The Temporary Shortage List UK 2025 will cover visa jobs that:
- Are classed at RQF Level 3–5 (i.e. below degree level)
- Are identified as being in persistent shortage based on advice from the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC)
- Are essential to the UK’s industrial strategy or critical infrastructure
Here's the full list of eligible occupations on the Temporary Shortage List:
• 1243 Managers in logistics
• 1258 Directors in consultancy services
• 3111 Laboratory technicians
• 3112 Electrical and electronics technicians
• 3113 Engineering technicians
• 3114 Building and civil engineering technicians
• 3115 Quality assurance technicians
• 3116 Planning, process and production technicians
• 3120 CAD, drawing and architectural technicians
• 3131 IT operations technicians
• 3132 IT user support technicians
• 3133 Database administrators and web content
technicians
• 3412 Authors, writers and translators
• 3414 Dancers and choreographers
• 3417 Photographers, audio-visual and broadcasting
equipment operators
• 3422 Clothing, fashion and accessories designers
• 3429 Design occupations not elsewhere classified – only the following job types:
o Industrial and product designers
o Packaging designers
o Performance make-up artists
o Set designers
o Visual merchandising managers and designers
• 3512 Ship and hovercraft officers
• 3520 Legal associate professionals
• 3532 Insurance underwriters
• 3533 Financial and accounting technicians
• 3541 Estimators, valuers and assessors
• 3544 Data analysts
• 3549 Business associate professionals not elsewhere classified – only the following job types:
o Business support officers
o Business systems analysts
o Contract administrators
o Clinical coders
o Clinical trials administrators
o Research coordinators
• 3552 Business sales executives
• 3554 Advertising and marketing associate professionals
• 3571 Human resources and industrial relations officers
• 3573 Information technology trainers
• 4121 Credit controllers
• 4122 Book-keepers, payroll managers and wages clerks
• 4129 Financial administrative occupations not elsewhere classified – only the following job types:
o Box office assistants
o Grants officers
o Mortgage administrators
o Revenue assistants (excludes National and Local
government revenue occupations)
o Treasury assistants
• 4132 Pensions and insurance clerks and assistants
• 5213 Welding trades
• 5214 Pipe fitters
• 5223 Metal working production and maintenance fitters
• 5225 Air-conditioning and refrigeration installers and
repairers
• 5231 Vehicle technicians, mechanics and electricians
• 5232 Vehicle body builders and repairers
• 5233 Vehicle paint technicians
• 5235 Boat and ship builders and repairers
• 5241 Electricians and electrical fitters
• 5242 Telecoms and related network installers and
repairers
• 5244 Computer system and equipment installers and
servicers
• 5245 Security system installers and repairers
• 5249 Electrical and electronic trades not elsewhere
classified
• 5311 Steel erectors
• 5315 Plumbers and heating and ventilating installers and
repairers
• 5319 Construction and building trades not elsewhere classified – only the following job types:
o Builders
o Divers
o Fence erectors
o Industrial climbers
o Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) operators
o Steel fixers and underpinners
• 5322 Floorers and wall tilers
• 5323 Painters and decorators
• 5330 Construction and building trades supervisors
• 8133 Energy plant operatives
A role will only be added to the Temporary Shortage List UK 2025 if several eligibility requirements are met. First, the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) must confirm that there is a genuine and persistent labour shortage in that occupation. Second, the sector must submit a credible and detailed workforce strategy, demonstrating active investment in UK-based recruitment and training. This includes collaboration with national organisations such as Skills England and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), as well as evidence of efforts to improve working conditions and protect migrant workers. Strategies must be forward-looking and show how the sector intends to reduce its reliance on Skilled Workers from overseas.
The MAC will evaluate these sector-level plans and submit recommendations to the Home Secretary. These recommendations may also include specific visa conditions such as caps on the number of sponsored workers, restrictions on dependants, and time-limited permission to remain in the UK under the Skilled Worker visa sponsor list. This approach reflects a departure from the broader access granted under earlier versions of the UK Shortage Occupation List 2024 jobs or the Tier 2 sponsorship list, where long-term reliance on immigration was more common.
In parallel, the Labour Market Enforcement (LME) Group will monitor sponsorship of roles at RQF Level 6 and above. If evidence shows that employers are relying too heavily on Skilled Worker visa UK list roles at graduate level, the LME may recommend that those sectors also develop formal workforce strategies. If sufficient progress is not demonstrated over time, the MAC may advise the government to limit or remove Skilled Worker visa eligibility for those roles as well.
The TSL will therefore function not as a long-term solution, but as a tool for managing short-term workforce shortages while sectors demonstrate meaningful steps toward building sustainable recruitment pipelines within the UK. Unlike the shortage occupation list, access will be granted only where strategic reform is evident and outcomes are monitored.