marginally reduced visa fees which amounts to a discount of roughly £60 per year. Roles on the Health &Care visa already have lower associated visa fees and therefore do not benefit from the ISL visa fee reduction.
As a note, Pay scale occupations do not receive any meaningful benefit from ISL inclusion, as their occupation-specific thresholds are in all cases above the £23,200 general threshold that applies to all pay scale occupations.
The ISL replaced the previous Shortage Occupation List.
Who qualify for the lower pay rate Immigration Salary List
To qualify for the lower rate if either: You are applying for a Health and Care Worker Visa in certain occupations OR you got your certificate of sponsorship for this visa application before 4 April 2024 OR you got your certificate of sponsorship for your first Skilled Worker visa before 4 April 2024 and have continually held one or more Skilled Worker visas since then.
Jobs removed from the Immigration Salary List
If the applicant was last granted permission for a job on the Immigration Salary List (ISL) and the job is no longer included in Appendix Immigration Salary List for the relevant UK nation, Home Office caseworker can still award tradeable points for a job in on the ISL. However, they must be applying to continue working in the same job for the same sponsor. If they are applying to work for a different sponsor, they will need to score tradeable points in another way.
THE ROLE AND PURPOSE OF THE IMMIGRATION SALARY LIST (ISL)
For their Rapid review MAC have assumed that the main benefit of inclusion on the ISL is to allow employers to recruit migrants on a salary below the general threshold – with the discount being a maximum of 20%.The government will need to consider the benefits and function of the Immigration Salary List (ISL) in advance of MAC’s full ISL review.
MAC stated that they require further clarity from the government on what the benefits and longer-term purpose of the ISL will be. It is important for the government to lay out the role it wants the ISL to play within the wider immigration system. For example, is the primary purpose of the ISL to fill shortages in the short term with overseas labour? Or is the ISL being implemented for a wider purpose, for example, to support government priority sectors and broader government policies?
MAC also request that the government specify any further benefits an occupation will receive as a result of being included on the ISL. For example, will occupations placed on the ISL still benefit from slightly lower visa fees?
Next steps for the UK government
First, because the general threshold has now been redefined for Skilled Worker non-Health & Care occupations to be the median salary of eligible occupations rather than the 25th percentile, this will mean that for many occupations, particularly at the RQF3-5 level, even the ISL-reduced threshold will be above the salaries paid for the vast majority of workers in that occupation. For example, veterinary nurses (SOC 2020 code 3240), which are not on a national pay scale, have a median salary of £24,400 and therefore, even if placed on the ISL, would struggle to use the SW route given the ISL threshold would be £30,960. The new general threshold in effect will mean that the SW route becomes unavailable for many occupations.
Second, MAC recommended the abolition of the going rate discount in our 2023 SOL review because they were concerned that allowing employers to pay below the 25th percentile of salaries in an occupation could lead to undercutting of domestic workers and exploitation of migrants. Whilst the government have accepted this recommendation, they have at the same time redefined the occupation-specific threshold to be the 50th percentile (for non-H&CW occupations). This, however, substantially weakens the rationale for not being able to pay below the occupation-specific threshold as half of all workers in an occupation earn less than the median and this does not obviously lead to undercutting and exploitation. MAC encourage the government to consider this impact of the rule’s changes.
Immigration Salary List 2024
Immigration Salary List replaced the previous Shortage Occupation List. The ISL has diminished relevance and benefits comparing to its predecessor SOL. Below we copy the current Immigration Salary List as recorded in the Appendix Immigration Salary List.
| Occupation code | Job types included on the immigration salary list | Areas of the UK which qualify | Standard rate | Lower rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1212 | Managers and proprietors in forestry, fishing and related services – only “fishing boat masters” | Scotland only | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £27,000 (£13.85 per hour) |
| 2111 | Chemical scientists – only jobs in the nuclear industry | Scotland only | £35,200 (£18.05 per hour) | £29,600 (£15.18 per hour) |
| 2112 | Biological scientists – all jobs | UK wide | £41,900 (£21.49 per hour) | £32,100 (£16.46 per hour) |
| 2115 | Social and humanities scientists – only archaeologists | UK wide | £36,400 (£18.67 per hour) | £25,200 (£12.92 per hour) |
| 2142 | Graphic and multimedia designers – all jobs | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £35,800 (£18.36 per hour) |
| 3111 | Laboratory technicians – only jobs requiring 3 or more years’ related on-the-job experience. This experience must not have been gained through working illegally. | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £23,200 (£11.90 per hour) |
| 3212 | Pharmaceutical technicians – all jobs | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £23,400 (£12.00 per hour) |
| 3411 | Artists – all jobs | UK wide | £32,900 (£16.87 per hour) | £27,300 (£14.00 per hour) |
| 3414 | Dancers and choreographers – only skilled classical ballet dancers or skilled contemporary dancers who meet the standard required by internationally recognised UK ballet or contemporary dance companies. The company must be endorsed as being internationally recognised by a UK industry body such as the Arts Councils (of England, Scotland or Wales). | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £23,200 (£11.90 per hour) |
| 3415 | Musicians – only skilled orchestral musicians who are leaders, principals, sub-principals or numbered string positions, and who meet the standard required by internationally recognised UK orchestras. The orchestra must be a full member of the Association of British Orchestras. | UK wide | £32,900 (£16.87 per hour) | £27,300 (£14.00 per hour) |
| 3416 | Arts officers, producers and directors – all jobs | UK wide | £37,500 (£19.23 per hour) | £31,300 (£16.05 per hour) |
| 5119 | Agriculture and fishing trades not elsewhere classified – only jobs in the fishing industry | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £23,200 (£11.90 per hour) |
| 5213 | Welding trades – only high integrity pipe welders, where the job requires 3 or more years’ related on-the-job experience. This experience must not have been gained through working illegally. | UK wide | £31,700 (£16.26 per hour) | £26,400 (£13.54 per hour) |
| 5235 | Boat and shop builders and repairers – all jobs | Scotland only | £32,400 (£16.62 per hour) | £28,100 (£14.41 per hour) |
| 5312 | Stonemasons and related trades – all jobs | UK wide | £31,000 (£15.90 per hour) | £25,800 (£13.23 per hour) |
| 5313 | Bricklayers – all jobs | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £25,800 (£13.23 per hour) |
| 5314 | Roofers, roof tilers and slaters – all jobs | UK wide | £31,000 (£15.90 per hour) | £25,800 (£13.23 per hour) |
| 5316 | Carpenters and joiners – all jobs | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £25,200 (£12.92 per hour) |
| 5319 | Construction and building trades not elsewhere classified – only retrofitters | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £25,500 (£13.08 per hour) |
| 6135 | Care workers and home carers – all jobs, except jobs with a working location in England are only eligible in this SOC 2020 occupation code where the sponsor holds registration with the Care Quality Commission and is currently carrying on a regulated activity. Private households or individuals (other than sole traders sponsoring someone to work for their business) cannot sponsor Skilled Worker applicants. | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £23,200 (£11.90 per hour) |
| 6136 | Senior care workers – all jobs, except jobs with a working location in England are only eligible in this SOC 2020 occupation code where the sponsor holds registration with the Care Quality Commission and is currently carrying on a regulated activity. | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £23,200 (£11.90 per hour) |
| 6129 | Animal care services occupations not elsewhere classified – only racing grooms, stallion handlers, stud grooms, stud hands, stud handlers and work riders | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £23,200 (£11.90 per hour) |
| 9119 | Fishing and other elementary agriculture occupations not elsewhere classified – only deckhands on large fishing vessels (9 metres and above) where the job requires the worker to have at least 3 years’ full-time experience in using their skills. This experience must not have been gained through working illegally. | UK wide | £30,960 (£15.88 per hour) | £23,200 (£11.90 per hour) |
