UK Skilled Worker Visa Extension for South Africans

The first thing to bear in mind is that you must apply for the visa extension before your current visa expires. If you work in the UK and overstay your visa, this could have an impact on any future UK immigration applications you make.

You will need to be assigned a new certificate of sponsorship as part of the extension process.

The main conditions for a Skilled Worker visa extension are as follows:

• You have the same job as when you were issued your previous immigration permission to enter or stay in the UK
• You are still working for the employer who assigned your certificate of sponsorship
• You are still earning an ‘appropriate salary’. This means that you are being paid at least at the minimum salary threshold for your position

Bear in mind that you cannot apply for a visa extension in South Africa (or anywhere else outside the UK), you must be living in the UK to do so.

To be eligible for an extension, you must score at least 70 points in the points-based system. This is the same requirement which you need to fulfil when you make your first Skilled Worker visa application. The points can be accrued in an identical manner to your first application.

Ultimately, if your job has not changed significantly and you wish to remain in the role, you should be able to meet this requirement straightforwardly.

The points requirement can be fulfilled through the following:

• Certificate of sponsorship: 30 points
• Appropriate salary for your job role: 20 points
• Have enough maintenance funds: 10 points
• English language at the required level: 10 points

You can continue working whilst your extension application is being processed (provided your previous leave hasn’t expired).

You will need to provide certain information and documents as part of the application process. Typically, you won’t need to provide as much information as you did in your original application.

Some of the information you may need to provide includes:

• Your current passport or another valid travel document
• Any expired passports
• Your current visa or leave to remain document/information
• Information about your immigration history
• Your certificate of sponsorship number

Bear in mind that you will need to provide your biometric information (fingerprints and a photo) at a visa application centre if you haven’t already provided them.

Our UK immigration lawyers can help you with your visa extension application.

We can help you to prepare your information and documents and we will also complete your renewal application form.

Call us now on 0333 305 3612 to find out more about how we can help you to extend your stay in the UK.

You will need to make a change of employment application if you wish to change your employer. Your new employer must assign you a new certificate of sponsorship and your new job role will need to meet the points requirements.

Also, in some circumstances, you might be required to make a change of employment application, even if you are still working for the same employer.

You might be required to make a change of employment application if:

• There is a change in your core duties which means you change jobs, and the new job is in a different Standard Occupational (SOC) code to the one stated on your certificate of sponsorship
• You have been working in a shortage occupation, but there has been a significant change in your core duties such as a change of jobs or a new job which is not on the immigration salary list. (You must still be working for the same employer)

In these circumstances, you would need to be assigned a new certificate of sponsorship and meet all the points requirements.

You do not need to make a new application if:

• Your job is the same, but it is taken off the immigration salary list
• You are changing to a different job within the same SOC code, but it is with the same employer

The fee for a visa extension depends on the type of job you have and the visa you originally applied for.

As of early 2025, the fees are as follows:

• Up to three years: £885 to extend
• Up to three years shortage occupation: £590 to extend
• More than three years: £1,751 to extend
• More than three years shortage occupation: £1,160 to extend

How long does it take?

You can expect to receive a decision on your application within eight weeks of submitting it.

You will be contacted if there are any problems with your application. For example, you might be contacted if the Home Office in the UK requires some of your supporting documents to be verified.

If you require a quick decision on your application, you could opt for the priority or super priority service.

• Priority service: Application processed within five working days at additional cost of £500
• Super priority service: Application processed within one working day at an additional cost of £1000

Once you have spent five years living in the UK with a Skilled Worker visa, you can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) status. Indefinite Leave to Remain is a form of permanent residence, which means you can remain in the UK without any restrictions imposed as an ILR holder.

It is important to note that you will not automatically receive Indefinite Leave to Remain after five years – you need to complete an Indefinite Leave to Remain application.

You must not have spent more than 180 days outside the UK in a 12-month period during your UK residency if you want to apply for ILR.

After you have spent one year in the UK living under Indefinite Leave to Remain, you will be eligible for British citizenship, provided your circumstances haven’t changed significantly.

Our UK immigration lawyers can help with both Indefinite Leave to Remain and British citizenship applications. You can call us on 0333 305 3612 to find out more about the requirements for both ILR and British citizenship.