University lecturer 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.

For code 2311 the standard going rate is £52,600 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025). That is higher than the general threshold of £41,700. So £52,600 binds. A university offer that clears the general threshold but sits below the going rate fails part two. The offer must reach £52,600.

The lower going rate for this code is £40,600 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025). It applies only where a reduced-threshold rule applies to you, such as the new entrant rule or the PhD rule. The Immigration Salary List (ISL) does not include code 2311. The Health and Care Worker visa does not cover it.

Registration and licensing

There is no registration requirement to teach in UK higher education. There is no QTS requirement either. Your qualifications and your research record are assessed by the university that hires you, not by a regulator.

Which job titles this code covers

The gov.uk related titles for code 2311 are university lecturers, professors and academics. Your sponsor chooses the occupation code when it assigns your Certificate of Sponsorship. The code must honestly reflect the work you will do. A lecturer at a further education college belongs under code 2312. A pure research post with no teaching may sit under a science code instead.

The PhD angle for academics

Most people hired under code 2311 hold a doctorate. That matters for the salary rule. A reduced general threshold can apply to holders of a relevant PhD. The reduced figure is not stated on this page. The lower going rate for code 2311 is £40,600 (UK Home Office, effective July 22, 2025). Where a reduced-threshold rule applies, the lower going rate is the figure tested rather than £52,600.

The new entrant rule works the same way. It can reduce the general threshold for early-career applicants and for people switching from the Student or Graduate routes. A postdoctoral researcher moving into a first lectureship is often in one of those positions. Whether the rule applies to you depends on your own facts. Run your offer, your PhD and your current visa through the salary checker linked above before you rely on either figure.

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 is designed for people with an academic record. It removes the salary test entirely.
• New entrant / PhD reduced thresholds. A reduced general threshold can apply to early-career applicants and to holders of a relevant PhD. Described qualitatively here; the checker tests the figure.
• 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 →