Since 22 July 2025, the UK has effectively closed the Skilled Worker visa route to medium-skilled workers — those in jobs classified at RQF Level 3 to 5, below degree level. The only exception is the Temporary Shortage List (TSL), a newly introduced instrument that preserves sponsorship access for selected occupations where the UK faces genuine, documented labor shortages that cannot be resolved through domestic recruitment.
If you work in a trade, a technical role, or a healthcare support position and want to know whether the UK still has a visa path open for you, this guide covers the TSL in full.
What Is the Temporary Shortage List?
The TSL was introduced as part of the Immigration White Paper reforms of July 2025. It replaced the old Shortage Occupation List for medium-skilled roles and coexists with the Immigration Salary List, which covers graduate-level occupations. The TSL is a standalone list of occupations at RQF Level 3–5 for which Skilled Worker visa sponsorship remains permitted on a time-limited basis.
The list is due to expire on 31 December 2026. The MAC’s Stage 2 report, expected in July 2026, will determine which roles continue beyond that date under a permanent or revised framework. The government reserves the right to shorten the list’s duration in response to economic or policy changes before that deadline.
Unlike the Immigration Salary List, the TSL does not offer any salary discounts. Workers sponsored under TSL-listed roles must be paid the full going rate for their SOC 2020 code. The TSL’s benefit is access to sponsorship, not a reduced salary threshold.
Which Sectors Appear on the Temporary Shortage List?
The TSL draws from sectors where evidence of persistent medium-skill shortages has been established through the MAC’s Stage 1 review, published in October 2025. That review identified 82 RQF Level 3–5 occupations for further evidence gathering. From that pool, roles with the strongest case for shortage status have been provisionally included on the TSL.
STEM and Technical Fields: Engineering technicians, IT support roles, data technicians, and cybersecurity support positions feature prominently. The UK’s tech and infrastructure sectors have consistently demonstrated shortfalls in medium-skilled technical talent, with domestic training not keeping pace.
Construction Trades: Bricklayers, carpenters, plumbers, and electricians appear on the TSL. These are among the roles most acutely affected by the withdrawal of EU freedom of movement, and construction industry bodies have lobbied extensively for their inclusion on shortage lists.
Healthcare Support: Nursing auxiliaries and care support workers, excluding the general overseas care worker route, which closed in July 2025, retain limited access through TSL provisions in specific circumstances, particularly for workers already in the UK on valid Skilled Worker visas who are extending their visas or changing employers.
Creative and Design Roles: Some creative and design-adjacent occupations at the RQF 3–5 level are included, reflecting labor gaps in the UK’s animation, architecture support, and design technology industries.
Restrictions That Apply to TSL-Sponsored Workers
The TSL comes with meaningful restrictions that differentiate it sharply from graduate-level sponsorship routes.
Workers sponsored through TSL-listed roles cannot bring new dependants to the UK. The right to bring family members — spouses, partners, and children — is reserved for those sponsored in RQF Level 6 roles. Existing dependants who were already in the UK before 22 July 2025 may remain, but new family members cannot join under TSL sponsorship.
TSL roles are also subject to time-limited inclusion, meaning a role that is on the TSL today may not be on it when a worker’s visa comes up for renewal. This creates a degree of uncertainty for both workers and employers that does not exist under standard Skilled Worker sponsorship.
The government has also signaled that TSL occupations will require sector-level Jobs Plans, demonstrating what employers and industry bodies are doing to reduce reliance on overseas recruitment over time. Failure to demonstrate progress in domestic training could result in a role being removed from the TSL ahead of the December 2026 deadline.
How the TSL Differs from the Immigration Salary List
The two lists target different skill levels and serve different purposes. The ISL is for RQF Level 6+ roles and reduces the salary threshold. The TSL is for RQF Level 3–5 roles and restores sponsorship access without reducing the salary required.
If your role is at a graduate level and on the ISL, you benefit from a lower salary floor and full family rights. If your role is at a medium skill level and on the TSL, you can be sponsored at all, but must pay the full going rate and cannot bring new dependants. These are fundamentally different propositions, and confusing the two is a common compliance error.
Steps for Employers Using the Temporary Shortage List
Before assigning a Certificate of Sponsorship for a TSL-listed role, employers should check that the role’s SOC 2020 code appears on the live TSL published on GOV.UK, confirm that the salary meets or exceeds 100% of the occupation-specific going rate, verify that the worker understands the dependent restriction before accepting the role, and retain records showing the compliance decision and the SOC code assignment rationale.
Home Office compliance visits are increasing in frequency in 2026, particularly for TSL sponsorships. The combination of a newer, less understood framework and higher stakes for errors makes professional immigration advice strongly advisable for employers issuing their first TSL Certificates of Sponsorship.
Planning for Post-December 2026
Given the TSL’s expiry date, employers should avoid building long-term workforce strategies around TSL-listed roles alone. Begin engaging with the MAC’s consultation process where possible, monitor the Stage 2 report outcome in July 2026, and prepare fallback recruitment strategies for roles that may not be renewed.
Workers on TSL-sponsored visas should take note that their route to settlement may differ from that of Skilled Worker visa holders in graduate-level roles. Always verify the current rules with an authorized immigration adviser before making long-term plans based on TSL status.
Leave a Comment