The Purpose of Skilled Worker Visa Application
If you wish to become a salaried employee in the UK, this visa is one of the best options for you. The requirements of your future job, your qualifications, your salary, and your duration of stay are determined when applying for your visa and presented for evaluation during the application process. If you spend five years in the UK working with a Skilled Worker Visa, you can apply for permanent residence.
Skilled Worker Visa
The Skilled Worker Visa enables you to live in the UK and start a job that suits you with a sponsorship certificate from an employer who has a sponsorship licence to employ migrant workers in the UK.
This visa has replaced the Tier 2 (General) Working Visa after the Brexit process happened on 31st of December 2020. It is a visa based on a points system. Briefly stated, to get this visa, there will be criteria you need to comply with and the points you will need to achieve based on these criteria.
For example, before applying for the Skilled Worker Visa, you must have a job offer from an employer with a sponsorship license, and this is one of the “mandatory” points you need to get. In the following sections, we will talk about the point system in more detail.
Based on the information on the official website of the UK government, the Skilled Worker Visa process takes approximately 3 weeks to be finalized. However, of course, this period may be elongated if the reassessment/compliance/reliability of the documents is put into question.
Eligibility and The Basic Criteria
There are basic criteria set by the Home Office in order to obtain the Skilled Worker Visa. For example, the applicant must be over 18 years old, must speak English at B1 level, must not be working below the minimum salary determined for the job, etc.
- You must prove that you can read, write, speak and understand English, at least up to level B1 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). The names of the exams determined for the Skilled Worker Visa may differ depending on the exam center. Each test center might have different procedures, fees etc. but as long as it is proved that your result is obtained from an approved and official center and that you are at B1 level, you can use your result for your visa application. In some cases, you may not be required to take the exam, but proof of your English knowledge is a basic requirement.
- One of the main requirements is that you will be working with a company licensed / approved by the Home Office. The reason for this is that your employer has to prepare a special “sponsorship document” for you. Without this sponsorship document, your Skilled Worker Visa application will not result positively. Although the company may not have this document, the company will be able to complete this work for you.
- Your job must be found in the “Eligible Occupations” or “Shortage Occupation” lists. You can access these lists from the links below.
Eligible Occupations: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skilled-worker-visa-eligible-occupations/skilled-worker-visa-eligible-occupations-and-codes
Shortage Occupation: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skilled-worker-visa-shortage-occupations/skilled-worker-visa-shortage-occupations
The most suitable profession code for you must be determined and your sponsor license application must be made with this profession code.
A minimum salary fee for each occupation code has been set by the Home Office. The points you will receive may vary depending on your salary. You can contact us for more detailed information.
For a Skilled Worker Visa application, you must achieve a total of 70 points from the above criteria. 50 of these 70 points are obtained from the articles that you must complete before you can apply. You can check the table below for details.
| Articles | Is it tradable? | Points |
| Receiving a job offer from an employer with a sponsoring license | No | 20 |
| Choosing a job from the suitable professions list | No | 20 |
| To have B1 level of English | No | 10 |
| The minimum salary of £20,480 | Yes | 0 |
| Salary in the range of £23,040 to £25,599 | Yes | 10 |
| Salary of £25,600 or more | Yes | 20 |
| Choosing a job that is on the list of rare professions | Yes | 20 |
| Education level: Having a PhD in the relevant profession | Yes | 10 |
| Education level: Having a PhD in STEM * fields | Yes | 20 |
| STEM*: (science, technology, engineering and mathematics)
|
Non-tradable items are mandatory and they must be completed. The criteria that can vary are the salary you will receive, your level of education and your profession.
Duration of Skilled Worker Visa & Rights
Length of Stay-Extension
Your stay in the UK with a Skilled Worker Visa can vary from 1 to 5 years. When your visa expires, you can apply for an extension to elongate your stay. In order to apply for an extension, all three items below must be valid:
- You must be doing the job you declared when getting your initial visa
- You must adhere to the occupation code you declared in your initial visa
- Working with your employer who has given you your current certificate of sponsorship (CoS)
Visa Update Right
You are expected to update your visa when your profession or employer changes. There is a separate application area for visa update. In the following situations, you must update your existing Skilled Worker visa.
- If you want to change your job and you will have a different employer for your new job;
- If the occupational code of your current job is changing and you are not in any postgraduate program;
- If you are leaving a job on the rare job list for a job that is not on this list..
Supplementary Job Rights
With the Skilled Worker visa, you are offered the right to work in an additional job, but there are certain conditions. You can work a maximum of 20 hours in additional work without interfering with the working hours of your main job. Your additional job must suit your current job; or an occupation code on the “Scarce Occupations” list.
Your family can live with you in the UK
Your spouse, unmarried partner, your same-sex partner and / or your children under the age of 18 can apply for “dependant visa” and join you to live in the UK for the duration of your visa.
Indefinite Leave to Remain
One of the most important rights that the Skilled Worker visa grants you is that you can apply for a permanent residence (Indefinite Leave to Remain) when you have completed 5 years as an employee under this visa. You can contact us for conditions and detailed information.
Costs
There are 3 different main issues that you need to consider in terms of finance:
- The amount to be paid to the British Government as a Visa Application Fee
The application base cost ranges from £464 to £1220, depending on whether the application is lodged within the UK or outside the UK, and also for how long the application is submitted. (Short-term visa holders cannot apply for this visa from within the UK.)
There is a £55 discount for applicants from certain nationalities. Turkey is also among these countries. So, you can calculate by deducting £55 from the prices above.
- Additional fee to be paid to the British Government for health services
This fee is determined as £624 for each year of stay. For example, if you are applying for a 3-year visa, you must pay 624 x 3 = £1872 for health care. To complete your Skilled Worker visa application, you must complete the healthcare payment stage.
- The third and the final issue is the amount you must declare in your bank account to show that you can support yourself in the UK.
This amount is a minimum of 1270 GBP. If your family members are also included in the application, in addition to GBP 1270; £ 285 for your spouse / partner, £ 315 for your first child and £ 200 for each additional child must be present in the bank.