Most Skilled Worker visa holders can bring a partner and children under 18 to the UK as dependants. Two groups cannot: care workers and senior care workers (SOC 6135 and 6136) sponsored since 11 March 2024, and anyone sponsored in a Temporary Shortage List occupation. Dependants each pay the application fee and the Immigration Health Surcharge, and the main applicant must show the required funds unless the sponsor certifies maintenance. Source: gov.uk Skilled Worker visa (your partner and children) and the Temporary Shortage List rules, checked 29 October 2026.
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Related: dependant visa processing time · Temporary Shortage List codes · care worker visa options · visa costs with dependants
TL;DR: who can bring dependants on a Skilled Worker visa
- Standard Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker (registered professionals), Immigration Salary List roles: yes, partner and children under 18.
- Care workers and senior care workers (6135, 6136) sponsored on or after 11 March 2024: no new dependants; those already in the UK as dependants before that date keep their status.
- Temporary Shortage List occupations: no dependants.
- Costs: each dependant pays the visa fee and the Immigration Health Surcharge (usually £1,035 a year, £776 for under-18s).
Check the current rules on gov.uk before applying; this page is information, not advice.
Who counts as a dependant
Your husband, wife, civil partner or unmarried partner (you must have lived together for at least 2 years), and your children under 18 at the time of their first application. Children who turn 18 while in the UK as your dependants can extend with you. Parents, siblings and adult children are not dependants on this route.
The two exclusions
Care workers and senior care workers
From 11 March 2024, people sponsored as care workers (SOC 6135) or senior care workers (SOC 6136) cannot bring dependants. The restriction applies to the occupation code on the certificate, so a registered nurse on the Health and Care Worker route is not affected. Care workers who were already sponsored with dependants before that date keep the right to extend with them. New overseas recruitment into both codes closed on 22 July 2025; see the care worker guide.
Temporary Shortage List occupations
Workers sponsored in any of the 52 TSL codes cannot bring dependants. This is one of the main differences between a TSL job and a standard Skilled Worker job, and it does not change if the salary is high. The Migration Advisory Committee's proposed 2027 list does not change the dependants rule, which is set by the government. The TSL guide lists the codes.
Money, timing and what dependants can do
- Funds: unless your sponsor certifies maintenance on the certificate of sponsorship, you must show savings for each dependant for 28 days (the amounts are on gov.uk and change from time to time).
- Timing: dependants can apply at the same time as you or later. From outside the UK, dependant applications are decided on the same published standard as work visas, usually 3 weeks; see the dependant processing time guide.
- Work and study: a dependant partner can work in almost any job (not as a professional sportsperson) and can study. Dependant children can attend state schools.
- Settlement: dependants apply for settlement with the main applicant after the qualifying period; the government's earned settlement proposals may change the qualifying period from 2027 and we track them in the ILR guide.
Frequently asked questions
Can a Skilled Worker visa holder bring their spouse to the UK?
Yes, unless the worker is sponsored as a care worker or senior care worker (since 11 March 2024) or in a Temporary Shortage List occupation. Everyone else on the route can bring a partner and children under 18.
Can care workers bring family on a UK visa in 2026?
Not as new dependants. The restriction has applied to SOC 6135 and 6136 since 11 March 2024. Dependants already in the UK before that date can extend.
Do Temporary Shortage List workers get dependants if they earn more?
No. The rule follows the occupation code, not the salary.
How much does a dependant cost?
The application fee for a dependant is the same as the main applicant's, plus the Immigration Health Surcharge for the length of the visa (usually £1,035 a year for adults and £776 for children). The costs guide has worked examples.
The Tarve team researches UK visa sponsorship directly from official gov.uk and Home Office sources — the register of licensed sponsors, the Immigration Rules, and published salary and going-rate data — to produce clear, regularly updated guides for international professionals. Tarve is an independent information and job-search service, not a regulated immigration adviser.
Figures and rules on this page are taken from official gov.uk and Home Office publications and were last verified on 2 November 2026. Tarve is an independent information and job-search service, not a regulated immigration adviser: guidance here is for information only, and you should always confirm the current rules on gov.uk.