Immigration Shift: RQF Level 6 Requirements Remove 100+ Occupations from Skilled Worker Visas
The landscape of UK immigration for skilled workers has changed significantly. For a Certificate of Sponsorship assigned on or after 22 July 2025, the minimum skill level for a Skilled Worker job is RQF Level 6 (degree level), up from RQF Level 3 (equivalent to A-levels).
This policy update has profound implications for businesses and individuals seeking to work in the UK. The Home Office put the reduction at around 180 occupations. Some of them can still be sponsored for a limited time through the Temporary Shortage List or the Immigration Salary List. The occupations listed below have no such route for a new worker.
Four exceptions remain for jobs below degree level. A job on the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List can be sponsored where the Certificate of Sponsorship is issued before 31 December 2026 (22 July 2028 for care workers and senior care workers). A worker granted Skilled Worker permission before 22 July 2025, with continuous permission since, can still be sponsored in any of the occupations below, including by a new employer. Prison service officers have a separate in-country provision.
Here is a detailed breakdown of the occupations that are no longer eligible for the Skilled Worker Visa under the new RQF Level 6 requirements.
Occupations Affected by the RQF Level 6 Threshold
The following sectors and job roles, which typically fall below the new RQF Level 6 standard, are impacted:
Emergency Services
- Ambulance staff (excluding paramedics)
- Police officers (sergeant and below)
- Police community support officers
- Fire service officers (watch manager and below)
- Prison service officers (below principal officer), except on an application from inside the UK under the in-country provision
- Protective service associate professionals not elsewhere classified
- Public services associate professionals
Healthcare and Sciences
- Dental nurses
- Medical and dental technicians
- Health associate professionals not elsewhere classified
- Science, engineering and production technicians not elsewhere classified
- Dispensing opticians
- Veterinary nurses
- Health care practice managers
- Chemical and related process operatives
- Water and sewerage plant operatives
- Routine inspectors and testers
- Marine and waterways transport operatives
Education, Childcare, Housing, and Well-being
- Teaching assistants
- Higher level teaching assistants
- Educational support assistants
- Youth and community workers
- Child and early years officers
- Early education and childcare services managers
- Early education and childcare services proprietors
- Early education and childcare practitioners
- Early education and childcare assistants
- Playworkers
- Childminders
- Housing officers
- Counsellors
- Welfare and housing associate professionals not elsewhere classified
- Careers advisers and vocational guidance specialists, other vocational and industrial trainers
- Fitness and well-being instructors
- Inspectors of standards and regulations
- Health and safety managers and officers
- Houseparents and residential wardens
- Driving instructors
Hospitality, Leisure, Travel, and Retail
- Managers and directors in retail and wholesale
- Managers and proprietors in agriculture and horticulture
- Hotel and accommodation managers and proprietors
- Restaurant and catering establishment managers and proprietors
- Publicans and managers of licensed premises
- Leisure and sports managers and proprietors
- Travel agency managers and proprietors
- Hairdressing and beauty salon managers and proprietors
- Betting shop and gambling establishment managers
- Air travel assistants
- Rail travel assistants
Food Sector
- Butchers
- Bakers and flour confectioners
- Fishmongers and poultry dressers
- Chefs
Catering and bar managers
The Arts and Creative Trades
- Actors, entertainers, and presenters
- Interior designers
- Upholsterers
- Footwear and leather working trades
- Tailors and dressmakers
- Textiles, garments and related trades not elsewhere classified
- Pre-press technicians
- Printers
- Print finishing and binding workers
- Glass and ceramics makers, decorators and finishers
- Furniture makers and other craft woodworkers
- Florists
- Other skilled trades not elsewhere classified
Administration
- National government administrative occupations
- Local government administrative occupations
- Officers of non-governmental organisations
- Finance officers
- Transport and distribution clerks and assistants
- Office managers
- Customer service managers
- Sales administrators
- Other administrative occupations not elsewhere classified
- Company secretaries and administrators
- Personal assistants and other secretaries
Farmers and Gardeners
- Farmers
- Horticultural trades
- Gardeners and landscape gardeners
- Groundsmen and greenkeepers
Business and Events
- Importers and exporters
- Project support officers
- Buyers and procurement officers
- Merchandisers
- Estate agents and auctioneers
- Events managers and organisers
- Market and street traders and assistants
- Shopkeepers and owners – retail and wholesale
- Sales supervisors – retail and wholesale
- Market research interviewers
- Customer service supervisors
- Elementary sales occupations not elsewhere classified
Construction, Technology, and Metal Workers
- Sheet metal workers
- Metal plate workers, smiths, moulders, and related occupations
- Metal machining setters and setter-operators
- Tool-makers, tool-fitters, and markers-out
- Precision instrument makers and repairers
- Aircraft maintenance and related trades
- Rail and rolling stock builders and repairers
- TV, video, and audio servicers and repairers
- Electrical service and maintenance mechanics and repairers
- Skilled metal, electrical and electronic trades supervisors
- Glaziers, window fabricators and fitters
- Plasterers
Other Industries
- Managers in storage and warehousing
- Property, housing, and estate managers
- Garage managers and proprietors
- Hire services managers and proprietors
- Managers and proprietors in other services not elsewhere classified
Navigating the new requirements
The implementation of the RQF Level 6 requirement fundamentally alters the visa application process for many professions. Employers must now verify that job roles meet this higher skill standard, alongside the increased salary thresholds. Our guide to Skilled Worker eligibility and salary explains how to check which table your occupation code sits in and which salary option applies.
For individuals and businesses relying on these previously eligible occupations, understanding the new rules is crucial. While some sectors face immediate challenges in sourcing talent, the government's focus is clearly shifting towards attracting highly qualified professionals.
Stay informed on these latest immigration rule changes by contacting Work Permit Cloud for expert guidance on the evolving Skilled Worker Visa landscape.
