Skilled Worker salary compliance runs on two numbers at once: a flat threshold — £41,700 for most applicants in 2026 — and your occupation code's going rate, with the higher one winning. Discounts exist for new entrants, PhD holders and listed occupations, and a protected lower framework still covers workers sponsored before April 2024. This guide sets out every option with the current published rates and worked calculations.
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Two Numbers, and the Higher One Wins
Every Skilled Worker salary question resolves the same way: find the flat threshold that applies to you, find your occupation code's going rate, and pay whichever is higher. Refusals in this area are rarely about employers underpaying deliberately — they come from picking the wrong occupation code, applying a discount the worker does not qualify for, or missing that the flat floor still bites when a going-rate percentage falls below it.
Most applicants need £41,700 a year or the going rate for their SOC code, whichever is higher. New entrants and STEM PhDs qualify from £33,400 with discounted going rates, relevant PhDs from £37,500, Immigration Salary List roles from £33,400 at the full going rate — and workers sponsored since before 4 April 2024 keep a protected £31,300 framework until 2030.
Current Thresholds
2026 Salary Threshold Framework
| Option | Annual floor | Going-rate requirement | Who can use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | £41,700 | 100% | All applicants |
| Relevant PhD | £37,500 | 90% | PhD relevant to the job |
| STEM PhD | £33,400 | 80% | Science, technology, engineering or maths PhD relevant to the job |
| Immigration Salary List | £33,400 | 100% | Jobs on the current list |
| New entrant | £33,400 | 70% | Under-26s, recent graduates, professional trainees — 4 years maximum |
| Pre-April 2024 cohort | £31,300 | Lower going rate | First CoS before 4 April 2024, held Skilled Worker leave since |
The reduced-rate rules on gov.uk pair each percentage with its floor, and the floors are absolute: 70% of a modest going rate that lands below £33,400 means £33,400 anyway. The published rates carry hourly equivalents on the standard working pattern — £33,400 corresponds to £17.13 an hour — but the requirement is assessed annually.
Going Rates and Occupation Codes
How Going Rates Work in Practice
Each four-digit SOC code carries a going rate in the official going-rates publication, updated 22 July 2025 and expressed on a 37.5-hour week. The code, not the job title, controls the rate — and titles mislead: code 3541 covers estimators and valuers, 2423 covers taxation experts. Where a code is genuinely unclear, the Warwick CASCOT classification tool gives a defensible starting point before the sponsor commits the code to a certificate.
Tradeable Points Options
Options Side by Side
| Option | What must be proved | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | Nothing beyond the role and salary | None |
| PhD options | The doctorate is genuinely relevant to the job — assessed, not asserted | None |
| Immigration Salary List | The occupation code appears on the current list | Survives only while the role stays listed |
| New entrant | A qualifying category at the application date | 4 years combined, including Graduate visa time |
| Pre-April 2024 cohort | Continuous Skilled Worker leave since before 4 April 2024 | Applications before 4 April 2030 |
New Entrant Salary Requirements
Who Counts as a New Entrant
Under 26 on the application date; a current or recent Student visa holder who completed a bachelor's degree or higher; a current or recent Graduate visa holder; someone working towards a UK regulated profession or chartered status; or a listed postdoctoral researcher. The status is a runway, not a home: time as a new entrant and on the Graduate route combine towards the four-year cap, after which the full rate is due.
A New Entrant Calculation
Take a software developer under code 2134, going rate £54,700. The new entrant requirement is 70% — £38,290 — which exceeds the £33,400 floor, so £38,290 is the minimum. Run the same numbers for an estimator under 3541 (going rate £35,300) and 70% gives £24,710, below the floor — so £33,400 applies. The two examples are the whole method: percentage first, floor second, higher number wins.
Worked Examples by Occupation
Industry Salary Calculation Examples
| Occupation (SOC code) | Going rate | Standard minimum | New entrant minimum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Programmers and software development professionals (2134) | £54,700 | £54,700 | £38,290 |
| Civil engineers (2121) | £50,400 | £50,400 | £35,280 |
| Taxation experts (2423) | £48,500 | £48,500 | £33,950 |
| Estimators, valuers and assessors (3541) | £35,300 | £41,700 | £33,400 |
The last row shows the threshold biting from the other side: 3541's going rate sits below the £41,700 general threshold, so a standard applicant needs £41,700 even though the going rate is met at £35,300. Nurses and some other health and education roles work differently again — their requirements track national pay scales rather than the going-rates table.
Pro-Rating for Non-Standard Hours
Going rates assume a 37.5-hour week, and scale with the contracted hours: a civil engineer contracted to 45 hours needs £50,400 ÷ 37.5 × 45 = £60,480 on the going-rate leg. The flat floors never scale down — part-time arrangements can pass the pro-rated going rate and still fail the annual threshold. Sponsors setting non-standard hours should run both legs of the calculation before assigning the certificate, not after the refusal.
Immigration Salary List Thresholds
What the List Changes
An occupation on the Immigration Salary List drops the flat threshold to £33,400 — but the full going rate still applies, and a discounted visa application fee follows. What the list no longer does is discount the going rate itself, the feature that defined its Shortage Occupation List predecessor. Which roles are listed, and the separate Temporary Shortage List for mid-skill roles, are covered in our Immigration Salary List guide.
Transitional Protection for the Pre-2024 Cohort
Extension and Settlement Salary Rules
Workers whose first certificate was assigned before 4 April 2024, and who have held Skilled Worker leave continuously since, extend against £31,300 or their occupation's lower going rate — a protected framework running until 4 April 2030. Everyone sponsored after that date meets the current thresholds at every extension; there is no grandfathering of the rates that applied when they arrived. Settlement carries its own salary test at the full rate, covered in our settlement requirements guide — and where a shortfall threatens a refusal, our refusal team would rather see the file before submission than after. Our business immigration team runs these calculations for sponsors daily.
Frequently askedQuestions about Skilled Worker salary thresholds
What is the minimum salary in 2026?
£41,700 a year or your occupation code's going rate, whichever is higher. Discounted floors apply for new entrants (£33,400 at 70% of the going rate), STEM PhDs (£33,400 at 80%), relevant PhDs (£37,500 at 90%) and Immigration Salary List roles (£33,400 with the full going rate).
Where do I find my job's going rate?
In the going-rates publication on gov.uk, against your four-digit SOC code — the rates were last updated on 22 July 2025 and assume a 37.5-hour week. Check the code matches your actual duties, not your job title; misclassification is the commonest cause of salary refusals.
How does the new entrant discount work?
Qualifying applicants pay 70% of the going rate with a £33,400 floor, for at most four years combined across new entrant and Graduate visa time. Under-26s, recent graduates and those training towards regulated professions qualify; after the four years, the full rate is due.
How are part-time salaries assessed?
The going rate pro-rates with contracted hours from its 37.5-hour baseline, but the flat annual floors do not reduce — a part-time role must still clear the applicable threshold in absolute terms. Both legs of the test are checked, and the higher requirement wins.
What if I have been on the route since before April 2024?
You extend against the transitional framework: £31,300 or your occupation's lower going rate, provided you have held Skilled Worker leave continuously since before 4 April 2024. The protection runs for applications made before 4 April 2030.
What counts towards the salary?
Guaranteed basic gross pay for the sponsored role. Allowances, equity, discretionary bonuses and overtime generally do not count, which catches offers structured around variable pay — the certificate should state a qualifying guaranteed salary on its own.
Tell us the occupation code, the annual salary, the contracted hours and whether the worker qualifies as a new entrant. We'll run both legs of the calculation and tell you exactly what the certificate must state.
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