Temporary Shortage List: MAC Second-Stage Review
The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has completed the second stage of its review of the Temporary Shortage List (TSL), recommending which medium-skilled occupations should receive continued or new access to the Skilled Worker route.
The TSL was introduced in July 2025 when the general Skilled Worker skill threshold was raised to graduate level. It allows specified medium-skilled occupations to remain eligible for sponsorship where they are considered important to the Industrial Strategy or the delivery of critical infrastructure. It operates alongside the Immigration Salary List, but serves a different purpose and does not provide the same salary or visa fee concessions.
As yet, the MAC’s recommendations do not change the live TSL, or the Immigration Rules. It is now for ministers to decide which proposals to accept before any revised list can take effect through a Statement of Changes. Until then, sponsors should continue to assess occupation eligibility and assign Certificates of Sponsorship under the rules currently in force.
TSL Role Recommendations July 2026
The MAC assessed 46 occupations supported by departmental Jobs Plans, drawing on labour market evidence and submissions from employers, sector bodies, trade unions and government departments. Its assessment considered current or anticipated shortage, plans to expand domestic workforce supply, the management of exploitation risks and whether access to sponsored migration was appropriate overall.
Overall, the MAC recommends that 28 occupations should be included on the Temporary Shortage List. The Committee did not recommend inclusion for every occupation referred to it, concluding in several cases that the available evidence did not demonstrate sufficiently acute or persistent labour shortages, or that wider labour market considerations weighed against providing immigration concessions.
The recommended occupations span advanced manufacturing, engineering, clean energy, digital and technology, construction, maritime and process industries. The MAC recommends that all 28 occupations receive provisional access for 18 months. None was considered to have a sufficiently strong Jobs Plan to justify access for the full three-year review period.
| Sector | Occupations recommended for TSL |
|---|---|
| Advanced manufacturing and engineering |
|
| Clean energy |
|
| Digital and technology |
|
| Construction and critical infrastructure |
|
| Maritime and shipping |
|
| Process industries |
|
The MAC also recommends separate treatment for two creative occupations outside the TSL. It proposes that skilled classical ballet dancers, contemporary dancers and orchestral musicians who meet the standards required by internationally recognised UK companies or orchestras should have direct access to the Skilled Worker route as roles treated at graduate skill level. The recommendation would not extend Skilled Worker eligibility to all dancers, choreographers or musicians.
Role of the TSL
The Committee repeatedly emphasises in report that inclusion on the TSL should be the exception rather than the norm.
Occupations are expected to satisfy a relatively high evidential threshold and remain on the list only for so long as the justification continues to exist.
Inclusion is not driven simply by evidence of recruitment difficulties. Sector-owning government departments and representative bodies will need increasingly robust workforce evidence to support future Jobs Plans, including clear analysis of labour demand, domestic supply, training, retention and the expected impact of planned interventions. Employers will have an important role in supplying credible occupation-level data and demonstrating investment in recruitment and workforce development.
The report also makes clear that the Committee does not regard the TSL as a mechanism for resolving wider structural labour shortages. In several sectors, it encourages employers and government to focus on improving pay, training, productivity and workforce participation alongside the use of sponsored migration. That reflects the broader policy direction of recent immigration reforms, which seek to position sponsorship as one element of workforce planning rather than a long-term substitute for domestic recruitment.
What happens next?
Ministers will now consider the MAC’s report before deciding whether to accept the recommendations in full, adopt only selected recommendations or depart from the Committee’s advice. The recommendations do not change the Immigration Rules and there is no legal requirement for the Government to implement them.
If the Government decides to proceed, the changes would ordinarily be introduced through a Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules. The Home Office would then update the relevant appendices and sponsor guidance before the revised Temporary Shortage List takes effect.
There is currently no confirmed Government timetable for implementing the recommendations, although the MAC proposes that, if accepted, the 28 occupations should receive access from January 2027 until the end of June 2028.
Before that 18-month period expires, the MAC recommends a lighter-touch review of the relevant Jobs Plans. Sectors would need to show that their plans have been strengthened and that measurable progress is being made before access could be extended for the remainder of the proposed three-year period.
Until a Statement of Changes is laid and the revised rules take effect, sponsors should continue to assess occupation eligibility, salary requirements and Certificates of Sponsorship under the rules currently in force. The occupations recommended by the MAC do not become eligible simply because they appear in the report.
DMS Strategic Insight for Employers
The MAC has reinforced that access to the Temporary Shortage List should remain temporary and subject to regular review, rather than becoming a permanent answer to labour shortages. Clearly, this adds another layer of uncertainty to an already changing sponsorship landscape for employers, particularly where recruitment plans depend on occupations remaining eligible over the longer term.
That uncertainty doesn’t remove the value of sponsorship or prevent employers from continuing to recruit and grow but it does make it more important to understand where reliance on sponsored workers is concentrated, which roles are most exposed to policy change and what alternative recruitment, training or retention measures are available. The TSL should therefore be treated as one workforce option within a broader resourcing strategy, rather than the strategy itself.
Need Assistance?
If your organisation relies on sponsored workers in roles affected by the Temporary Shortage List review, take advice on current eligibility, salary requirements and the implications for future recruitment planning.
DavidsonMorris’ business immigration solicitors support UK employers with Skilled Worker sponsorship, sponsor licence compliance and strategic workforce planning. For advice on how the MAC’s recommendations may affect your organisation, book a fixed-fee telephone consultation with our immigration specialists.
