If you’ve seen the term “Shortage Occupation List” in older articles about UK work visas, that list no longer exists. It was replaced in April 2024 by the Immigration Salary List (ISL) — and the mechanics changed along with the name. This guide covers what the ISL actually does in 2026, which jobs are on it, how it fits with the general Skilled Worker salary rules, and the Migration Advisory Committee review that is reshaping the whole shortage-occupation system for 2027 onward.
What the Immigration Salary List is
The ISL is the Home Office’s current list of Skilled Worker and Health and Care Worker occupations that qualify for a reduced general salary threshold. It’s published and maintained on GOV.UK as “Skilled Worker visa: immigration salary list”, broken down by occupation code and, for a handful of roles, by UK nation (some entries apply UK-wide, a few are Scotland-specific).
How the ISL differs from the old Shortage Occupation List
This is the part most guides written before mid-2024 get wrong, because the mechanism changed, not just the name:
- Old Shortage Occupation List (pre-April 2024): gave shortage roles a 20% general salary discount off the standard threshold, plus a lower application fee.
- Current Immigration Salary List: does not apply a percentage discount. Instead, ISL roles get a lower fixed general salary threshold — currently £33,400 a year, versus the standard £41,700 general floor confirmed on GOV.UK’s Skilled Worker visa: your job page. The discounted application fee that came with the old shortage list was also dropped.
Crucially, being on the ISL only lowers the general threshold — it does not touch the second half of the test.
The going rate still applies in full
Every Skilled Worker applicant, ISL or not, must clear whichever is higher of the general threshold and the occupation-specific “going rate” published in the Home Office’s going rates tables. For an ISL role, that means:
- You need at least £33,400 (the reduced ISL general floor), and
- You still need 100% of the going rate for your specific SOC occupation code.
If the going rate for your occupation is £38,000, that £38,000 governs — the ISL’s £33,400 doesn’t override it. The ISL discount only helps when the going rate for that occupation happens to sit between £33,400 and £41,700; for many listed roles the going rate itself is the binding number. This is the single most common misunderstanding we see: employers assume “on the ISL” automatically means “pay £33,400,” which is only true if the going rate is at or below that figure.
For the full general-threshold mechanics (new entrant rates, PhD reductions, compliant pay periods), see our UK Skilled Worker visa guide.
Which occupations are currently on the list
As of 2026, the ISL covers around 21 occupations (18 UK-wide, 3 Scotland-specific), concentrated in:
- Health and social care — including care workers and senior care workers (SOC 6135/6136).
- Construction trades.
- Fishing and agriculture.
- Laboratory, pharmaceutical, and scientific technician roles.
- Creative occupations — including certain artist, dancer, musician, and arts director roles.
The exact SOC codes and their specific salary figures change between updates (GOV.UK logged a revision to row 6131 as recently as November 2025), so treat any list you read — including this one — as a summary, not a substitute for the live GOV.UK table before you rely on it for a filing.
Expiry dates you need to know
This is where the ISL gets genuinely time-limited, not a permanent feature of the route:
- Most current ISL entries are due to lapse by 31 December 2026 unless the government extends them.
- Care workers and senior care workers (SOC 6135/6136) are the exception, with their ISL eligibility extended out to 22 July 2028.
If you’re planning a sponsorship for early-to-mid 2027, do not assume today’s ISL entry for your occupation will still exist — check GOV.UK again close to your filing date.
How this interacts with the 2025 skilled-worker overhaul
The ISL doesn’t operate alone. From 22 July 2025, the Skilled Worker route’s baseline skill level rose to RQF level 6 (graduate level). A role now generally needs to clear that graduate skill bar unless it appears on the ISL or on a separate, newer list: the Temporary Shortage List (TSL), introduced the same date to give time-limited access to medium-skilled roles (RQF 3–5) tied to the UK’s Industrial Strategy. The ISL and TSL are distinct lists serving different purposes — ISL is about a salary discount for graduate-level shortage roles, TSL is about letting sub-graduate roles onto the route at all — but both currently sunset around the end of 2026, and both are under active review.
The 2025-2026 Migration Advisory Committee review
The independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has been reviewing both lists as the government moves toward a more permanent post-2026 framework:
- MAC’s TSL Stage 2 report, published in July 2026 after assessing “Jobs Plans” for 46 occupations, recommended that 28 occupations receive provisional TSL access for 18 months, from January 2027 to the end of June 2028 — see the Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report on GOV.UK.
- These recommendations have no legal effect yet. The government must decide which proposals to accept and change the Immigration Rules before any revised list takes effect.
- MAC has separately been commissioned to review the ISL itself, following the original “MAC commissioned to rapid review new immigration salary list” instruction from the Home Secretary.
Practically: expect another statement of changes to the Immigration Rules in late 2026 covering both lists, likely reshaping which occupations qualify from January 2027 onward.
FAQ
Is the Shortage Occupation List still a thing? No. It was fully replaced by the Immigration Salary List in April 2024. If you’re reading advice that mentions a flat 20% salary discount for shortage roles, it’s describing the old system and is out of date.
Does being on the ISL reduce the visa or health surcharge fees? No — unlike the old shortage list, the ISL carries no discounted application fee. See our Skilled Worker visa cost breakdown for current fee figures.
How do I check if my specific occupation is on the ISL right now? Use the live table on GOV.UK’s Immigration Salary List publication — search by your SOC occupation code, not just the job title, since titles can map to more than one code.
My employer says my role is on the ISL — does that mean I don’t need to check the going rate? No. Always ask your sponsor’s HR team which figure they’ve used — the ISL floor or the going rate — and confirm it’s the higher of the two, matching the register of licensed sponsors entry for your employer while you’re at it.
This is preparation guidance, not legal advice. The ISL, the TSL, and the underlying salary thresholds are under active government review and have changed twice since 2024 — always confirm the current list, going rates, and expiry dates directly on GOV.UK before you or your employer commit to a Certificate of Sponsorship. Join the VisaMet waitlist for alerts when salary thresholds or shortage-list occupations change for your route.
Sources: GOV.UK — Skilled Worker visa: immigration salary list, GOV.UK — Skilled Worker visa: your job, GOV.UK — Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report, GOV.UK — MAC commissioned to rapid review new immigration salary list.