Biological scientist in the UK: your Skilled Worker visa, step by step

What you must be paid

The Skilled Worker salary rule has two parts. Part one is the threshold that applies to you: £41,700 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025) in general, or £33,400 if the occupation is on the Immigration Salary List or another reduced rule applies. Part two is the occupation's going rate. The going rate is the minimum pay the Home Office sets for each occupation code. You must clear both parts. The higher figure governs.

Code 2112 is on the Immigration Salary List (ISL). The ISL is the gov.uk list of occupations that can use the reduced threshold. So part one for you is £33,400 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025), not £41,700. The standard going rate for the code is £40,300. Compare the two. £40,300 is higher than £33,400. So £40,300 binds. Without the ISL listing, the general threshold of £41,700 would have been the binding figure.

The lower going rate for this code is £30,700 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025). It applies where a reduced-threshold rule covers you, such as the new entrant rule or the PhD rule. The Health and Care Worker visa does not cover code 2112.

Use the salary checker linked above to test a real offer.

Registration and licensing

There is no statutory registration or licence to work as a biological scientist in the UK. Professional bodies exist and employers may value membership, but none is a legal condition of working or an immigration requirement.

Which job titles this code covers

The gov.uk related titles for code 2112 are agricultural scientists, biologists, botanical and horticultural scientists, microbiologists and bacteriologists, and pathologists. Your sponsor chooses the occupation code when it assigns your Certificate of Sponsorship. The code must honestly reflect the work you will do. A chemist belongs under code 2111. A laboratory technician belongs under code 3111.

What the ISL listing changes for you

Being on the Immigration Salary List does two things for code 2112. It lowers the threshold in part one of the salary rule from £41,700 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025) to £33,400. It also means the going rate of £40,300, rather than the general threshold, is the figure a sponsor must reach. That is a lower bar than the general threshold. For a sponsor deciding between an overseas hire and no hire, that gap can matter.

The listing is not permanent. The ISL is reviewed and updated by the Home Office. Our data reflects the list updated on 11 November 2025. If the code leaves the list, the general threshold of £41,700 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025) would apply again. Check the current list before you accept an offer that sits between £40,300 and £41,700.

If this route does not fit: what else is open

• Global Talent visa. No sponsor and no job offer are needed. The academia and research endorsement route covers scientists with a research record. There is no salary test on this route.
• New entrant / PhD reduced thresholds. A reduced general threshold can apply to early-career applicants and to holders of a relevant PhD. The lower going rate for this code is £30,700 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025).
• Canada Express Entry, 2026 category draws. IRCC's 2026 categories include researchers with Canadian work experience. Candidates in a category can be invited at lower scores than the general pool.

Our assessment checks you against every open UK and Canadian route in about three minutes and shows your score, where you stand and the first thing that would raise it. No card needed for that. Seeing every route in full needs a plan. See where you stand →