Where the jobs are in European countries

The clearest official signal of where employers are short of staff is the shortage occupation list. For 2026 the government lists 64 nationwide shortage occupations (Skilled Workers Regulation 2026, BGBl. II No. 316/2025) – jobs for which there are fewer than 1.5 jobseekers per vacancy registered with the AMS. They include:

• health and care – registered nurses, nursing assistants, doctors, medical-technical specialists,
• engineering and IT – graduate engineers in mechanical, electrical and telecommunications engineering, data processing (IT), technical physics; project, sales, service and plastics technicians,
• skilled trades and construction – electricians, plumbers, roofers, carpenters, joiners, welders, metalworkers, car mechanics, painters,
• education – early childhood teachers,
• railways and tourism – train drivers, dispatchers, restaurant cooks.

On top of that, each province (except Vienna) has its own regional list. Tourism also hires many seasonal workers for the winter and summer seasons – in hotels, restaurants and ski resorts.

For graduates, the best chances are in technical fields, IT and healthcare. Some employers advertise in English and accept applications in English – but for most jobs, and for daily life, German makes a big difference.

Each region publishes its own list of shortage occupations (knelpuntberoepen / métiers en pénurie):

• Flanders – VDAB’s 10 most persistent shortage occupations in 2026: accountant, construction cost estimator, industrial electromechanic, machining set-up operator, horticulture worker, technician for construction, agricultural and lifting machines, industrial maintenance manager, nurse, truck driver and site manager.
• Wallonia – Le Forem lists 144 shortage occupations for 2026. Construction leads with 38, followed by industrial technology and health and social care (19 each). The hardest jobs to fill are home care aide, pharmacist and roofer; the list also includes bus drivers, nurses, masons and security guards.
• Brussels – Actiris has an overview of occupations that are recruiting (in French).

For the country as a whole, EURES names healthcare, education, construction and IT as shortage sectors, with strong demand for science and engineering technicians and building trades workers. In Flanders, nurses and other healthcare professionals and carers are especially hard to find.

For graduates, the best chances are in technical and engineering jobs, nursing, IT and accounting – and in Brussels it helps a lot to speak both French and Dutch.

The latest EU-wide overview of shortages – the EURES report on labour shortages and surpluses 2025 (European Labour Authority, June 2026) – lists for Bulgaria more than 100 occupations, including:

• health and care – nurses, midwives, dentists, pharmacists, physiotherapists, speech therapists, health care assistants,
• IT – software developers, applications programmers, systems analysts and administrators, database designers, ICT technicians and service managers,
• engineering – civil, mechanical, electrical, electronics, chemical and industrial engineers and engineering technicians,
• education – primary, secondary and vocational school teachers,
• skilled trades – bricklayers, electricians, carpenters, plumbers, roofers, sheet metal workers, welders,
• transport and hospitality – bus, tram and heavy truck drivers; cooks, waiters, bartenders, bakers, kitchen helpers.

For graduates, the list points to IT, engineering, health and teaching. Accountants and sales representatives are also in demand.

The latest EU-wide overview of shortages – the EURES report on labour shortages and surpluses 2025 (European Labour Authority, June 2026) – lists for Croatia mainly skilled trades:

• construction – bricklayers, roofers, floor layers and tile setters, insulation workers, painters, concrete workers, building construction labourers, crane operators,
• installation and repair – plumbers and pipe fitters, electrical mechanics and fitters, air-conditioning and refrigeration mechanics, motor vehicle mechanics, agricultural and industrial machinery mechanics, electronics servicers,
• metalworking – welders and flame cutters, sheet metal workers, structural metal workers, machine tool setters and operators,
• technicians and IT – electrical and electronics engineering technicians, web and multimedia developers.

Tourism hires seasonal staff every year: the Croatian Employment Service (HZZ) runs a separate portal for seasonal jobs – bartenders, waiters, chefs, receptionists and room attendants, mostly in towns on the Adriatic coast.

For graduates, the list points to IT and engineering technology. HZZ also keeps a list of occupations for which employers do not need a labour market test when they hire non-EU workers.

According to EURES (February 2025), the occupational groups with the biggest shortages in Cyprus are:

• ICT professionals,
• building and related trades workers (excluding electricians),
• cleaners and helpers.

Sectors expected to grow are tourism, technology, healthcare and renewable energy; EURES names FOREX (currency trading) and IT support as the fastest-growing sectors. In 2023 the job vacancy rate was 2.8% overall – highest in accommodation and food services (5.3%), administrative and support services (3.9%) and transport and storage (3.5%).

Seasonal work: tourism and agriculture rely heavily on seasonal staff. Most EU jobseekers who find seasonal jobs in tourism work under private agreements with employers for a set period, usually from April to November.

According to labour market information from the Labour Office of the Czech Republic, published by EURES in 2025, the occupational groups with the biggest shortages in 2024 were machine and plant operators, building and related trades workers and health professionals. Employers most often look for:

• engineering and manufacturing – engineers, welders, CNC operators, toolmakers, assembly workers,
• construction – builders, bricklayers, construction workers and skilled tradespeople,
• health – doctors, nurses, medical technicians,
• IT – programmers, software developers, cybersecurity experts,
• transport – lorry drivers, forklift operators.

There are regional differences: Prague needs ICT specialists and support workers in construction, manufacturing and transport, while South Moravia looks for software developers, data analysts and engineers.

Competition is stronger for office jobs: there are more jobseekers than vacancies among legal, social and cultural professionals and business and administration associate professionals – in the Olomouc region, for example, there were 19 applicants for every vacancy for administrative workers.

EURES names the sectors facing labour shortages in Denmark: construction, IT, engineering, hotels, restaurants and catering, and healthcare.

Workindenmark, the public service for international recruitment, lists ten sectors with good job opportunities for skilled and highly qualified candidates:

• engineering, ICT and robotics, life science,
• business and finance, healthcare,
• service and hospitality, industrial manufacturing,
• transport and logistics, construction and green energy.

The EURES report on labour shortages for 2025 lists, among others, chefs, bakers and pastry cooks, bus and tram drivers, early childhood educators and managers in aquaculture and fisheries as shortage occupations in Denmark.

According to the EURES labour market information for Estonia (published in 2025, based on public employment service data), employers are short of:

• skilled trades and industry – metal, machinery and related trades workers, welders, mechanics, machine operators, electricians,
• ICT – highly skilled ICT professionals such as system architects and developers,
• health – doctors and other health professionals,
• education and care – teachers, speech therapists, psychologists and educators for children with special needs.

Growing sectors include information technology, professional, scientific and technical activities, and health and social work.

There are more jobseekers than jobs in office and administrative work – business and administration associate professionals, clerks, accountants, journalists and public relations specialists – and for unskilled construction workers.

For graduates, the best chances are in ICT, engineering, healthcare and teaching.

Finland’s clearest labour shortage is in health and social services. In June 2025 the government listed these labour shortage occupations (Decree 291/2025, valid until 11 June 2026 – we found no newer list when we checked in October 2026), in which people with a work-based residence permit could change jobs more flexibly:

• doctors – general practitioners, chief physicians and medical specialists,
• nursing – nurses and practical nurses,
• other health professions – dental hygienists, audiologists and speech therapists,
• industry and services – process operators in metal processing, firefighters, funeral service workers.

EURES names health professionals and personal service workers as the groups with the most frequent shortages nationally. Building trades workers (except electricians) appear on both the shortage and the surplus list – it depends on the region. There are more jobseekers than jobs for legal, social and cultural professionals and for science and engineering professionals.

So for graduates the best chances are in health care and social services; in many other fields competition is strong and Finnish or Swedish helps a lot. In Åland, good Swedish is a must.

According to EURES labour market information, French employers have the most difficulty recruiting in these fields:

• ICT – software developers, data scientists, cybersecurity engineers, cloud computing experts,
• health and social care – doctors, nurses, carers,
• construction and public works – builders, electricians, plumbers, site managers,
• industry and engineering – engineers, technicians, automation and maintenance specialists,
• commerce and sales – sales representatives, shop managers, online sales staff,
• transport and logistics – drivers, logistics managers, forklift operators.

The occupational groups most often in shortage include science and engineering technicians, building trades workers and metal and machinery workers. In France Travail’s annual employer survey on recruitment needs (BMO), more than 6 out of 10 employers expected recruitment difficulties in 2024.

The Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit, BA) checks every year which occupations are short of skilled workers. In its analysis for 2025 it found 157 shortage occupations (163 in 2024). About half of all vacancies reported to the BA were in these occupations. The biggest shortages are in:

• care and health – nursing and other health professions,
• construction and skilled trades,
• cooks and professional drivers,
• early childhood educators (Erzieherinnen und Erzieher),
• newly on the list: surveying technicians and social work.

Good to know if you work in IT: in 2025 the BA no longer found a shortage in software development, IT sales or metal cutting – so competition for these jobs is stronger than a few years ago.

The EURES report on labour shortages for 2025 also lists, for Germany, occupations such as accountants, air conditioning and refrigeration mechanics, bakers, building electricians and carpenters and joiners. In summer, agriculture hires seasonal harvest workers – German labour law, including paid holiday, applies to them too.

According to EURES, the occupation groups with the biggest shortages in Greece are:

• health professionals,
• customer services clerks,
• stationary plant and machine operators.

Most people work in wholesale and retail trade and in accommodation and food services. Tourism makes many jobs seasonal: the South Aegean islands, the Ionian Islands and Crete need many extra staff in hotels, restaurants, catering and entertainment in spring and summer. Seasonal tourism workers have a right to be re-employed in the next season.

There are more candidates than jobs among legal, social and cultural professionals, science and engineering professionals and teachers – so graduates in these fields face strong competition. Unemployment also differs a lot by region: it is lowest in the South Aegean and highest in Western Macedonia.

According to EURES labour market information (published in 2025), the occupational groups with the biggest shortages in Hungary in 2024 were:

• building and related trades workers (excluding electricians),
• personal service workers,
• labourers in mining, construction, manufacturing and transport.

Sectors expected to grow include renewable energy, car manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and chemicals, IT and technology, tourism and hospitality, and transport and logistics.

In 2023 job vacancy rates were highest in administrative and support services (4.9%), health and social work (3.9%) and education (2.5%). Agriculture also employs seasonal workers – on average 35,500 a month in 2023.

The best official signal of where employers are hiring is the job vacancy rate. According to EURES, the sectors with the highest job vacancy rates are:

• human health and social work,
• education,
• arts, entertainment and recreation,
• public administration and defence,
• administrative and support services.

The biggest employers by sector are wholesale and retail trade (18.5% of jobs), manufacturing (15.2%), construction (11.8%) and accommodation and food services (11.4%).

Public-sector vacancies – in health care, education, research, administration and specialist roles – are listed on the government job board Starfatorg; when we checked in October 2026 it showed 176 open positions.

For graduates, health care, education and public services look most promising – and Icelandic is a big advantage everywhere.

According to EURES, the biggest shortages in Ireland are among science and engineering professionals, ICT professionals and health professionals. EURES also names skills shortages for:

• health and care – nurses, healthcare assistants, nursing home care workers,
• IT and engineering – software developers, engineers in various fields,
• finance and management – accountants; HR, finance, logistics and bioscience-production managers,
• construction and industry – construction workers, factory workers.

The government’s Critical Skills Occupations List – highly skilled jobs that are in high demand and not always available in the resident workforce – covers roles in medicine, ICT, sciences, finance and business.

The sectors with the highest vacancy rates are health and social work, education, arts and recreation, public administration and administrative services. There is seasonal work too: in 2025 the fruit-picking industry employed about 40,000 people.

Italian employers have real trouble hiring. In the employers’ survey quoted by EURES (October–December 2024), recruiting was difficult for 49.3% of all job searches – 66.2% for skilled workers and 52.4% for technical professions. The hardest jobs to fill:

• skilled metal trades – foundry workers, welders, tinsmiths, boilermakers, metal carpentry assemblers (79.0% hard to find),
• IT and engineering – software analysts and designers, electronic engineers, programming technicians and specialists in artificial intelligence, data analysis and cybersecurity,
• technicians and construction – specialised technicians, construction workers and mechanics (e.g. in Veneto), STEM professionals (e.g. in Piedmont).

For graduates, the national SIISL platform currently lists accountants, general office staff, nurses, sales and distribution technicians and pharmacists among the most requested profiles.

By volume, tourism offers the most jobs (245,000 hires planned in that survey), followed by trade (207,000). Tourism work is strongly seasonal, especially in the south and on the islands.

Latvia keeps an official list of professions with an expected significant labour shortage – jobs for which employers may invite workers from abroad (Cabinet Regulation No. 108 of 2018, in force until December 2027). It covers:

• ICT – systems analysts, programmers, database administrators, IT service managers,
• engineering – electrical, electronics, civil, bridge, railway and water engineers; industrial, production and robotics engineers, welding technologists,
• science and finance – researchers, physicists, chemists, mathematicians, statisticians, financial and risk analysts,
• aviation and shipping – pilots, aircraft maintenance technicians, captains of fishing vessels.

The EURES labour market information for Latvia (2025) adds shortages of building and related trades workers, metal and machinery workers and health professionals. Growing areas include IT services, cybersecurity, e-commerce, fintech and healthcare. There are more jobseekers than jobs for business and administration associate professionals and in food processing, woodworking and garment crafts.

The highest pay is in ICT and finance, and for specialists and managers in manufacturing.

In its report on labour shortages (May 2024) the Government of Liechtenstein names three areas where specific skilled workers are missing:

• STEM occupations (MINT – mathematics, IT, natural sciences, technology),
• care and nursing,
• education – especially teachers.

The number of vacancies has grown: from an average of 820 open positions in 2017 to 885 in 2023, and at the end of January 2024 939 vacancies were registered with the AMS FL.

Because so many jobs are held by commuters, it often makes sense to look at Liechtenstein together with the neighbouring regions of Switzerland and Austria – many people live there and work in Liechtenstein.

The Ministry of Economy and Innovation keeps an official list of high value-added professions with worker shortages (latest version in force from 10 June 2026). It covers:

• IT – software developers, system administrators, data analysts, IT security and network specialists,
• engineering – mechanical, chemical, aviation, welding and robotics engineers,
• electronics and electrical engineering – engineers and technicians,
• science and management – chemists, pharmaceutical and quality-control specialists, chief engineers, R&D managers,
• design – graphic, multimedia and advertising designers.

The EURES labour market information for Lithuania (2025) also lists shortages of machine operators, building trades workers, heavy truck drivers for international transport, welders, electricians, plumbers and logistics managers. There are more jobseekers than jobs for administrative workers, construction labourers and car and taxi drivers.

Regional hubs: Vilnius for IT, biotech and fintech; Kaunas for automotive components, electronics, metalworking and logistics; Klaipėda for the port, the petrochemical industry and tourism.

The public employment service ADEM publishes an official list of occupations in high demand (métiers en pénurie). The latest list is based on 2025 data and was published in 2026. It covers:

• finance and banking – credit analysis, banking risk management, client relations, financial market trading,
• IT – database administration, cybersecurity, software development, cloud architecture, business intelligence,
• engineering and industrial R&D – automation, aerospace, automotive, renewable energy, quality management,
• healthcare – nurses (including geriatric and psychiatric nursing) and care assistants,
• construction and trades – roofers, solar panel installers, car body repairers,
• social work and education – early childhood educators, social workers,
• legal and professional services – legal advisers, tax specialists, auditors, financial analysts.

One of the criteria for the list is at least 7 vacancies a month on average. According to EURES, growth areas also include data science, renewable energy, sustainable construction and green finance.

According to EURES (February 2025), the occupational groups with the biggest shortages in Malta are:

• business and administration associate professionals,
• legal, social and cultural professionals,
• personal service workers.

The sectors with the highest job vacancy rates are mining and quarrying (6.4%), information and communication (4.5%), accommodation and food services (3.9%) and professional, scientific and technical activities (3.5%).

Because there are so few jobseekers, employers increasingly rely on workers from abroad. For graduates, this points to IT, business and professional services; hotels and restaurants also offer casual and summer work, which you can filter for on the Jobsplus vacancy portal.

According to EURES labour market information, the Netherlands has persistent staff shortages in care, education, the public sector, ICT and technology. Occupations in short supply include:

• health and care – carers and nurses,
• education – primary school teachers,
• ICT – developers and security specialists,
• technical jobs and trades – mechanics, fitters and building trades workers,
• office jobs – business and administration associate professionals,
• science and engineering professionals.

Many IT and other specialists are employed by secondment agencies (detacheringsbureaus), which hire staff on contract and place them with client companies.

For graduates, the best chances are in ICT, engineering, healthcare and education – fields where employers struggle to find enough people.

In its 2026 business survey (Bedriftsundersøkelsen, May 2026), the public employment service Nav estimates that Norwegian businesses are short of about 34,000 workers. The biggest gaps:

• health and care – 9,200 people, above all health workers (helsefagarbeidere, 3,650) and nurses (1,850),
• industry – 5,750 people,
• construction – 4,750 people, especially carpenters and joiners (1,150) and electricians (1,110).

The shortage is largest in Vestland county (6,300), Rogaland (3,750) and Nordland (2,950).

EURES also lists building trades workers (except electricians), science and engineering professionals and teachers as the groups with the most frequent shortages, and regional shortages of nurses, health care assistants, medical specialists, cooks, electricians and welders. There are more jobseekers than jobs for cleaners and helpers, labourers and clerks.

For graduates, the best chances are in health care, engineering and teaching.

The official forecast of where workers are needed is the Occupational Barometer (Barometr zawodów), prepared by the Regional Labour Office in Kraków for the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy. For 2026 it lists 17 shortage occupations across the whole of Poland:

• health and care – doctors, nurses and midwives, psychologists and therapists, carers for older people and people with disabilities,
• education – teachers of general subjects and foreign languages, teachers of vocational subjects, practical vocational training instructors, special needs and inclusive education teachers,
• transport and logistics – lorry and articulated lorry drivers, bus drivers, warehouse workers,
• construction and technical trades – installation fitters, operators and mechanics of earthmoving machines, welders, electricians and power engineering technicians,
• other – certified accountants and members of the armed forces.

Separate barometers are published for each region (voivodeship) and for districts (powiaty), so check the one for the city you are interested in.

Many of these jobs need specific qualifications. For regulated professions – such as doctors, nurses or teachers – you will first need your qualifications recognised (see below).

According to EURES, the occupation groups with the biggest shortages in Portugal are health professionals, metal, machinery and related trades and information and communications technology (ICT) professionals. Jobs often mentioned:

• health – nurses and midwives, general and specialist doctors, physiotherapists,
• engineering and IT – civil engineers, IT specialists and software programmers (especially in Lisbon and Alentejo),
• skilled trades – welders and CNC operators (North), electrical line installers, agricultural and industrial machinery mechanics, construction workers such as carpenters, plumbers and electricians,
• transport and services – bus and tram drivers, contact-centre staff who speak French or Spanish (North).

There are more candidates than jobs among business and administration associate professionals, legal, social and cultural professionals and sales workers.

Tourism is strongly seasonal, especially in the Algarve, and farms there need fruit pickers from February to June. Information and communication has the highest vacancy rate of all sectors.

The latest EU-wide overview of shortages – the EURES report on labour shortages and surpluses 2025 (European Labour Authority, June 2026) – lists for Romania many occupations, including:

• IT – software developers, applications programmers, systems analysts and administrators, database and network professionals, ICT support technicians and service managers,
• engineering – civil, electrical and mechanical engineers, architects,
• health and care – nursing professionals, physiotherapists, health care assistants,
• construction – bricklayers, carpenters and joiners, plumbers and pipe fitters, roofers,
• hospitality and food – chefs, cooks, bakers and pastry cooks, butchers, hotel and restaurant managers,
• transport – heavy truck drivers; car, taxi and van drivers,
• business – accountants, finance managers, marketing, PR and HR professionals.

For graduates, the best-documented demand is in IT, engineering, health and business services. For most jobs, Romanian makes a big difference.

According to EURES, most vacancies in Slovakia are in transport, healthcare and warehousing, and there is ongoing demand for workers in the automotive and engineering industries. Slovakia actively recruits medical professionals, IT specialists (also for remote jobs) and logistics workers.

The occupational groups with the biggest shortages in 2024 were machine and plant operators, building and related trades workers, and drivers. Examples from the regions:

• Bratislava – IT, healthcare, construction, services and trade,
• Trnava, Trenčín and Nitra – welders, metalworkers, assembly and production operators, CNC turners, engineers, technicians, electricians, nurses, lorry drivers,
• Žilina and Banská Bystrica – electricians, plumbers, nurses, doctors, metalworkers, construction workers,
• Prešov and Košice – welders, machine assemblers, engineering specialists, doctors, nurses, cooks, bus and lorry drivers.

The labour office (ÚPSVaR) also publishes an official list of occupations with labour shortages (zoznam zamestnaní s nedostatkom pracovnej sily).

The clearest official signal of where employers are short of staff is the occupational barometer (Poklicni barometer) of the Employment Service of Slovenia (ESS). For 2026 it lists, among others, these occupations in shortage:

• health and care – doctors, nursing professionals, physiotherapists, personal assistants, social care workers,
• education – primary and secondary school teachers, school counsellors, kindergarten teachers and their assistants,
• engineering – civil, mechanical, electrical and electronics engineers; also veterinarians,
• business and social services – specialists in logistics, human resources, social work, accounting and audit,
• trades, transport and tourism – roofers and carpenters, heavy truck drivers, cooks and waiters, mail sorters and carriers.

In the ESS employer survey from spring 2026 (Napovednik zaposlovanja), 44.9% of employers said they had struggled to find suitable candidates in the previous six months – most often in healthcare and social services, hospitality and education. For the second half of 2026 employers planned to hire mainly workers for simple jobs in manufacturing, sales staff, heavy truck drivers, welders and cleaners.

For graduates, the shortage list points to health, education, engineering and business services. For most of these jobs, Slovenian is essential.

EURES lists the occupation groups with the most shortages in Spain as health professionals, stationary plant and machine operators and agricultural, forestry and fishery labourers. Regions add their own needs, for example:

• Catalonia – medical specialists, nurses, car mechanics, cooks, software developers, heavy truck drivers,
• Madrid – family doctors, nurses, plumbers, waiters, cleaners, bricklayers, welders and other metalworkers, drivers,
• Basque Country – truck drivers and logistics staff, electricians, plumbers, bricklayers, industrial engineers, electronic and mechanical technicians,
• Galicia – waiters, bricklayers, cooks, plumbers, heavy lorry drivers, welders.

The official Catalogue of Hard-to-Fill Occupations (Catálogo de Ocupaciones de Difícil Cobertura) for the third quarter of 2026 lists, in all provinces, building electricians, aluminium, metal and PVC carpenters and fitters, and crane operators – plus merchant-navy jobs and professional sport.

At national level EURES sees more candidates than jobs among science and engineering professionals and business and administration associate professionals – so graduates in these fields face strong competition. Farming hires seasonal workers for the grape harvest (September) and the olive harvest (December/January), and tourist regions hire many people in hotels and restaurants.

Arbetsförmedlingen, the Swedish Public Employment Service, regularly assesses where employers struggle to recruit. In its report “Var finns jobben?” (June 2025) the clearest shortages are in:

• health care (hälso- och sjukvård) – in its 2026 analysis Arbetsförmedlingen expects the largest gaps up to 2035 among nursing assistants, carers and personal assistants and among registered nurses,
• IT (data/it),
• education (pedagogiskt arbete),
• installation, operation and maintenance (installation, drift och underhåll).

Shortages are more concentrated in the counties of northern Sweden. EURES also lists health professionals, health associate professionals and building trades workers (except electricians) as the groups with the most frequent shortages.

Competition for jobs is tougher in sales, purchasing and marketing, transport, social work, and culture, media and design. Looking further ahead, Arbetsförmedlingen estimates that Sweden will need 200,000–300,000 more workers by 2035, depending on its assumptions.

For graduates, the best chances are in health care, IT and technical jobs. In IT and engineering English is sometimes enough – elsewhere, Swedish makes a big difference.

Swiss employers are hiring: in the second quarter of 2026 companies reported 98,700 vacancies, and 33.9% of them said they had difficulties recruiting qualified staff (Federal Statistical Office). Vacancies in industry and construction rose by 21.8% in a year, while those in services fell by 2.4%.

The SME portal of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) reports, based on the Swiss Job Market Index (Adecco and University of Zurich), the strongest growth in job ads in the second quarter of 2026 for:

• university-level health professions – doctors, nurses, pharmacists (+17%),
• skilled trades and industry (+12%),
• office jobs (+9%),
• IT specialists (+6%).

Where competition is stronger: for occupations with an unemployment rate of 5% or more, employers must first report vacancies to the public employment service, and jobseekers registered with a regional employment centre (RAV) get a head start. In 2026 this applies, for example, to cleaning and auxiliary staff, cooks and unskilled construction workers.

Two official immigration lists show where the government sees staff shortages:

• the Immigration Salary List (updated November 2025) – e.g. care managers, senior care workers and nursing auxiliaries, bricklayers, roofers, carpenters and joiners, welders, laboratory and pharmaceutical technicians, biological scientists, graphic and multimedia designers, musicians and dancers,
• the Temporary Shortage List (published July 2025) – medium-skilled jobs such as laboratory and IT operations technicians, database administrators, electricians, plumbers, welders, vehicle mechanics, construction supervisors, data analysts and logistics managers.

Both lists matter mostly if you need a Skilled Worker visa: jobs on them can qualify with a lower salary or a lower skill level. Overall, demand for staff is cooling – vacancies stood at 702,000 in June–August 2026 and the number of payroll employees fell by 101,000 in the year to July 2026, so plan your search carefully and apply widely.