TL;DR: Skilled Worker visa applicants must hold £1,270 in maintenance funds UK visa accounts for 28 consecutive days before applying. Each dependant adds £285 to that total. Sponsors can certify maintenance instead, removing the need for personal savings evidence.
The Financial Requirement Every Skilled Worker Applicant Must Understand
Among the many conditions attached to a UK Skilled Worker visa application, the maintenance funds requirement is one that consistently catches applicants off guard. While much attention focuses on salary thresholds and sponsorship eligibility, the financial requirement — the obligation to demonstrate access to a minimum level of personal funds — is a separate and mandatory condition that must be satisfied before entry clearance is granted.
According to the Home Office’s official guidance, Skilled Worker applicants applying from outside the United Kingdom must hold a specified sum in maintenance funds in a UK visa application. These funds must have been held continuously for 28 days before the date of application. Failure to satisfy this requirement, or to provide adequate evidence, can result in refusal regardless of whether all other eligibility criteria are met.
This article sets out the precise amounts required, the rules governing the 28-day holding period, the evidence UKVI will accept, and the circumstances under which a licensed sponsor may certify maintenance on the applicant’s behalf — removing the personal savings requirement entirely.
What Is the Maintenance Funds Requirement for a Skilled Worker Visa?
The maintenance funds UK visa requirement is a financial eligibility condition imposed by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) on Skilled Worker applicants. It requires applicants to demonstrate that they hold sufficient personal funds to support themselves — and any dependants — upon arrival in the United Kingdom, without recourse to public funds. The requirement is designed to ensure that new arrivals can meet their immediate living costs while they begin employment. It is assessed at the point of application, not at the point of entry, and must be evidenced through official financial documentation.
How Much Money Must Applicants Hold?
The Core Maintenance Amounts
The Home Office sets specific minimum thresholds that must be present in an applicant’s bank account at the time of application. According to the official gov.uk guidance:
£1,270 must be held by the main Skilled Worker applicant. An additional £285 must be held for each dependant included in the application.
These figures are fixed and non-negotiable in the context of personal savings evidence. They do not vary by region, occupation, or salary band. If an applicant is applying alongside a partner and two children — three dependants in total — the required total rises to £1,270 plus (3 × £285), equalling £2,125.
It is important to note that these figures represent a minimum floor, not a recommended balance. Applicants whose accounts fall even marginally below the threshold on any day within the 28-day window risk refusal.
Dependants and the Cumulative Calculation
The financial requirement scales directly with the number of dependants. Each dependant — whether a spouse, civil partner, or child — adds £285 to the total required balance. Applications involving multiple family members therefore require careful forward planning to ensure the full cumulative sum is maintained throughout the required period.
Dependants applying at the same time as the main applicant and those applying to join later are both subject to this requirement at the time of their own application.
The 28-Day Rule: What Applicants Need to Know
How the 28-Day Holding Period Works
The 28-day rule is central to the maintenance funds UK visa requirement. The funds must have been held in the applicant’s account — or a combination of acceptable accounts — for a continuous period of 28 days ending no more than 31 days before the date of application.
The closing balance of the 28-day period must meet or exceed the required threshold on every single day within that window.
This means that a temporary dip below the required amount at any point during those 28 days may render the evidence insufficient. Applicants must plan banking activity carefully in the lead-up to application submission to avoid inadvertent shortfalls caused by routine outgoings, transfers, or pending transactions.
What Counts as an Acceptable Account?
Funds may be held in a personal current account, savings account, or a combination of both. Joint accounts are acceptable, provided the applicant is a named account holder. The account must be held at a regulated financial institution and must be accessible — funds tied up in fixed-term bonds or investment accounts that cannot be accessed at short notice may not be accepted.
Acceptable Forms of Evidence
When submitting a Skilled Worker visa application, UKVI requires documentary evidence of the maintained balance. Acceptable evidence typically includes:
- Official bank statements covering the full 28-day period, showing the account holder’s name, account number, and daily or running balances.
- A letter from the bank confirming the balance held throughout the relevant period, on official headed paper and signed by a bank official.
Screenshots of online banking interfaces or informal printouts are not considered reliable evidence. Statements must clearly show that the required sum was present throughout the specified period, with no gaps in the record. Where statements are issued monthly, multiple statements may be needed to cover the full 28-day window.
Can a Sponsor Certify Maintenance Instead?
Sponsor Certification as an Alternative
One of the most significant — and underutilised — provisions within the maintenance funds framework is the option for a licensed UK sponsor to certify maintenance on behalf of the applicant. When a sponsor certifies maintenance, the applicant is entirely exempt from the personal savings requirement. There is no need to demonstrate that £1,270 (or the higher cumulative total for dependants) has been held for 28 days.
A sponsor certifies maintenance by making a declaration in the Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) that they will cover the applicant’s maintenance needs for the first month of employment in the United Kingdom.
This provision applies to the main applicant. Where dependants are included in the application, the sponsor’s certification covers them as well, provided it is explicitly stated in the CoS.
Why Sponsors Might Offer Certification
Sponsor certification is a practical tool particularly valuable where applicants are being relocated at short notice, where the individual may not have easily accessible liquid savings in the required amounts, or where international banking arrangements make 28-day documentation difficult to compile. Licensed sponsors — who have already passed UKVI’s suitability checks — take on responsibility for confirming the applicant’s financial stability for the initial period of residence.
It is worth noting that not all sponsors choose to certify maintenance. It is a discretionary facility, and applicants whose sponsors have not included this declaration on the CoS must satisfy the personal savings requirement independently.
Implications for Sponsors and Employers
For UK employers holding a Skilled Worker sponsor licence, the option to certify maintenance carries operational and reputational considerations. By making the declaration on the Certificate of Sponsorship, the sponsor is formally committing to UKVI that the worker will have sufficient financial support upon arrival. Sponsors should ensure that any such certification accurately reflects their intentions and that internal HR or mobility teams understand the obligation being undertaken.
Employers facilitating international relocations — particularly those bringing workers from countries where bank documentation standards differ from UK norms — may find sponsor certification a practical means of streamlining the visa process and reducing the risk of applications being delayed or refused on financial evidence grounds.
Licensed sponsors are advised to review their standard CoS completion procedures to determine whether maintenance certification is routinely offered to sponsored workers, particularly those relocating from overseas.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How much money is needed for a Skilled Worker visa? A: The main applicant must hold at least £1,270 in maintenance funds. An additional £285 is required for each dependant included in the application. These amounts must be present in the applicant’s account for a continuous 28-day period before applying.
Q: What is the 28-day rule for UK visa maintenance funds? A: The 28-day rule requires that the required maintenance funds have been held in the applicant’s bank account continuously for 28 days, ending no more than 31 days before the date of application. The balance must meet or exceed the threshold on every day within that period.
Q: What evidence does UKVI accept for maintenance funds? A: UKVI accepts official bank statements or a letter from the applicant’s bank covering the full 28-day period. The documentation must clearly show the account holder’s name, account details, and daily or running balances confirming the required amount was held throughout.
Q: Can a Skilled Worker applicant avoid the maintenance funds requirement? A: Yes — if the sponsoring employer includes a maintenance certification declaration in the Certificate of Sponsorship, the applicant is exempt from providing personal savings evidence. This covers both the main applicant and their dependants.
Q: Do Skilled Worker dependants need their own maintenance funds? A: Dependants do not hold separate maintenance funds requirements. The amounts attributable to dependants — £285 per dependant — are added to the main applicant’s required total and must all be held in accounts accessible to the applicant or dependant as named account holders.
Key Takeaways
- Skilled Worker applicants from outside the UK must hold £1,270 in maintenance funds, plus £285 per dependant, for 28 consecutive days before applying.
- The 28-day period must end no more than 31 days before the application date; the balance must not fall below the threshold on any day within the window.
- Acceptable evidence includes official bank statements or a bank-issued letter covering the full 28-day period, clearly showing daily balances.
- Licensed sponsors can certify maintenance via the Certificate of Sponsorship, removing the personal savings requirement for the applicant and dependants entirely.
- Applications that fail to meet the maintenance funds financial requirement risk refusal, irrespective of whether other Skilled Worker eligibility criteria are satisfied.
Conclusion
The maintenance funds UK visa requirement for Skilled Workers is a precise and strictly applied condition. Applicants must hold the correct amounts for the full 28-day period and provide acceptable documentary evidence — or ensure their sponsor has certified maintenance on the Certificate of Sponsorship. Understanding the financial requirement in full, including how it scales for dependants and the role of sponsor certification, is essential for anyone navigating the Skilled Worker visa process. Official and up-to-date requirements are published on the GOV.UK Skilled Worker visa guidance pages.