Two lists that shape Skilled Worker sponsorship in the United Kingdom both end for new certificates on 31 December 2026: the Immigration Salary List and the Temporary Shortage List. The practical deadline falls a day earlier, because a certificate must be issued before 31 December to rely on either list, making 30 December 2026 the last issuing day.

The two lists do different jobs. The Immigration Salary List lowers the general salary threshold to £33,400, against the standard £41,700, but the full going rate for the occupation must still be paid. The Temporary Shortage List keeps selected medium-skilled jobs sponsorable after the skill threshold rose to degree level in July 2025, but it gives no salary discount. Degree-level jobs stay eligible but lose the £33,400 threshold; below-degree listed jobs stop being eligible for new certificates without transitional protection.

Current permission is not cut short, but extensions are affected

Workers already in the UK do not lose current permission on 31 December. The change bites at the next application: an extension or employer change needs a new certificate, which cannot make a below-degree listed job eligible without transitional protection. Care workers and senior care workers, occupation codes 6135 and 6136, are the exception, with entries running to 22 July 2028.

The Migration Advisory Committee has recommended a shorter future Temporary Shortage List of 28 jobs, down from around 52, but that is not yet law. This is general information, not personal immigration advice: check the official GOV.UK page for your route before acting, and take regulated advice where your case is complex, because immigration rules change.