The United Kingdom still has a real, official pathway for mid-skilled foreign workers to get sponsored — but the clock is ticking. The UK’s Temporary Shortage List (TSL) currently names around 70 occupations where employers can sponsor workers from abroad, including Pakistan, India, Nigeria, Bangladesh and the Philippines. But new sponsorships under the list must be issued before 31 December 2026, so if you are serious about the UK, the next two months matter more than any other time this year.
Here is what the list actually is, who it helps, and the practical steps to use it before the deadline.
What Is the Temporary Shortage List?
In April 2024, the UK abolished its old Shortage Occupation List. In July 2025, the government went further and raised the minimum skill level for the Skilled Worker visa to degree level (RQF Level 6), cutting off more than 100 previously eligible medium-skilled occupations overnight.
The Temporary Shortage List is the bridge. It keeps a defined set of RQF Level 3 to 5 (medium-skilled) roles eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route, even though they sit below the new degree-level threshold. As confirmed in the official GOV.UK guidance, a medium-skilled occupation code can qualify for a Skilled Worker visa if the job appears on the immigration salary list or the temporary shortage list.
Two things to understand about it. First, it is explicitly temporary — the current entries are interim and scheduled to expire on 31 December 2026. Second, roles on the list carry a lower salary floor of £25,000 (based on a 37.5-hour working week), but they come with tighter conditions than the standard route.
Which Roles Are on the List?
The list spans more than 70 job roles across construction, engineering, finance, information technology, logistics, and the creative arts. Examples include:
- Managers in logistics and directors in consultancy services
- Laboratory technicians, electrical and engineering technicians
- IT operations and user-support technicians, database administrators
- Data analysts, business systems analysts, contract administrators
- Financial and accounting technicians, insurance underwriters, legal associate professionals
- Authors, writers and translators; dancers, photographers and set designers
- Industrial, packaging, fashion and clothing designers
- Clinical coders, clinical trials administrators and research coordinators
One important exception: care worker roles under occupation codes 6135 and 6136 have transitional rules running to 22 July 2028. Note that the care worker route closed to new overseas applicants in July 2025 — these extensions cover people already in the system.
The full list changes only by government decision, and the Migration Advisory Committee’s recommendations on what survives from January 2027 are still under government review. Nothing in the 2027 framework is confirmed yet.
The Deadline That Matters: 31 December 2026
This is the single most important fact in this article. The current Temporary Shortage List entries expire on 31 December 2026. Multiple immigration law firms tracking the official rules confirm that new Certificates of Sponsorship for these roles cannot be issued under the current framework after that date.
Practically, that means:
- Your sponsor must issue your Certificate of Sponsorship before 31 December 2026. The certificate is an electronic record (not a physical document) with a reference number you need for your visa application.
- You must apply for your visa within 3 months of getting your Certificate of Sponsorship.
- If you are already in the UK on a TSL-sponsored role, extensions are handled under the rules in force — you do not automatically lose the right to extend — but watch government announcements closely.
Do not build a long-term plan around a list with a published expiry date. The government is expected to move to a new framework in 2027, but what that looks like has not been announced.
What You Need to Qualify
The list does not make the Skilled Worker visa easy — it makes specific jobs possible. You still must meet the standard requirements:
- A confirmed job offer from a Home Office-approved sponsor. You cannot apply without one. The register of licensed sponsors is published on GOV.UK — if an employer is not on it, they cannot sponsor you, no matter what they promise.
- A Certificate of Sponsorship from your employer with your occupation code, salary and working hours recorded.
- Salary that meets the rules. The standard Skilled Worker minimum is £41,700 per year or the occupation’s published “going rate” — whichever is higher. On TSL roles, the floor can be £25,000 for medium-skilled listed roles, but the specific going rate for your occupation code still applies.
- English language. Since 8 January 2026, first-time Skilled Worker applicants must prove B2-level English (previously B1). Accepted tests include IELTS, PTE Academic and LanguageCert.
- Maintenance funds. You must show at least £1,270 in your bank account, held for 28 consecutive days before applying — or your employer can certify your maintenance on the Certificate of Sponsorship.
The Catches Nobody Tells You About
- No dependants. Workers sponsored in Temporary Shortage List roles at RQF Levels 3–5 generally cannot bring dependant family members to the UK. This is one of the biggest practical trade-offs of the list.
- No salary discount. Unlike the Immigration Salary List (which cuts the general threshold to £33,400 for degree-level roles), TSL roles get no such discount — the list only restores eligibility, not cheaper terms.
- Scam risk. Real sponsorship never requires you to pay an agent for a Certificate of Sponsorship. Apply through licensed sponsors only.
How to Check If Your Occupation Qualifies — Step by Step
- Find your 4-digit occupation (SOC) code. Use the CASCOT occupation coding tool linked from the GOV.UK Skilled Worker visa pages, and make sure the job description matches your actual duties — similar job titles can have different codes.
- Check the live Temporary Shortage List table referenced in the Skilled Worker guidance on GOV.UK. Confirm your code is on it before you rely on it.
- Check the going rate for your occupation code in the going-rates table. Your offer must meet whichever is higher: the route minimum or the going rate.
- Target employers with a sponsor licence. Search the GOV.UK register of licensed sponsors before you apply anywhere.
- Move fast. With the 31 December 2026 cutoff, job search, offer and CoS issuance must all fit inside a shrinking window.
Always verify the current list and rules on GOV.UK before you act — the links in the sources section below are the official pages to use.
The Bottom Line
The Temporary Shortage List is one of the last accessible UK work-visa doors for medium-skilled workers. It is real, official, and it closes to new sponsorships on 31 December 2026. If your occupation is on it, act now: find your SOC code, check the going rate, target licensed sponsors, and get your application moving.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Immigration rules change; always confirm requirements on GOV.UK before applying.
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