Application Guide for Dependent Visas for Skilled Workers. The UK Skilled Worker route allows qualified professionals to work in the UK if they have a job offer from a licensed UK sponsor in a suitable role. Skilled workers’ dependents may request authorisation to accompany or join them.
The most frequently asked issues concerning how skilled workers can sponsor their application to stay in the UK or bring family members are addressed in this guide.
1. Who Can Be a Skilled Worker’s Dependent?
Applicants must be the spouse or child of a skilled worker who currently has authorisation through this route or who is applying concurrently in order to be eligible as a dependent of a skilled worker.
Applicants must be either married, in a civil partnership, or an unmarried partner of the skilled worker in order to qualify as a partner. Below are some specifics on this.
Children may request to prolong their permit as a dependent if they were previously dependent on the Skilled Worker before turning 18, but they must be under 18 to apply, even if they were born in the UK. This holds true even if the skilled worker’s prior authorisation fell under a different immigration category.
2. Qualifications for a Skilled Worker’s Dependent Partners
Applicants must be legally married or in a UK-recognized civil partnership in order to fit the criteria of a partner. If an applicant has been in a marriage-like relationship for at least two years before to applying, they may also apply as unmarried partners. Although it is not required, cohabitation is typically expected for unmarried couples unless they can give valid reasons for not living together in the past.
To apply, each partner must be at least 18 years old and demonstrate that they are in a committed, long-term relationship. In order to apply, a couple must demonstrate that they plan to live together while the skilled worker is in the UK, regardless of whether they have previously lived together.
Candidates may be invited to attend an interview or provide further documentation if the sincerity of a connection is questioned. As a result, these applications must be properly prepared, especially if a couple has never lived together.
3. Qualifications for a Skilled Worker’s Dependent Children
Children must not be living independently (e.g., married or financially independent) and must be under the age of 18 at the time of their initial application (extensions for over-18s are allowed if they were already dependent on the Skilled Worker).
The second parent of the kid must apply concurrently or already have authorisation to stay in the UK in a manner different than that of a guest. This rule has certain exceptions, but navigating them can be challenging. Among the exceptions are:
- The sole parent still alive is the skilled worker; or
- The other parent resides in the UK and is either a British citizen or has Indefinite Leave to Remain;
- The child is entirely the responsibility of the skilled worker; or
- There are strong and convincing arguments in favour of giving the youngster permission.
Beyond legal custody and the other parent’s support and/or consent for the child to reside in the UK, sole responsibility is a very high bar to meet. For further details, check our post Child Visa Applications: How To Prove “Sole Responsibility.” Similarly, “serious and compelling reasons” refers to exactly that. A family’s decision to live apart is insufficient. Applications on these bases are infamously challenging and ought to be handled carefully at all times.
Additionally, applicants must demonstrate that the kid has appropriate care and housing options in the UK that adhere to all applicable laws and regulations.
4. Limitations on the Sponsorship of Skilled Worker Dependent Visas
It should be mentioned that not all skilled workers are able to sponsor their in-country applications for permission to remain in the UK or bring their family with them. Applications from dependents may only be brought or sponsored by positions mentioned in Tables 1, 2, or 3 of Appendix Skilled Occupations. Generally speaking, unless one of the following exclusions applies, only skilled workers sponsored in positions that are RQF Level 6 or higher are qualified to sponsor their dependents’ applications.
In general, care workers with the occupation codes “6145 Care workers and home carers” and “6146 Senior Care Workers” are not allowed to apply with or sponsor dependents. However, while transitional conditions apply, those who were sponsored in these roles before March 11, 2024, are allowed to come or sponsor their dependents.
Except for care workers as described above, skilled workers who are sponsored in a role listed in Tables 1a, 2aa, 2a, or 3a (or an equivalent SOC 2010 occupation code listed in any of those tables) may only bring or sponsor their dependents’ applications if they were sponsored in these roles prior to July 22, 2025. Additionally, since their first grant in this category previous to this date, they must have consistently maintained authorisation, sponsored in one of these jobs.
5. Financial Needs for Dependents of Skilled Workers
Candidates must demonstrate that they can sustain themselves in the UK financially. Applicants must demonstrate that they have the necessary funds, unless they have already lived in the UK for a full year or longer.
Applicants must demonstrate that they have retained at least the following sums for a minimum of 28 days, ending no later than 31 days before the application date, in order to satisfy the financial criterion.
- £285 for a partner who is dependant; and
- £315 for the first kid who is dependant; and
- £200 for each additional dependant child.
It should be mentioned that these sums are in addition to the £1,270 needed for skilled workers.
The money must be kept in one or more bank accounts that belong to the dependent applicant or the skilled worker. As an alternative, this criteria may be satisfied if the sponsor of the skilled worker attests to their ability to support and accommodate the dependents for the duration of their first month of authorisation.
6. Extra Conditions for Students Who Switch
Dependents who have previously been granted permission as students and are requesting permission to remain as skilled worker dependents must fulfil extra conditions. Applications for entry clearance are exempt from this requirement.
Candidates must have either finished the course of study for which their Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies was issued, or they must have finished at least 24 months of study in this program if they were enrolled full-time in a PhD program at a university with a history of compliance. Those seeking authorisation as skilled workers are likewise subject to this regulation.
7. Certificate of Criminal History for Dependent Partners
Dependent partners must present a criminal record certificate from any nation where the skilled worker has been present since the age of 18 for 12 months or more (whether continuously or overall) in the ten years prior to the application if the skilled worker is sponsored for a job specified in paragraph SW 16.1 of Appendix Skilled Worker. This is only exempt if the dependent partner can provide a convincing justification for why they are unable to get a criminal record certificate from the nation.
Medical professionals, chemists, dentists, nurses, social workers, teachers, fitness instructors, and human resources officers are just a few of the many occupations included in paragraph SW16.1. Related roles are also covered by these occupation codes; a more thorough explanation may be found in the list of qualifying occupations and codes.
8. Can Dependents of Skilled Workers Apply from Within the United Kingdom?
Depending on whether they are a visitor, short-term student, parent of a child student, seasonal worker, domestic worker in a private household, or outside the immigration rules, dependents may apply from within the United Kingdom. Candidates may be allowed to apply for entry clearance instead if they have authorisation in any of these categories.
9. 2025 Application Fees for Dependents of Skilled Workers
Permission is granted in accordance with the Skilled Worker’s Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), which implies that the length of the sponsorship, as specified on the CoS, determines the application fees.
If the CoS is issued for less than three years, applications from outside the UK cost £769 per applicant; if the CoS is issued for more than three years, the fee is £1,519 per applicant.
If the CoS is issued for less than three years, applications within the UK cost £885 per applicant; if the CoS is issued for more than three years, the cost per applicant is £1,751.
The fees are somewhat reduced, at £590 for authorisation up to three years and £1,160 for permission over three years, if the skilled worker’s position is on the Immigration Salary List.
Additionally, applicants will be required to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge. This will give them access to the NHS while they are in the UK and typically costs £776 for children and £1,035 for adults annually.
10. Skilled Worker Dependent Application Processing Times
According to the www.gov.uk website, applications from outside the UK typically receive a decision within three weeks of submitting biometric data, while those from within the UK may take up to eight weeks.
11. Skilled Workers’ Dependents’ Eligibility for Settlement
Skilled workers’ dependents may apply for settlement concurrently with or after the skilled worker. Using this method, applicants must demonstrate that they have lived in the UK continuously for five years.
The English Language and Life in the UK qualifications must also be fulfilled by dependents who are between the ages of 18 and 65. For additional details on settling as a skilled worker dependent, see our article settling as a Skilled Worker/Tier 2 Dependent.