Changing Jobs on a Skilled Worker Visa

A promotion, a move to a competitor and a few hours of freelance work can all feel like the same thing: your employment has changed. The visa system does not see them that way.

One may need a new Certificate of Sponsorship and a fresh application. Another may need no immigration action at all. A third can be permitted for 20 hours a week but not 21. The difficult part is not deciding whether the new opportunity is good; it is working out which box the Home Office puts it in.

Here is the practical version.

Moving to a new employer

If you change employer, you need to apply to update your Skilled Worker visa. The new employer must hold the right sponsor licence, give you an eligible job and assign a new Certificate of Sponsorship.

The job also has to meet the rules in force when you apply. That includes the occupation’s skill level and both parts of the salary test: the applicable cash threshold and the going rate for the occupation code. A company appearing on the sponsor register proves it is licensed; it does not prove that every role it advertises can be sponsored.

You can apply up to three months before the new job’s start date. While the application is being decided, you can continue in your current sponsored job or work out your notice period, provided you applied before your existing permission expired.

What you should not do is start the new job as soon as the CoS arrives. GOV.UK says to wait until you have confirmation of the new permission.

Changing role with the same employer

An internal move is often simpler, but “same employer” does not automatically mean “no application.” The key question is whether the new job falls under a different occupation code.

If you stay with the same employer and the job remains in the same occupation code, you do not normally need to update your visa just because the title, team or day-to-day duties change. If the new role has a different occupation code, an update is required unless you are covered by the graduate training programme exception.

Job titles are not decisive here. A creative new title cannot keep a role inside its old code if the actual duties have changed. Compare the substance of the new job, then use our SOC code explainer and the official occupation tables to check where it belongs.

There is one other trigger people miss: moving from a job on the Immigration Salary List to a job that is not on it requires an update. If your existing job is simply removed from the list while you remain in that job, you do not need to apply again for that reason alone.

The extra rule for medium-skilled jobs

Since 22 July 2025, most new Skilled Worker jobs have needed to be at degree level. Some medium-skilled occupations remain available through specific lists or transitional arrangements, but a worker cannot assume an eligible-looking code is open to them.

If the new occupation is classed as medium skilled, GOV.UK says you can update your visa only if your first Tier 2 or Skilled Worker Certificate of Sponsorship was issued before 22 July 2025 and you have held Skilled Worker permission continuously since then.

That makes the date of your immigration history as important as the new job itself. Check it before signing a contract or handing in notice.

What happens to your partner and children

Your dependants do not update automatically when your permission changes. A partner or child needs to make a separate application, either at the same time as you or before their current permission expires.

That does not always mean the whole family must submit on the same day, but it does mean each expiry date needs to be managed. If the new job falls into a category with restrictions on dependants, such as some below-degree roles, get advice on the family’s eligibility before treating the move as settled.

A second job is a different calculation

Skilled Workers can do additional work, including work for their own business, for up to 20 hours a week while they continue in the job they are sponsored to do. The additional work must still qualify. It must be in an eligible higher-skilled occupation, be on the Immigration Salary List, or be in the same sector and at the same level as the main job.

Medium-skilled additional work is only available under the same pre-22 July 2025 transitional conditions described above.

If the second job is more than 20 paid hours a week, you need to update your visa so that both jobs are sponsored. That means a Certificate of Sponsorship from the second employer and an application explaining that you want permission for both roles.

The 20-hour limit also applies to self-employment. Time spent on administration, such as preparing invoices, counts towards it. Overtime in the job you are already sponsored for is different: there is no immigration limit on those overtime hours and it does not require a visa update.

Do not travel while the application is pending

This catches people because the application is made from inside the UK and life carries on around it. Once you have applied to update your permission, do not travel outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man until a decision is made. Leaving the Common Travel Area withdraws the application.

That can turn a holiday or work trip into an expensive reset, so build travel into the timetable before submitting.

A sensible order for the move

The cleanest sequence is usually:

1. Check that the new employer is licensed and willing to sponsor the vacancy.
2. Confirm the occupation code, skill level and salary rather than relying on the job title.
3. Agree a realistic start date and receive the new Certificate of Sponsorship.
4. Apply to update your visa, no more than three months before that start date.
5. Continue in the current role or serve notice while the decision is pending.
6. Avoid travel outside the Common Travel Area.
7. Start the new job only after the new permission is confirmed.

The Salary Checker can help with step two, and our guide to Certificates of Sponsorship explains what the reference means and how it is used.

The bottom line

Changing jobs on a Skilled Worker visa is possible, but the paperwork follows the type of change. A new employer requires a new CoS and an application. An internal move normally requires an application only when the occupation code changes. Additional qualifying work can fit inside a 20-hour weekly allowance; more than that needs sponsorship for both jobs.

The safest moment to check is before notice is handed in, not after. Confirm the employer, code, salary and timing, then leave enough room for the new application and any family applications that go with it.

This is general information, not immigration advice. The detailed rules and transitional provisions can change, so check the current GOV.UK pages on changing a job or employer and taking additional work before acting.