Global Business Mobility (GBM) follows the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 2020 occupation codes listed in the Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations. Each code has a set going rate that serves as the pay benchmark for that job. On the three salaried routes, the worker must be paid whichever is higher, the going rate for the code or a general threshold of £52,500 for Senior or Specialist Workers and UK Expansion Workers, and £27,300 for Graduate Trainees. Service Suppliers and Secondment Workers have no set salary threshold, however their pay must meet at least the National Minimum Wage.
Introduction
Global Business Mobility SOC codes confuse even experienced sponsors because the codes changed from SOC 2010 to SOC 2020 in April 2024, and the salary thresholds rose again on 22 July 2025. If you assign a Certificate of Sponsorship under the wrong code, or pay below its going rate, the application is refused, and your compliance record suffers. You will see those codes alongside their salaries, with worked examples that show how the code and the pay fit together. It also explains why two of the sub-routes set no salary at all. It does not cover the sponsor licence application, the wider points scoring, or the rules for dependants, which are covered elsewhere in the Immigration Rules. Thus, for the Global Business Mobility routes, it can be used as a working reference to match a role to the right code and pay.
KeyHighlights
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The Global Business Mobility routes draw their eligible SOC 2020 codes from Appendix Skilled Occupations, not from a separate list.
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The going rate attached to a code is based on the 25th percentile of Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) earnings and is lower than the Skilled Worker figure.
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Senior or Specialist Workers and UK Expansion Workers must be paid the higher of £52,500 or the going rate.
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Graduate Trainees must be paid the higher of £27,300 or 70 percent of the going rate.
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Service Suppliers and Secondment Workers have no going rate salary, so the table sets no pay, and the National Minimum Wage applies.
What is the Global Business Mobility Route?
Global Business Mobility is not a single visa, but a term that covers five sponsored temporary work routes listed in the Immigration Rules. Each route is designed for a different type of overseas business worker coming to the UK. The five routes are Senior or Specialist Worker, Graduate Trainee, UK Expansion Worker, Service Supplier, and Secondment Worker. These routes were introduced on 11 April 2022 by the Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules HC 1118. They replaced several older routes, such as Intra-Company Transfer, Representative of an Overseas Business, and the contractual service supplier part of the Temporary Worker International Agreement. Each route has its own purpose, salary requirements, and time limits.
It helps to split the five routes into two groups. The first group covers the Senior or Specialist Worker, Graduate Trainee and UK Expansion Worker routes. For these three, the SOC code sets the pay, and the worker must earn the higher of the going rate or a general threshold. The second group is the Service Supplier and Secondment Worker routes, for contract work under the UK’s trade agreements or staff seconded under a high value contract or investment. For these two, the table sets no salary, because the routes are built around a trade agreement or contract rather than a UK salary, so the pay must meet the National Minimum Wage. One rule covers all five, which is that none lead straight to settlement, but a worker can later switch to a route like Skilled Worker that does.
What Is a SOC Code and Why Does It Matter?
A SOC code or Standard Occupational Classification code is a four-digit number managed by the Office for National Statistics. The Home Office uses these codes to identify the job a worker will do. Each job that can be sponsored has its own code, and you can find the eligible codes and their salary details in Appendix Skilled Occupations to the Immigration Rules. The code does two things.
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It confirms that the job is at the right skill level which for these routes means degree level (Regulated Qualifications Framework level 6)
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It sets the going rate, which is the salary benchmark the worker must be paid for that occupation or minimum salary for that job.
The current system uses SOC 2020 codes, which replaced SOC 2010 codes for immigration on 4 April 2024. Choosing the right code is the most important technical step in any sponsored application. The worker’s actual duties must match the job linked to the code, and sponsors must select the code that best matches the worker’s actual duties. If a more suitable code was skipped, for example, because it was not eligible or had a higher salary requirement, a caseworker can refuse the application. If the code does not match the duties, or if the pay is below the going rate for that code, the application will be rejected. Sponsors should start with a clear job description and keep a written record of how each role was matched to its code before assigning any Certificate of Sponsorship.
Which SOC Codes and Going Rates Apply to Global Business Mobility?
The eligible SOC 2020 codes and their going rates below are extracted from Appendix Skilled Occupations, updated on 29 April 2026. You can also refer to Table A of the Home Office guidance, Global Business Mobility: going rates for eligible occupations, updated 22 July 2025, which sets out the codes and going rates based on the 25th percentile of the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
| SOC 2020 Occupation Code |
Examples of related job titles (non-exhaustive) |
Senior or Specialist & UK Expansion Worker going rate | Graduate Trainee (70% of going rate) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1111
Chief executives and senior officials
|
|
£60,000 £30.77 per hour | £42,000 £21.54 per hour |
|
1121
Production managers and directors in manufacturing
|
|
£40,000 £20.51 per hour | £28,000 £14.36 per hour |
|
1122
Production managers and directors in construction
|
|
£41,400 £21.23 per hour | £29,000 £14.87 per hour |
|
1123
Production managers and directors in mining and energy
|
|
£47,100 £24.15 per hour | £33,000 £16.92 per hour |
| 1131 Financial managers and directors |
|
£49,700£25.49 per hour | £34,800£17.85 per hour |
| 1132 Marketing, sales and advertising directors |
|
£60,000£30.77 per hour | £42,000£21.54 per hour |
| 1133 Public relations and communications directors |
|
£59,700£30.62 per hour | £41,800£21.44 per hour |
| 1134 Purchasing managers and directors |
|
£42,500£21.79 per hour | £29,800£15.28 per hour |
| 1135 Charitable organisation managers and directors |
|
£35,900£18.41 per hour | £25,100£12.87 per hour |
| 1136 Human resource managers and directors |
|
£41,200£21.13 per hour | £28,800£14.77 per hour |
| 1137 Information technology directors |
|
£61,200£31.38 per hour | £42,800£21.95 per hour |
| 1139 Functional managers and directors not elsewhere classified |
|
£52,300£26.82 per hour | £36,600£18.77 per hour |
| 1140 Directors in logistics, warehousing and transport |
|
£53,600£27.49 per hour | £37,500£19.23 per hour |
| 1162 Senior police officers |
|
£60,800£31.18 per hour | £42,600£21.85 per hour |
| 1163 Senior officers in fire, ambulance, prison and related services |
|
£50,000£25.64 per hour | £35,000£17.95 per hour |
| 1171 Health services and public health managers and directors |
|
£41,600£21.33 per hour | £29,100£14.92 per hour |
| 1172 Social services managers and directors |
|
£33,100£16.97 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 1241 Managers in transport and distribution |
|
£35,200£18.05 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 1254 Waste disposal and environmental services managers |
|
£39,700£20.36 per hour | £27,800£14.26 per hour |
| 1255 Managers and directors in the creative industries |
|
£37,000£18.97 per hour | £25,900£13.28 per hour |
| 2111 Chemical scientists |
|
£31,300£16.05 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2112 Biological scientists |
|
£30,700£15.74 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2113 Biochemists and biomedical scientists |
|
£35,100£18.00 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2114 Physical scientists |
|
£41,500£21.28 per hour | £29,000£14.87 per hour |
| 2115 Social and humanities scientists |
|
£28,000£14.36 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2119 Natural and social science professionals not elsewhere classified Note: For Skilled Worker purposes, SOC 2020 occupation code 2119 includes researchers in research organisations other than universities. |
|
£33,700£17.28 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2121 Civil engineers |
|
£39,200£20.10 per hour | £27,400£14.05 per hour |
| 2122 Mechanical engineers |
|
£38,400£19.69 per hour | £26,900£13.79 per hour |
| 2123 Electrical engineers |
|
£47,100£24.15 per hour | £33,000£16.92 per hour |
| 2124 Electronics engineers |
|
£41,200£21.13 per hour | £28,900£14.82 per hour |
| 2125 Production and process engineers |
|
£36,500£18.72 per hour | £25,600£13.13 per hour |
| 2126 Aerospace engineers |
|
£43,400£22.26 per hour | £30,400£15.59 per hour |
| 2127 Engineering project managers and project engineers |
|
£40,600£20.82 per hour | £28,400£14.56 per hour |
| 2129 Engineering professionals not elsewhere classified |
|
£37,500£19.23 per hour | £26,200£13.44 per hour |
| 2131 IT project managers |
|
£42,600£21.85 per hour | £29,800£15.28 per hour |
| 2132 IT managers |
|
£43,000£22.05 per hour | £30,100£15.44 per hour |
| 2133 IT business analysts, architects and systems designers |
|
£42,400£21.74 per hour | £29,600£15.18 per hour |
| 2134 Programmers and software development professionals |
|
£40,000£20.51 per hour | £28,000£14.36 per hour |
| 2135 Cyber security professionals |
|
£35,300£18.10 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2136 IT quality and testing professionals |
|
£34,500£17.69 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2137 IT network professionals |
|
£38,100£19.54 per hour | £26,700£13.69 per hour |
| 2139 Information technology professionals not elsewhere classified |
|
£38,700£19.85 per hour | £27,100£13.90 per hour |
| 2141 Web design professionals |
|
£31,300£16.05 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2142 Graphic and multimedia designers |
|
£26,200£13.44 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2151 Conservation professionals |
|
£29,800£15.28 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2152 Environment professionals |
|
£31,400£16.10 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2161 Research and development (R&D) managers |
|
£40,000£20.51 per hour | £28,000£14.36 per hour |
| 2162 Other researchers, unspecified discipline |
|
£37,400£19.18 per hour | £26,200£13.44 per hour |
| 2240 Veterinarians |
|
£38,000£19.49 per hour | £26,600£13.64 per hour |
| 2311 Higher education teaching professionals |
|
£40,600£20.82 per hour | £28,400£14.56 per hour |
| 2317 Teachers of English as a foreign language |
|
£30,100£15.44 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2319 Teaching professionals not elsewhere classified |
|
£27,100£13.90 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2322 Education managers |
|
£34,900£17.90 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2323 Education advisers and school inspectors |
|
£35,700£18.31 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2329 Other educational professionals not elsewhere classified |
|
£30,000£15.38 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2411 Barristers and judges |
|
£37,000£18.97 per hour | £25,900£13.28 per hour |
| 2412 Solicitors and lawyers |
|
£39,000£20.00 per hour | £27,300£14.00 per hour |
| 2419 Legal professionals not elsewhere classified |
|
£25,100£12.87 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2421 Chartered and certified accountants |
|
£36,900£18.92 per hour | £25,800£13.23 per hour |
| 2422 Finance and investment analysts and advisers |
|
£34,200£17.54 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2423 Taxation experts |
|
£35,400£18.15 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2431 Management consultants and business analysts |
|
£36,000£18.46 per hour | £25,200£12.92 per hour |
| 2432 Marketing and commercial managers |
|
£39,900£20.46 per hour | £28,000£14.36 per hour |
| 2433 Actuaries, economists and statisticians |
|
£40,700£20.87 per hour | £28,500£14.62 per hour |
| 2434 Business and related research professionals |
|
£31,500£16.15 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2435 Professional / chartered company secretaries |
|
£38,600£19.79 per hour | £27,000£13.85 per hour |
| 2439 Business, research and administrative professionals not elsewhere classified |
|
£43,200£22.15 per hour | £30,200£15.49 per hour |
| 2440 Business and financial project management professionals |
|
£43,300£22.21 per hour | £30,300£15.54 per hour |
| 2451 Architects |
|
£37,800£19.38 per hour | £26,400£13.54 per hour |
| 2452 Chartered architectural technologists, planning officers and consultants |
|
£28,200£14.46 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2453 Quantity surveyors |
|
£38,500£19.74 per hour | £26,900£13.79 per hour |
| 2454 Chartered surveyors |
|
£36,000£18.46 per hour | £25,200£12.92 per hour |
| 2455 Construction project managers and related professionals |
|
£36,600£18.77 per hour | £25,600£13.13 per hour |
| 2462 Probation officers |
|
£29,400£15.08 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2464 Youth work professionals |
|
£34,500£17.69 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2469 Welfare professionals not elsewhere classified |
|
£33,500£17.18 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2471 Librarians |
|
£26,400£13.54 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2472 Archivists, conservators and curators |
|
£29,600£15.18 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2481 Quality control and planning engineers |
|
£34,100£17.49 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2482 Quality assurance and regulatory professionals |
|
£38,100£19.54 per hour | £26,700£13.69 per hour |
| 2483 Environmental health professionals |
|
£34,100£17.49 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2491 Newspaper, periodical and broadcast editors |
|
£32,200£16.51 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2492 Newspaper and periodical broadcast journalists and reporters |
|
£25,500£13.08 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2493 Public relations professionals |
|
£30,100£15.44 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 2494 Advertising accounts managers and creative directors |
|
£37,200£19.08 per hour | £26,000£13.33 per hour |
| 3415 Musicians |
|
£30,100£15.44 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 3416 Arts officers, producers and directors |
|
£28,800£14.77 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 3511 Aircraft pilots and air traffic controllers |
|
£64,100£32.87 per hour | £44,900£23.03 per hour |
| 3531 Brokers |
|
£40,000£20.51 per hour | £28,000£14.36 per hour |
| 3534 Financial accounts managers |
|
£34,800£17.85 per hour | £25,000£12.82 per hour |
| 3556 Sales accounts and business development managers |
|
£40,500£20.77 per hour | £28,300£14.51 per hour |
Two Worked Examples
Example-1
A technology company transfers an IT director to its London office using the Senior or Specialist Worker route under code 1137. The minimum general salary threshold for this route is £52,500, as set out in paragraphs SNR 7.1 to SNR 9.3 of the Appendix Global Business Mobility Routes. However, the specific going rate for an IT director under code 1137 is £61,200 based on a 37.5-hour work week. You must pay whichever amount is higher. Thus, the worker must be paid at least £61,200. While the £52,500 general threshold is a fixed minimum and cannot be lowered for shorter working weeks, the going rate requirement can be adjusted to match the worker’s actual weekly hours. This shows that for high-paying jobs, the going rate determines the pay, not the general threshold.
Example-2
A manufacturing company hires a graduate as a programmer under code 2134 as part of a structured scheme. According to the Graduate Trainee rules at Paragraphs GTR 7.1 to GTR 9.3 of the Appendix Global Business Mobility Routes, the worker must be paid either the route’s minimum general threshold of £27,300 or 70 percent of the job’s specific going rate, whichever is higher. For code 2134, the standard going rate is £40,000, which means its 70% rate comes out to £28,000. Because £28,000 is higher than the £27,300 threshold, the trainee must be paid at least £28,000. If the trainee were in a lower-paying job code where the 70% rate fell below £27,300, the £27,300 threshold would become the mandatory minimum instead. While the £27,300 threshold is a fixed minimum and cannot be lowered for shorter working weeks, the going rate requirement can be adjusted to match the worker’s actual weekly hours.
Conclusion
The code and the salary are where most Global Business Mobility transfers succeed or fail. The simplest way to get it right is to start with the job itself, match the duties to the SOC 2020 code that truly fits, and take the going rate from Appendix Skilled Occupations, not the higher Skilled Worker figure. The route then sets the general salary threshold, and the worker should be paid whichever is higher, the floor or the going rate, counting only basic pay and adjusting for the hours worked. Service Suppliers and Secondment Workers are the exception, as they have no floor and only need to be paid the National Minimum Wage. When a salary is close to the limit, or the company’s setup is complex, it is worth seeking professional immigration advice before the Certificate of Sponsorship is issued. Done this way, each transfer becomes quicker, cheaper, and far less risky.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
A SOC code is a four-digit number that stands for a type of job, taken from a list kept by the Office for National Statistics. The Home Office uses it to check that the job is skilled enough and to set the lowest salary you can pay for it. Every job that can be sponsored has one, and you find it in a document called Appendix Skilled Occupations.
There are five GBM Routes. They are the Senior or Specialist Worker, the Graduate Trainee, the UK Expansion Worker, the Service Supplier, and the Secondment Worker. Each one is built for a different business situation, and each has its own salary and time limit rules.
It is not one visa but a group of five sponsored work routes that let an overseas business send staff to the UK for a temporary purpose. A worker might come to fill a senior role in a UK company in the same group, train on a graduate programme, set up a new UK branch, deliver a service under a trade agreement, or work on a secondment. None of these routes lead to staying in the UK permanently, though a worker can later move onto a route that does.
Partly. The code sets the going rate for the job, but for most routes you must pay the higher of that going rate or a general threshold. For Service Suppliers and Secondment Workers there is no threshold, so the code does not set the pay.
A UK business that holds a sponsor licence and is linked to your overseas employer must give you a Certificate of Sponsorship for an eligible job. You must be paid the right salary for that job where your route sets one and have enough money to support yourself. You then apply online and pay the fee, and what you need depends on which of the five routes you use.
