With effect from 22 July 2025, the salary thresholds for the Skilled Worker visa, along with Global Business Mobility and Scale up visas, are to be increased.
The new levels were outlined in the Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules HC 997, published on 1 July 2025. Changes also include an uplift in the skills level to RQF 6.
Skilled Worker Visa Salary Changes from 22 July 2025
Skilled worker visa salary thresholds are increasing across the board for applications made on/after 22 July, with key changes including:
- General salary threshold (Option A) rises from £38,700 to £41,700, a 7.8 % increase.
- The “90 % of going-rate”, Option B salary level, relying on a PhD relevant to the job, moves from £34,830 to £37,500.
- Option C, 80% of going rate, for STEM-PhD relevant to the role, increases to a minimum of £33,400.
- Jobs listed on the Immigration Salary List, under Option D with full going rate, increases to £33,400 as the minimum.
- Option E for ‘new entrants’ with 70% discount on going rate, minimum salary increasing to £33,400.
- Option F uplifts the minimum salary level for sponsored workers in existing sub-degree roles (pre-22 July 2025) to £31,300, under a transitional provision in light of the increase in skill level requirement.
- Option G minimum salary increases to £28,200 for existing sponsored workers in sub-degree roles (pre-22 July 2025), under a transitional provision in light of the increase in skill level requirement.
- Options F–J are only available to applicants who were sponsored in the Skilled Worker route in a relevant role before 22 July 2025 and are continuing employment.
- All occupation-specific going rates in Appendix Skilled Occupations are being uprated in line with the 2024 Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE).
In light of the increased thresholds, sponsors must now pay whichever is higher: the updated median ASHE figure or a minimum of £17.13 per hour, for applications made on or after 22 July 2025. Where that £17.13 test produces a higher figure than the stated 70 %, 80 % or 90 % discount (as applicable), the £17.13 value is deemed to meet the discount.
Only the first 48 working hours per week can be counted toward meeting these thresholds.
There are no transitional provisions available for applicants extending their skilled worker leave or changing sponsor after 22 July 2o25. Extensions have to satisfy the new thresholds after 22 July 2025.
Extensions and changes of employment must meet the new salary thresholds if the application is made on or after 22 July 2025, regardless of when the CoS was assigned.
However, transitional provisions do allow existing Skilled Workers sponsored in sub-degree (RQF level 3–5) roles before 22 July 2025 to continue to be sponsored in those occupations, despite the new skill level requirement for new applicants being raised to RQF level 6. These skill-level concessions do not apply to new hires and do not override the requirement to meet the updated salary thresholds.
| Option | When it is used | Old minimum (up to 21 Jul 2025) |
New minimum (from 22 Jul 2025) |
£ change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Option A – General threshold | Standard Skilled Worker cases with no salary discount | £38,700 | £41,700 | +£3,000 |
| Option B – 90% of going rate | PhD relevant to the job – 90% of going rate | £34,830 | £37,500 | +£2,670 |
| Option C – 80% of going rate | STEM-PhD discount – 80% of going rate | £30,960 | £33,400 | +£2,440 |
| Option D – full going rate | Job on Immigration Salary List – full going rate | £30,960 | £33,400 | +£2,440 |
| Option E – 70% of going rate | New entrant – 70% of going rate | £30,960 | £33,400 | +£2,440 |
| Option F – full going rate | Transitional – continuing employment, existing workers who were already sponsored in sub-degree roles (Table 2/2aa/2a job) before 22 July, full going rate | £29,000 | £31,300 | +£2,300 |
| Option G – 90% of going rate | Transitional – continuing employment, existing sub-degree role, 90 % of going rate | £26,100 | £28,200 | +£2,100 |
| Option H – 80% of going rate | Transitional – continuing employment, existing sub-degree role, STEM-PhD, 80 % of going rate | £25,000 | £25,000 (unchanged) | — |
| Option I – full going rate | Transitional – continuing employment, job on Immigration Salary List at sub-degree level, full going rate | £25,000 | £25,000 (unchanged) | — |
| Option J – 70% of going rate | Transitional – continuing employment, new entrant at sub-degree level, 70 % of going rate | £25,000 | £25,000 (unchanged) | — |
| Universal hourly floor | Minimum hourly rate, applies to each band in addition to annual test although some individual going rates sit higher than the floor | (none) | £17.13 per hour | — |
Impact on New Skilled Worker Visa Applications
From 22 July 2025, any Skilled Worker application must satisfy the higher salary bands introduced by Statement of Changes HC 997.
For employers, the most immediate consequence is the need to raise headline pay offers. The general salary threshold (Option A) has risen from £38,700 to £41,700, while the 90 % of going rate for job-relevant PhDs, under Option B, moves to £37,500. The 80% of going rate for STEM-PhD discounts, under Option C, nows sit at £33,400. Option D, for roles on the Immigration Salary List, requires the full going rate, with a floor of £33,400. Option E is the new entrant route, and has a salary floor of £33,400, and 70% of going rate.
Occupation specific going rates have also been recalculated using 2024 Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings data and the rules now impose a new absolute floor of £17.13 per hour. Sponsors must therefore pay the higher of (i) the refreshed going-rate for the SOC code or (ii) the relevant discounted option.
The first 48 working hours per week are the only hours that count towards meeting these thresholds, so longer weeks cannot be used to “top up” an otherwise inadequate salary.
In practical terms, employers should review all salaries that will be quoted in CoS after 21 July and budget for the necessary increases. Roles that previously cleared the threshold may now fall short. In this event, unless the salary level can be uplifted, the vacancy will no longer be eligible for sponsorship under the skilled worker route.
Recruitment adverts, offer letters and payroll instructions should also be reviewed and adjusted accordingly to reflect the relevant new figures before a CoS is assigned; a late adjustment after the application has been submitted will not cure a refusal.
Where employers rely on discounted salary thresholds (e.g. Options B–E), they will need to ensure that the salary also meets the minimum £17.13 hourly rate when calculated over a maximum 48-hour week. If £17.13 per hour produces a higher annual salary than the percentage-discounted rate, it overrides the discount. Retain payslips as evidence in case of a Home Office compliance audit.
Finally, staff using the Sponsor Management System (SMS) should be trained to reference the updated SOC codes and salary figures in the revised Appendix Skilled Occupations. Failure to align salary data with the new rules after 22 July risks refusals for individual workers potential downgrading of the sponsor licence and costly business disruption.
Impact on Skilled Worker Visa Extensions
From 22 July 2025, any Skilled Worker who needs to extend their permission or apply to change their sponsor, and therefore rely on a new CoS, will be subject to the higher thresholds where the CoS will be dated on or after 22 July.
The Home Office also makes it explicit that “there are no transitional arrangements relating to the updates to salary requirements”. The Home Office expects wages to track UK market growth, so any worker who applies to extend on or after 22 July must already be paid at, or be contractually guaranteed, a figure that meets the new thresholds when the application is made.
The only flexibility is the date on which the CoS is issued: once that is 22 July or later, the higher rates apply.
Failure to align salaries with the post-22 July regime can lead to extension refusals, curtailed leave to remain for the worker as well as potential sponsor licence enforcement action.
Employers are advised to review every sponsored employee whose leave expires after 21 July and confirm that their actual gross pay will clear the new general threshold and the refreshed going rate before a CoS is assigned under the new rules. Existing sub-degree workers may instead rely on Options F–J, where eligible.
Where salaries fall short, any contractual variation to meet the new requirement – such as a pay rise – should be applied in good time. Retrospective uplifts cannot be relied on after an extension has been refused.
Also check that part-time staff meet the hourly £17.13 floor and that compressed hours arrangements do not rely on crediting more than 48 hours a week toward the threshold.
As with all aspects of visa sponsorship, record keeping is critical. Keep board minutes, payroll instructions and signed contract changes on file, in the event of a Home Office compliance audit.
In relation to forward planning, the same higher figures have been written across to the Skilled Worker settlement rule, so employees approaching five years’ residence will also need to meet the £41,700 / £33,400 / £31,300 bands if applying for indefinite leave to remain.
Impact on Skilled Worker Visa to ILR
From 22 July 2025 the salary test for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) under the Skilled Worker route will align with the wider salary uplifts. Skilled Worker to ILR applications made on or after 22 July 2025 must satisfy the higher of (i) the updated general settlement thresholds and (ii) the refreshed going rate for the occupation, calculated from the 2024 Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. The table in SW 24.3 reads £41,700 (Option A), £33,400 (Option B) and £31,300 (Option C), replacing the former figures of £38,700, £30,960 and £29,000, from 22 July 2025. Note, however, only the full going rate column applies, and no 70%, 80% or 90 % discounts are available for ILR.
Only the full going rate column in the new Appendix Skilled Occupations counts for settlement purposes; the 70 %, 80 % and 90 % discounts that can be used at the entry stage are expressly disapplied.
Whichever option is relied on, an hourly floor of £17.13 and the “first-48-hours-only” cap on how much overtime can be credited also bite at ILR stage.
Again, no transitional relief is available; the Home Office expects sponsored pay to track UK wage growth, so anyone applying for ILR after 21 July must already be earning the new figures on the day the application is submitted.
Employers are advised to identify those Skilled Workers whose five-year residence are due after 21 July 2025 and model their projected pay against the £41.7 k/£33.4 k/£31.3 k bands and the new going rate for their SOC code. Where a gap emerges, schedule contractual uplifts well before the ILR application date, as retrospective increases will not rectify a refusal.
Another important development relates to skill level. Settlement normally requires the worker to be in an RQF 6 occupation in Tables 1–3. Workers in lower-skilled roles can still qualify but only if they have held continuous permission under the pre-22 July 2025 rules; no fresh sub-degree sponsorship will lead to ILR. This will needed to be factored into career development and retention planning.
Global Business Mobility & Scale Up Salary Threshold Increases
Salary changes also apply to the Global Business Mobility and Scale up visas, with route-specific figures.
For the GBM Senior or Specialist Worker visa, the absolute salary floor in rule SNR 8.1 climbs from £48,500 to £52,500, while the linked extension/settlement threshold in SNR 8.2A is uprated to the same £52,500.
The UK Expansion Worker visa mirrors that jump: rule UKX 8.1 now requires £52,500 and the discounted “sectoral” floor in UKX 8.3 rises to match.
Under the GBM Graduate Trainee visa, the baseline in GTR 8.1 increases from £25,410 to £27,300. The same figure replaces £24,220 in the reduced-hours formula at GTR 8.3(a).
Although no headline numbers are listed for the Service Supplier, Secondment Worker and UK Service Supplier sub-routes, the Rules replace route-specific worked examples with higher notional wages, signalling that their going rates have also been refreshed in line with the 2024 ASHE data.
The Scale-up route is likewise tightened. The sponsored phase salary threshold increases from £36,300 to £39,100, an increase of 7.7%. The same £39,100 figure applies to all future salary assessments in both the sponsored and unsponsored phases for applications made on or after 22 July 2025, with lower thresholds preserved only where the application is made before that date.
Across both routes, the revised £17.13 hourly minimum and “first-48-hours-only” rule apply, ensuring that sponsors cannot reach the new annual totals through excessive working time.
As with Skilled Workers, no transitional relief exists. Applications made on or after 22 July 2025 must meet the higher figures.
Need Assistance?
Employers are left with little time to review and make any adjustments required to comply with the new rules. The new salary regime takes effect on visa applications made on or after 22 July 2025, which will be assessed against the higher headline thresholds and going rates.
To protect your licence and your employees’ right to remain, you should act now.
In most cases, it will be advisable to start with a compliance audit, before reviewing sponsored visa salary levels against the new thresholds. Training will be important for anyone involved in overseas recruitment and personnel management, to ensure the uplifted thresholds, and the 48-hour cap, are adhered to.
Strategically, workforce plans may need redevelopment where the higher thresholds ‘price out’ overseas candidates. This may involve upskilling existing workers or hiring domestically where roles now exceed budget.
Remember also to document and retain all related decisions, payslips and contract changes to reduce the risk of compliance breaches.
To discuss the impact of the changes on your organisation – such as on skilled worker applications, recruitment planning, salary reviews – speak to our UK immigration advisers.
Author
Founder and Managing Director Anne Morris is a fully qualified solicitor and trusted adviser to large corporates through to SMEs, providing strategic immigration and global mobility advice to support employers with UK operations to meet their workforce needs through corporate immigration.
She is a recognised by Legal 500 and Chambers as a legal expert and delivers Board-level advice on business migration and compliance risk management as well as overseeing the firm’s development of new client propositions and delivery of cost and time efficient processing of applications.
Anne is an active public speaker, immigration commentator, and immigration policy contributor and regularly hosts training sessions for employers and HR professionals
