111 Occupations Lost Standard Skilled Worker Eligibility: What Changed

The government described its July 2025 Skilled Worker changes as “removing 111 eligible occupations”. That is a useful headline, but it is not a safe test for an individual application.

From 22 July 2025, a Skilled Worker job must normally be skilled to RQF level 6 or above. Some jobs below that level can still qualify through the Immigration Salary List, the Temporary Shortage List, or a transitional rule for someone who was already on the Skilled Worker route before the change. So the practical question is not simply “was my occupation removed?” It is which eligibility provision applies to this job and this applicant now?

What changed on 22 July 2025

The standard skill threshold moved from RQF levels 3 to 5 up to RQF level 6. The Home Office announcement used the figure of 111 occupations removed from eligibility.

That did not turn the number 111 into a permanent blacklist. The current Appendix Skilled Worker provides several ways for an occupation to meet the skill-level requirement:

• the RQF 6+ occupation tables in Appendix Skilled Occupations;
• the Immigration Salary List;
• the Temporary Shortage List; or
• specified transitional tables where the applicant was granted Skilled Worker permission under the rules in force before 22 July 2025 and has held continuous Skilled Worker permission since then.

Those routes have different conditions. For example, the Temporary Shortage List is currently time-limited: SW 6.1A requires the application to use a Certificate of Sponsorship issued before 31 December 2026. List entries and deadlines can be amended, so re-check the live Rules rather than relying on an old summary.

A job title is not an occupation code

Eligibility is determined using a SOC 2020 occupation code and, in some cases, the specific job types allowed within that code. An advert’s title is not conclusive. The sponsor must choose the code that genuinely matches the duties, and the Rules prohibit choosing a less appropriate code simply because it is eligible or has a lower going rate.

That means looking for a “close enough” eligible code is not a workaround. Compare the real duties with the occupation descriptions and ask the employer which code it intends to use.

How to check a role properly

Before treating a role as sponsorable:

1. Identify the likely SOC 2020 code from the duties, not just the title.
2. Check that code in the live Appendix Skilled Occupations.
3. If it is not in the standard eligible tables, check the current Immigration Salary List and Temporary Shortage List provisions in Appendix Skilled Worker.
4. Check any applicant-specific transitional rule separately. A rule available to an existing Skilled Worker may not be available to a first-time applicant.
5. Check the salary rules and any occupation-specific conditions. Skill-level eligibility alone is not enough.

Our walkthrough covers the practical code-checking process:

How to check if your job is still eligible for sponsorship →

You should also verify that the employer is licensed. VisaAtlas tracks the official Home Office register of 127,003+ licensed sponsor companies, but being on the register does not mean that every job the employer offers is eligible.

Sources and verification

• Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Worker — current eligibility routes, the Temporary Shortage List and transitional provisions.
• Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations — live SOC 2020 tables and going rates.
• Sponsor a Skilled Worker: Home Office sponsor guidance — how sponsors must assess skill level and occupation codes.
• Home Office announcement of the July 2025 reforms — source for the “111 occupations” figure.

Verified against the official sources above on 3 August 2026. Immigration Rules change; check the live rule text for your application date and obtain regulated immigration advice on your circumstances.