The £41,700 UK Skilled Worker Threshold: Complete 2026 Guide
From January 2026 the UK Skilled Worker route enforces a £41,700 floor — or the SOC code's going rate, whichever is higher. We break the rule down in numbers, explain how each exception works, and walk through what changes for visa holders already in the country.
1. How we got to £41,700
The Skilled Worker route's general salary threshold has moved several times in the last few years, each step intended to push the route towards a high-wage, high-skill model. Until early 2024 the floor sat at £26,200 — a level that allowed the route to absorb a wide tail of mid-skill roles. Spring 2024 reset the bar to £38,700. The April 2025 white paper signalled a further uplift, and the 2026 statement of changes raised the general threshold to £41,700 while simultaneously lifting the new entrant floor to £33,400.
The change is best read alongside two parallel reforms that landed in the same window: the move from RQF Level 3 to RQF Level 6 as the eligibility skill floor (effective 22 July 2025), and the shift from CEFR B1 to CEFR B2 for English language (effective 8 January 2026). Together they reposition the Skilled Worker route as graduate-level work for fluent English speakers, and they explain why the headline salary figure has moved up faster than wage inflation.
| Effective from | General threshold | New entrant floor | Skill floor | English level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2024 | £38,700 | £30,960 | RQF 3 | B1 |
| Jul 2025 | £38,700 | £30,960 | RQF 6 | B1 |
| Jan 2026 | £41,700 | £33,400 | RQF 6 | B2 |
2. The 'going rate' rule, in numbers
Every UK occupation under the Skilled Worker route is mapped to a 4-digit Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code in the SOC 2020 framework. Each SOC code has a published going rate based on the 25th-percentile of UK earnings for that occupation. Your sponsored salary must be the higher of:
- The general threshold (currently £41,700).
- The going rate for your specific SOC code.
- The hourly floor (£17.13/hour) when annualised against your contracted hours.
The hourly floor catches sponsors who try to game the annual figure by reducing weekly hours. £17.13 × 37.5 hours × 52 weeks = £33,403, which is why the new-entrant floor is set at £33,400 — they are deliberately aligned.
| SOC code | Role | Going rate | Effective minimum (2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2134 | Programmers and software development professionals | £49,400 | £49,400 (going rate wins) |
| 2421 | Chartered and certified accountants | £46,800 | £46,800 (going rate wins) |
| 3543 | Marketing associate professionals | £41,400 | £41,700 (general threshold wins) |
| 2231 | Nurses (Health and Care Worker route) | NHS pay scale | Per AfC band — exempt |
| 2129 | Engineering professionals n.e.c. | £42,100 | £42,100 (going rate wins) |
3. The four ways to qualify on a lower salary
The Home Office preserved four substantive discount routes when it raised the threshold. They reduce the going-rate component of the test, but each one has a hard absolute floor that you cannot drop below.
New Entrant rate — 30% off, £33,400 floor
You qualify as a new entrant if you meet any one of the following at the time of your visa application:
- You are under 26 on the date you apply.
- You are switching from a Student or Graduate visa.
- Your most recent UK visa expired less than 2 years ago and was a Student/Graduate visa.
- You are working towards a recognised professional qualification (architect, accountant, solicitor, etc.).
- Your job offer is a recognised postdoctoral research position.
The discount is 30% off the SOC going rate, with a hard floor of £33,400. New entrant status is capped at 4 years total across your sponsorship history (including time on a Graduate visa).
Relevant PhD — 10% off (20% for STEM)
If you hold a PhD relevant to the role, the going rate is reduced by 10%. If the PhD is in a STEM subject and is relevant to the job, the discount rises to 20%. Unlike new entrant status, the PhD discount does not carry an age requirement and does not have a 4-year cap.
Immigration Salary List — sector floor in lieu of going rate
Roles on the Immigration Salary List (the successor to the Shortage Occupation List) carry a fixed lower threshold that supersedes the SOC going rate. The list is reviewed by the Migration Advisory Committee. Care worker roles were notably removed from the list in 2024.
Health and Care Worker route — exempt from £41,700
If your role sits under the Health and Care Worker visa (a sub-route of Skilled Worker), pay is determined by national pay scales — Agenda for Change for NHS staff, national teacher pay for educators. The £41,700 general threshold does not apply.
4. What changes for existing Skilled Worker visa holders
If you are already on a Skilled Worker visa, the £41,700 figure does not retroactively curtail your current visa. The threshold tests apply at three specific moments:
- Visa application or extension. When you apply, your salary must meet the rules in force at the time of application.
- Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). Your final ILR-qualifying employment must satisfy the threshold rules at the time of the ILR application.
- Change of employment or role. If you change sponsor or change SOC code mid-visa, you must apply for a new CoS and meet the rules in force at that point.
Practically: a worker on a £39,000 software development visa issued in 2024 stays compliant through their 3-year visa duration. At extension or ILR they must meet the rule then in force. Your sponsor will typically uplift to the new threshold — most large employers price this risk in. If your sponsor cannot uplift, the route to a continued visa is to switch to a new sponsor offering a compliant salary.
5. Sector-by-sector impact
| Sector | Mid-level UK pay (median) | Threshold-binding? |
|---|---|---|
| Software engineering (London) | £60–80,000 | Below threshold — going rate wins |
| Software engineering (regional) | £40–55,000 | Threshold-binding for many junior roles |
| Accounting (post-qualification) | £45–55,000 | Going rate wins |
| Mechanical engineering | £40–50,000 | Threshold-binding for entry-level |
| Marketing (associate) | £28–40,000 | Threshold-binding |
| NHS clinical (Bands 5–6) | £28–43,000 | Exempt — Health and Care Worker route |
| Hospitality management | £28–38,000 | Mostly ineligible post-RQF6 |
The headline shift is concentration: sponsorship volume has consolidated towards firms whose median pay was already above £41,700. Independent SMEs in marketing, ops, and junior commercial roles are largely priced out of overseas hiring on the Skilled Worker route. The Global Business Mobility: Senior or Specialist Worker route remains available for intra-company transfers, where the threshold rules differ.
6. The total cost of a £41,700 hire to the employer
Beyond salary, the sponsor carries the Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) and licence-maintenance costs. Worker pays application fee, IHS, and biometrics. Indicative numbers for a 3-year Skilled Worker visa applied for from outside the UK in 2026:
| Cost | Who pays | Indicative figure |
|---|---|---|
| Salary at threshold | Employer | £41,700 |
| Immigration Skills Charge (3 years, large sponsor) | Employer | £3,960 (£1,320/yr × 3) |
| Sponsor licence renewal share (amortised) | Employer | ≈£500 |
| Visa application fee (3-year, out-of-country) | Worker | ≈£800 |
| Immigration Health Surcharge (3 years × £1,035) | Worker | £3,105 |
| Biometric enrolment / TB test | Worker | ≈£100–200 |
Total employer cost of bringing a sponsored hire on board in year 1 sits in the £45,000–47,000 range before pension, NI, and equipment. Total worker out-of-pocket cost over a 3-year visa typically lands at £4,000–4,500.
7. Action plan for applicants
- Identify your SOC code first. Use our SOC code checker — never apply for a role without knowing the going rate it carries.
- Sort your search by going-rate-above-£41,700 SOCs. Software dev, engineering, finance, and senior management dominate. Programmers (SOC 2134), accountants (2421), and engineers (2121–2129) all sit comfortably above the threshold.
- If you qualify as a new entrant, target firms that hire graduates routinely. Big Four, magic-circle law firms, FTSE banks, and tech scale-ups have well-established new-entrant pipelines.
- Use the Graduate visa as a bridge. Two years of UK work experience materially improves your odds of being uplifted to the standard threshold by month 18.
- Verify the sponsor licence is current. The Home Office register updates fortnightly. Cross-check the exact legal name (e.g. "Apple Europe Limited", not "Apple UK").
- Optimise your CV for ATS. Most large UK sponsors use applicant-tracking systems before any human review. Explicitly state your right-to-work status and visa eligibility.
8. Looking ahead
Two further changes are on the horizon. The 2026 Spring statement consultation on Earned Settlement closed in February; if implemented, ILR for Skilled Worker would shift from 5 years to 10 years, with potential offsets for high earners and contributions. The Migration Advisory Committee is also reviewing the going-rate methodology — moving from 25th-percentile to 50th-percentile would add another 5–8% to most sector thresholds.
Neither change is yet in force. We track them on the 2026 Skilled Worker visa guide and update this article as material changes land.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the 2026 UK Skilled Worker salary threshold?
- The general minimum is £41,700 per year, or the SOC code going rate, whichever is higher. The hourly floor is £17.13 regardless of weekly hours. New entrants qualify at £33,400.
- Does the £41,700 threshold apply if I'm already on a Skilled Worker visa?
- Not retroactively. Your current visa stays valid through its issued duration. The new threshold applies at your next visa application — whether that's an extension, change of employer, change of SOC code, or ILR application.
- Are there exceptions to the £41,700 threshold?
- Yes. New entrants (under 26 or switching from Student/Graduate) qualify for a 30% discount with a £33,400 floor. Relevant PhD holders get 10–20% off. Roles on the Immigration Salary List have lower fixed floors. Health and Care Worker visa roles follow national NHS pay scales and are exempt from the £41,700 figure.
- What is the difference between the going rate and the general threshold?
- The general threshold (£41,700) is a fixed annual minimum across all Skilled Worker roles. The going rate is the per-occupation 25th-percentile of UK earnings, published per SOC 2020 code. You must be paid the higher of the two — plus a £17.13/hr hourly floor.
- What happens if my sponsor refuses to raise my salary to £41,700 at extension?
- Your existing visa stays valid until expiry. If your sponsor will not uplift your salary at extension, you can: (a) switch to a different sponsor offering a compliant salary, (b) consider a different visa route (e.g. Graduate, Global Talent, dependent partner), or (c) leave the UK. You have 60 days from any visa-curtailing event to apply for a new sponsorship arrangement.