UK Immigration Salary List 2024
On 4 December 2023, the Home Secretary announced several changes to the immigration system related to the Skilled Worker route. Amongst these changes, it was announced that, from April 2024, the Shortage Occupation List (SOL) would be replaced with the Immigration Salary List (ISL).
The Immigration Salary List is a list of occupations where a reduced general salary threshold applies to applications on the Skilled Worker route. In other words, if your job is on the Immigration Salary List, you (or your employee) can qualify for a Skilled Worker Visa by being paid less than the standard general salary requirement applicable to the Skilled Worker route. This should make it easier for employers to recruit for ISL roles and open up opportunities for skilled workers to work in the UK in ISL occupations.
In this post we look at the Immigration Salary List in detail, providing insights into its purpose and benefits, its composition and implications for both employers and prospective migrants. The current UK Immigration Salary List 2024 can be found at the end of this post.
What is the Immigration Salary List?
The Skilled Worker Immigration Salary List was first published in Immigration Rules Appendix Immigration Salary List on 4 April 2024.
According to the Explanatory Memorandum to the Statement of Changes in the Immigration Rules presented to Parliament on 14 March 2024 (HC 590), the Immigration Salary List shows a list of occupations where: “the Government considers it sensible to offer a discounted salary threshold, rather than being a list of all occupations experiencing labour shortages.” This contrasts with the predecessor Shortage Occupation List (SOC), which was expressly stated to be a list of skilled occupations where there was a shortage of labour in the UK.
In its report entitled ‘Rapid Review of the Immigration Salary List’, published on 23 February 2024, the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), requested further clarity from the Government on the purpose and benefits of the ISL:
“… we require further clarity from the government on what the benefits and longer-term purpose of the ISL will be …. 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 or to support sectors where there are broader benefits and spillovers to UK society, independent of shortage considerations?”
What we do know is that the Immigration Salary List will be regularly reviewed and updated. Indeed, the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), which provides recommendations on the jobs to be placed on the Immigration Salary List, has already indicated that it will carry out a full review of the list later in 2024. This review will involve extensive stakeholder engagement, including a Call for Evidence and renewed assessment of labour market conditions.
Understanding the Immigration Salary List
Employers seeking to recruit under the Skilled Worker route must pay their skilled workers a salary which equals or exceeds both a general salary threshold and the occupation-specific threshold or ‘going rate’ for the applicable SOC 2020 occupation code.
The Immigration Salary List is a list of occupations where a reduced general salary threshold applies to applications on the Skilled Worker route. In simple terms, if a job is on the Immigration Salary List, the general salary threshold is 80% of the Skilled Worker route’s usual minimum rate.
The Skilled Worker Immigration Salary List can be found in Immigration Rules Appendix Immigration Salary List.
Occupations that are eligible for a Skilled Worker visa and that are on the Immigration Salary List do not need to satisfy the full general salary requirement of £38,700. Instead, Skilled Worker eligible occupations on the Immigration Salary List have a 20% discount on the general salary threshold, meaning that the general salary threshold is reduced to £30,960.
Meanwhile, occupations that are eligible for a Health and Care Worker visa (other than pay scale occupations) and that are on the Immigration Salary List are not subject to the £29,000 general salary threshold. Instead, Health and Care Worker visa eligible occupations not on a pay scale and on the Immigration Salary List have a minimum general salary threshold of £23,200.
Whilst occupations on the Immigration Salary List have a 20% discount to the general salary threshold (to £30,960 or £23,200, depending on whether they would otherwise be subject to the £38,700 or £29,000 threshold), it is important to note that ISL occupations must still additionally be paid at least the occupation-specific threshold (formerly known as the ‘going rate’) as stated in Appendix Skilled Occupations and the Home Office’s Immigration Salary List Guidance.
There is no discount on the occupation-specific threshold (previously a benefit of an occupation being on the Shortage Occupation List) and salaries cannot be reduced below the level of the occupation-specific threshold or ‘going-rate’. This means that, in practice, the actual salary discount may be less than 20%.
For example, an Archaeologist needs to be paid a general salary threshold of £30,960, representing a 20% discount on the standard salary rate of £38,700. However, the occupation-specific threshold or ‘going-rate’ for an Archaeologist is £36,400, based on a 37.5-hour working week. Therefore, in practice, an Archaeologist recruited via the Skilled Worker Visa route needs to be paid a minimum salary of £36,400, which represents a discount of less than 6%.
Therefore, to summarise:
- Skilled Worker route: For occupations on the Immigration Salary List, applicants must be paid a general salary threshold of £30,960 (rather than £38,700) or the occupation-specific threshold / going rate, which is higher;
- Health and Care Worker visa: For occupations on the Immigration Salary List, applicants must be paid a general salary threshold of £23,300 (rather than £29,000) or the occupation-specific threshold / going rate, which is higher.
Benefits of the Immigration Salary List
The main benefit of an occupation being included on the Immigration Salary List is that it allows employers to recruit migrants on a salary below the general salary threshold – with the discount being a maximum of 20%.
Roles on the Immigration Salary List do also have a marginally reduced visa application fee for a Skilled Worker Visa, amounting to a discount of roughly £60 per year. However, as the MAC has highlighted, the visa fee reduction is a negligible benefit, particularly when viewed in the context of the increased Skilled Worker salary thresholds and the increases to the Immigration Health Surcharge.
Roles on the Health and Care Worker Visa already have lower associated visa fees and therefore do not benefit from the Immigration Salary List visa fee reduction.
Immigration Salary List Guidance for Employers
Employers should note that if the job they are seeking to recruit for is on the Immigration Salary List, this must be confirmed in the Certificate of Sponsorship.
Employers should also ensure that where there are additional criteria in Appendix Immigration Salary List, these criteria are met. Several occupation codes incorporate specific eligibility criteria. For example, occupation code ‘3414 – Dancers and choreographers’ is limited to skilled classical ballet dancers or skilled contemporary dancers who meet the standard required by internationally recognised UK ballet or contemporary dance companies. Furthermore, the company must be endorsed as being internationally recognised by a UK industry body such as the Arts Councils (of England, Scotland or Wales).
Certain occupations are also only included on regional specific Immigration Salary Lists, rather than the UK wide Immigration Salary List. For example, chemical scientists in the nuclear industry only qualify for the Immigration Salary List for Scotland. The Home Office will use the ‘working at’ address to determine which nation the job is based in.
Employers should also note that the annual salaries stated in the Immigration Salary List are based on a 37.5-hour working week. They must be pro-rated for other working patterns, based on the weekly working hours stated by the employer.
Finally, it is worth noting that, unlike under the former Tier 2 (General) route, there is no minimum number of weekly hours for Immigration Salary List occupations in the Skilled Worker route, providing the relevant general salary threshold requirement is met and the ‘going rate’ salary requirement is met when pro-rated.
Choosing the Right SOC 2020 Occupation Code on the Immigration Salary List
When sponsoring a Skilled Worker for a particular role, employers need to not only understand How to Apply for a Skilled Worker Sponsor Licence, but ensure that the worker is sponsored for a job in an eligible standard occupational classification (‘SOC’) code. The SOC codes can be found in the published Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations and Appendix Immigration Salary List.
To have a better understanding of the right SOC code for the job they are recruiting for, employers can search for the job in the CASCOT occupation coding tool or refer to the Office for National Statistics website to have a look at the job descriptions, tasks and entry requirements.
It is important to choose the most appropriate occupation code to avoid any delay or refusal of the worker’s visa application. If the Home Office has reasonable grounds to believe that the sponsor has not chosen the correct SOC code or the vacancy is not genuine, this may trigger the Home Office to conduct a sponsor compliance visit on an announced or unannounced basis and may also lead to a sponsor licence being suspended.
UK Immigration Salary List 2024
The current UK Immigration Salary List 2024 can be found here and, as at the date of this post, is set out below. The list shows whether the shortage of labour is in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
Below is a list of occupations where 80% of the Skilled Worker or Health and Care Worker general salary threshold may be paid:
Immigration Salary List Jobs in Fishing
- 1212 Fishing boat masters (Scotland only)
- 5119 Fishing trades not elsewhere classified (UK wide)
- 9119 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 (UK wide)
Immigration Salary List Jobs in Science / Engineering
- 2111 Chemical scientists in the nuclear industry (Scotland only)
- 2112 Biological scientists (UK wide)
- 2115 Archaeologists (UK wide)
- 3111 Laboratory technicians – only jobs requiring 3 or more years’ related on-the-job experience (UK wide)
- 3212 Pharmaceutical technicians (UK wide)
Immigration Salary List Jobs in the Creative Sector
- 2142 Graphic and multimedia designers (UK wide)
- 3411 Artists (UK wide)
- 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)
- 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)
- 3416 Arts officers, producers and directors (UK wide)
Immigration Salary List Jobs in Construction
- 5213 High integrity pipe welders, where the job requires 3 or more years’ related on-the-job experience (UK wide)
- 5235 Boat and shop builders and repairers (Scotland only)
- 5312 Stonemasons and related trades (UK wide)
- 5313 Bricklayers (UK wide)
- 5314 Roofers, roof tilers and slaters (UK wide)
- 5316 Carpenters and joiners (UK wide)
- 5319 Retrofitters (UK wide)
Immigration Salary List Jobs in Health and Care
- 6135 Care workers and home carers (UK wide)
- 6136 Senior care workers (UK wide)
Immigration Salary List Jobs in Other Trades
- 6129 Racing grooms, stallion handlers, stud grooms, stud hands, stud handlers and work riders (UK wide)
Types of Sponsor Licence
To sponsor a worker for a role on the Immigration Salary List or Appendix Skilled Occupations, the employer will need to have a sponsor licence for the relevant route. Further details on the relevant sponsor licences can be found here:
- Skilled Worker Sponsor Licence: Skilled Worker Sponsor Licence Application Guide
- Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence: Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence Application Guide
- Scale-up Sponsor Licence: Scale-up Sponsor Licence Application Guidance
- Health & Care Worker Sponsor Licence: Apply for a Health & Care Worker Sponsor Licence
Contact Our Immigration Barristers
For expert advice and assistance in relation to a Sponsor Licence application or Skilled Worker visa application, including applications for roles on the UK Immigration Salary List, contact our immigration barristers in London on 0203 617 9173 or via the enquiry form below.
