Can you get a Skilled Worker visa as a pharmacy or optical dispensing assistant?
No. You cannot get a UK Skilled Worker visa as a pharmacy or optical dispensing assistant (SOC 7114).
You might be able to work in the UK on a different visa. Compare UK work visas.
Based on the UK Immigration Rules and the Skilled Worker visa guide on GOV.UK. This is a summary, not advice about your own situation.
The rules in detail
SOC 2020 code 7114 (Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants) is listed as not eligible for the Skilled Worker, Global Business Mobility and Scale-up routes in Table 6 of Appendix Skilled OccupationsT6 · 29 Oct 26.
Source: Appendix Skilled Occupations and eligible occupations and codes, GOV.UK.| Occupation | Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants |
|---|---|
| Skilled Worker eligibility | Ineligible |
| Going rate | Not applicable |
| Appendix table(s) | Table 6 |
| Immigration Salary List | No |
| Temporary Shortage List | No |
| SOC 2020 group | 71 Sales occupations › 711 Sales assistants and retail cashiers |
Job titles under SOC 7114
GOV.UK lists these related job titles:
- Optical dispensing assistants
- Pharmacy dispensing assistants
- Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants not elsewhere classified
More job titles from the ONS SOC 2020 index (4)
- Dispenser
- Health care assistant (retail pharmacy)
- Optical assistant
- Pharmacy assistant
What the job involves
Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants work under the supervision of pharmacists and opticians or optometrists to dispense drugs and medicines, issue pre-packaged prescriptions, sell over-the-counter medication, dispense spectacles and contact lenses and other related products.
Typical tasks
- Checks received prescriptions for legality and accuracy and confirms patients’ or customers’ details
- Maintains records of prescriptions received and drugs issued
- Checks stock levels, rotates stock, orders new stock from supplying companies and ensures that products are stored appropriately
- Arranges displays of merchandise
- Relays information to customers under the direction of pharmacist and opticians or optometrists
- Carries out sales transaction, wraps and packages goods
Typical entry routes and qualifications
Entrants usually possess GCSEs/S grades. Training is typically received on-the-job, supplemented by study towards vocational qualifications. NVQs/ SVQs are available in relevant areas and at various levels, and apprenticeships may be available.
Description: ONS SOC 2020 Volume 1.
Questions about SOC 7114
Can you get a Skilled Worker visa as a pharmacy or optical dispensing assistant?
No. You cannot get a UK Skilled Worker visa as a pharmacy or optical dispensing assistant (SOC 7114). SOC 2020 code 7114 (Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants) is listed as not eligible for the Skilled Worker, Global Business Mobility and Scale-up routes in Table 6 of Appendix Skilled Occupations.
What is SOC code 7114?
7114 is the SOC 2020 code for Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants. Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants work under the supervision of pharmacists and opticians or optometrists to dispense drugs and medicines, issue pre-packaged prescriptions, sell over-the-counter medication, dispense spectacles and contact lenses and other related products.
What job titles use SOC code 7114?
GOV.UK lists: Optical dispensing assistants, Pharmacy dispensing assistants, Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants not elsewhere classified.
Sources
- Skilled Worker visa: eligible occupations and codes (GOV.UK, updated 29 April 2026)
- Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations (GOV.UK, updated 29 October 2026)
- Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Worker (GOV.UK, updated 29 October 2026)
- ONS SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions of unit groups
Compiled by SWC Editorial Team from the sources above. An information summary, not immigration advice. Report an error on this page.