SOC codes for Skilled Worker sponsorship

Each job maps onto one 4-digit code, and that code is what decides if sponsorship is possible. What counts is the work the person will really be doing, not just the title on the advert. GOV.UK directs employers to a free tool called CASCOT, where you type in a job title and it suggests codes that might fit.

If you're hiring someone new, the codes you can use appear in Table 1 of Appendix Skilled Occupations. That table lists 91 of them, and all are roles that need degree-level skills or better. Engineers, IT specialists, scientists, accountants and senior managers all fall in this group.

A handful of codes appear in Tables 1a, 2aa and 3a instead. Those are closed to new hires. You can only use them for people who already had Skilled Worker permission before 22 July 2025.

It depends on the role. GOV.UK confirms that bricklayers, roofers and carpenters qualify, while construction labourers do not.

The going rate is the fixed annual salary attached to an occupation code. For most new hires, the salary you offer has to be at least £41,700 per year or the going rate, whichever is greater. That means a job with a lower going rate still has £41,700 as its floor.

Going rates are worked out on a 37.5-hour week. If the job's hours differ from that, the rate goes up or down in proportion.

The new entrant column shows a reduced salary for certain workers near the start of their careers.

Some occupations sit on the immigration salary list, which allows you to pay below the normal minimum. To use it, the job must pay at least £33,400 a year and meet the going rate, and the worker then pays a reduced visa fee. Graphic and multimedia designers are on this list.

Listed occupations are due to come off on 31 December 2026. Care workers are the exception, with a removal date of 22 July 2028.

There's also a temporary shortage list. Roles on it only count if you issue the certificate of sponsorship before 31 December 2026. The certificate is simply the record you, the sponsor, create so the worker can go ahead and apply.

For the Health and Care Worker visa, the salary floor is £25,000 per year, or the going rate if that's bigger.

There are three parts: a one-off licence fee, a £525 certificate per worker, and a skills charge covering each year of the visa. These totals are for one worker.

Each extra worker brings a further £525 certificate fee on top of the yearly skills charge for their visa length. Small businesses pay £480 per year of the visa; medium and large ones pay £1,320. The licence fee is only ever paid once.

There are 9 codes, all in research or higher education, where no skills charge applies. They are 2111, 2112, 2113, 2114, 2115, 2119, 2161, 2162 and 2311.

What goes into each total

Every total combines the licence fee, the £525 certificate, and the skills charge for the full visa length.

• Charity or small business, one year: £611 + £525 + £480
• Charity or small business, three years: £611 + £525 + £1,440
• Charity or small business, five years: £611 + £525 + £2,400
• Large or medium business, one year: £1,682 + £525 + £1,320
• Large or medium business, three years: £1,682 + £525 + £3,960
• Large or medium business, five years: £1,682 + £525 + £6,600

Someone applying from overseas covers the visa fee and the healthcare surcharge out of their own pocket. For 1 year that comes to £1,854, for 3 years £3,924, and for 5 years £6,793.