Step-by-Step Guide to Applying for the Skilled Worker Visa in the UK (2025 Edition)

A UK skilled worker visa enables you to come and stay in the UK to engage in an eligible job with an approved employer in the country.

This visa has replaced the Tier 2 General work visa and allows you to stay for up to 5 years before you need to extend or update it upon expiry. You also need to reapply if you change jobs or an employer. You can apply for the UK skilled worker visa as many times as you like as long as you still adhere to eligibility guidelines set by the UK Home Office. After 5 years, you can also live in the UK with an “indefinite leave to remain”. This gives you the right to live, work, and study in the country for as long as you please and apply for benefits if you are eligible. 

Application Process for UK Skilled Worker Visa

You must apply online for this visa and how you apply depends on whether you are 

• Outside of the UK and coming to the country

• Inside the UK and extending the visa you are on

• Inside the UK and switching from a different visa

In case you want to change your employer or job, you have to apply to update your visa. Your partner and children can apply to join you and stay in the UK as dependents if they meet the eligibility requirements. 

UK Skilled Worker Visa: Applying from Outside the Country

When you are applying from outside of the country, you need specific sets of documents for the visa nod. You must provide the certificate of sponsorship reference number given to you by the employer with proof of your knowledge of English. You must also provide your valid passport or other documents that show your identity and nationality. For the UK skilled worker visa, you must provide your job title and annual salary. Mention the job’s occupation code and the name of your employer along with their sponsor license number. 

Depending on your circumstance you may have to offer a skilled worker minimum salary requirement or evidence that you have personal savings to support yourself in the country. Bank statements and a certificate of sponsorship showing they support you are a must. You have to also provide proof of relationship with dependents if they are applying with you. A tuberculosis test is mandatory if you are applying from a listed country. You also need to provide a criminal record certificate that shows you are working in specific jobs. 

Showing a valid ATAS certificate is also mandatory if your employer tells you that you need one since you are researching a sensitive subject at the PhD level. You must show your UK PhD certificate or the Ecctis number or the UK NARIC reference number if your qualification is not from the UK and outside. You must apply through Ecctis. If your documents are not in English or Welsh, provide a certified translation. 

A criminal record certificate is mandatory if you are applying from outside of the country and you are engaged in education, healthcare, therapy, and social services. You must also provide a certificate stating that you have lived in a separate country and not the UK depending on your age and how long you stayed there. If you are under 28, you must show that the country you were in was your home for 12 months or more since you turned 18. In case you are 28 or beyond, you must show a certificate from any country you have stayed in the last 10 years. 

Extending or updating a UK Skilled Worker Visa

You can usually apply to extend a Skilled Worker visa or a Tier 2 General work visa if you have the same job when you were given the previous permission to enter and stay in the UK. You can also apply for a UK skilled worker visa if your job is in the same occupation code as when you were given the previous permission to enter and stay in the UK. You can also apply if you have given the employer the current certificate of sponsorship. You must not travel outside of the UK, Ireland, Channel Islands, and Isle of Man when you are applying for an extension. Your application can be withdrawn if you break the rules. 

Your partner's visa and those of your children will also be extended if you extend yours. In case they do not extend their visa, it will be valid until its original end date. They can apply at the same time as you or even before your current visa expires. You must apply online before your current visa expires and you must save the application once you have started it. 

When you are applying for a Skilled worker visa from outside of the UK, you must pay the application fee ranging from 719 pounds to 1639 pounds per year. You must also pay the health surcharge, which is 1035 pounds per year. You must be able to support yourself when you arrive in the country and have 1270 pounds in the bank. You can pay a lower application fee if your job is on the immigration salary list. You will get a clear visibility of how much you need to apply and pay. 

If you are applying from outside the UK, your standard application fee for up to 3 years is 719 pounds per person. For those more than 3 years, it is 1420 pounds per person. In case you are applying from inside the UK to extend, update, or switch the visa, the standard fee is dependent on whether you will be staying in the UK for up to 3 years with 827 pounds per person fee. More than 3 years would incur a cost of 1636 per person. In case you want to consult an immigration lawyer in London, he or she would clarify if the job you are applying for is on the immigration salary list.