If you’ve searched for “Tier 2 visa” and landed here, there’s a good chance you’re looking for a route that technically stopped accepting new applications years ago. This guide explains exactly what happened, why the old name still circulates, and what the UK’s work visa system actually requires in 2026.
The short version
The Tier 2 (General) visa — the UK’s main sponsored work visa for over a decade — was closed to new applicants and replaced by the Skilled Worker visa on 1 December 2020, as part of the UK’s post-Brexit points-based immigration system. If you’re applying for a UK work visa today, “Tier 2” is not an option on any Home Office form — you apply for the Skilled Worker visa, full stop.
The confusion is understandable. Tier 2 ran long enough that it became shorthand for “UK sponsored work visa” in general conversation, employer HR documents, and a huge volume of older online content that never got updated. Some of that content is still ranking in search results in 2026, which sends people looking for application steps that no longer exist.
What changed when Tier 2 became Skilled Worker
- Points-based assessment. The Skilled Worker route formally scores applicants against a points threshold (70 points), combining a job offer from an approved sponsor, the role meeting the skill level, and the salary meeting the relevant threshold.
- Sponsor licences converted automatically. Employers who already held a Tier 2 sponsor licence did not have to reapply — their licences were converted to Skilled Worker (and, where relevant, Intra-Company Transfer) sponsor status when the new system launched.
- Tier 2 (Intra-Company Transfer) became its own route. The ICT category kept largely the same function but dropped the “Tier 2” label entirely, becoming simply the Intra-Company Transfer visa.
- Ongoing threshold changes since the rename. The Skilled Worker salary floor and skill requirements have been updated multiple times since 2020 — most recently with a threshold increase from July 2025 and a rise in the required English level to B2 CEFR from January 2026 — so even guidance from a year or two ago may already be out of date.
What the Skilled Worker visa actually requires in 2026
- A confirmed job offer from a UK employer holding a valid Skilled Worker sponsor licence, with a Certificate of Sponsorship issued for your specific role.
- A role at the required skill level, drawn from the Home Office’s list of eligible occupations.
- A salary meeting the relevant threshold — generally the higher of a general minimum and the specific “going rate” published for your occupation; some roles (new entrants, PhD-holders, certain shortage occupations) qualify for reduced thresholds.
- English language ability, usually proven through an approved test or your nationality/prior qualifications, at the level currently required under the Immigration Rules.
- 70 points total across the mandatory and tradeable criteria the Home Office sets out for the route.
If your documents still say “Tier 2”
If an employer, immigration adviser, or older document refers to a “Tier 2 sponsor licence” or “Tier 2 visa,” it almost always means the same underlying Skilled Worker arrangement — the legal mechanics carried over even though the label changed. It’s worth double-checking with the sponsor or adviser directly if anything is unclear, since getting the current route and requirements right matters far more than the name on the page.
Related resources
- UK Skilled Worker Visa Guide (2026)
- UK Skilled Worker Visa Cost
- UK Skilled Worker Visa B2 English Requirement (2026)
- UK Standard Visitor Visa Checklist
This article covers general immigration rules, not legal advice specific to your situation — always confirm current thresholds and eligibility against GOV.UK’s Skilled Worker guidance before applying, as the exact figures are updated periodically. If you’d like help checking your eligibility against the current rules before you ask an employer to sponsor you, join the VisaMet waitlist.
Sources: GOV.UK — Skilled Worker visa, Davidson Morris — Tier 2 Visa UK: What It Was & the Skilled Worker Replacement, Davidson Morris — Skilled Worker Visa Replaces Tier 2.