UK Visa SponsorsUpdated: ...
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UK Visa SponsorsStraight answers to the questions we hear most about UK visa sponsorship, from finding a licensed employer to what sponsorship costs and how this site works.
A Tier 2 sponsor licence (now called a Worker licence) allows UK employers to hire skilled workers from outside the UK who need a visa to work. Organisations with this licence can sponsor Skilled Worker visas and other work visa categories. The licence is issued by the Home Office after an employer demonstrates they can meet compliance obligations.
You can use our sponsor search database to find licensed employers by location, industry, or company name. All employers listed have been verified against the official UK government Register of Licensed Sponsors. We recommend filtering by your target industry and location, then researching companies individually for relevant job openings.
No, only employers who hold a valid sponsor licence can sponsor work visas. Not all UK employers have this licence - it requires an application process with the Home Office. You can verify if a company can sponsor you by searching our database or checking the official government register.
As of 2026, the general salary threshold for a Skilled Worker visa is £41,700 per year or the 'going rate' for your specific occupation, whichever is higher. There are reduced rates for 'new entrants' (those under 26, switching from a Student visa, or in postdoctoral positions) at £33,400 minimum. Healthcare workers have lower thresholds.
A Certificate of Sponsorship is an electronic record (not a physical document) that your employer creates to sponsor your visa application. It contains a unique reference number, your job details, salary, and start date. You need this reference number to apply for your visa. The CoS is valid for 3 months.
Yes, you can change employers while on a Skilled Worker visa. However, you must have a new job offer from another licensed sponsor, receive a new Certificate of Sponsorship, and apply to update your visa before starting the new job. You cannot start working for the new employer until your visa update is approved.
The timeline varies. After receiving your Certificate of Sponsorship, visa processing typically takes 3 weeks for applications from outside the UK and up to 8 weeks for applications from within the UK. Priority services can reduce this to 5 working days, and super-priority to the next working day where available.
If your sponsored employment ends, your employer must report this to the Home Office within 10 days. Your visa permission is then curtailed, giving you 60 days (or until your visa expires, if sooner) to find a new sponsored job, apply for a different visa, or leave the UK. You cannot work during this period without new sponsorship.
Yes, you can bring your partner (spouse, civil partner, or unmarried partner) and children under 18 as dependants. They can apply at the same time as you or join you later. Dependants can work and study freely in the UK without restrictions. Each dependant must pay the visa application fee and Immigration Health Surcharge.
The Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) is a fee that gives visa holders access to the UK's National Health Service. The current rate is £1,035 per year for most applicants, or £776 for students and under-18s. Healthcare workers (doctors, nurses, care workers) are exempt from the IHS. The fee is paid when you apply for your visa.
To become a licensed sponsor, you must apply through the Home Office's online system, pay the application fee (£611 for small/charitable sponsors, £1,682 for medium/large), provide supporting documents about your business, designate key personnel, and demonstrate you can meet compliance obligations. Processing typically takes 8 weeks, or 10 working days with priority service.
As a sponsor, you must: report changes to sponsored workers' circumstances within required timeframes, keep records of sponsored workers' contact details and documents, prevent illegal working through right-to-work checks, cooperate with Home Office compliance visits, and ensure jobs meet skill and salary requirements. Failure to comply can result in licence downgrade or revocation.
Costs include: sponsor licence application fee (£611 for small/charitable or £1,682 for medium/large), Certificate of Sponsorship fee (£525 per worker for Skilled Worker routes), and Immigration Skills Charge (£480 or £1,320 per sponsored year per worker, depending on company size). Additional costs may include immigration adviser fees and administrative time for compliance management.
The Immigration Skills Charge is a fee paid by sponsors for each year they sponsor a worker on certain visa routes. Large and medium sponsors pay £1,320 per year; small or charitable sponsors pay £480 per year (rates from December 2025). The charge helps fund UK skills development and is paid upfront when the worker submits their visa application.
Yes, the Home Office can revoke your sponsor licence for serious or persistent compliance failures, immigration offences, fraud, or if your business ceases to operate. Revocation means all sponsored workers have their visas curtailed, you cannot apply for a new licence for at least 12 months, and you may face civil penalties.
A compliance visit is an inspection by the Home Office to verify you're meeting your sponsor duties. Officers may visit with little or no notice to check your record-keeping, interview key personnel, verify sponsored workers are employed as stated, and assess your HR systems. Poor compliance can result in licence downgrade or suspension.
You must report within 10 working days: if a sponsored worker doesn't start as expected, if they're absent without permission for 10+ consecutive days, if their employment ends (any reason), significant changes to their job duties, changes to their contact details, or if you suspect an immigration offence. Use the Sponsor Management System for reporting.
No, sponsored roles must meet minimum skill level requirements (RQF level 6 or above, equivalent to graduate level) and pay at least the salary threshold (£41,700 or the going rate for that occupation). Jobs must have an appropriate Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code, and you may need to demonstrate the role is genuine.
Our database is automatically updated daily from the official UK Government Register of Licensed Sponsors. This ensures you have access to the most current information about sponsor licence holders, including recently added sponsors and any licence revocations.
All our data comes directly from the UK Home Office's official Register of Licensed Sponsors, published on GOV.UK. This is the authoritative source for sponsor licence information. We process this data to make it more searchable and user-friendly, but the underlying information is always from the official government source.
Yes, searching and browsing the sponsor directory is completely free. We believe access to sponsorship information shouldn't be a barrier for job seekers. We offer premium features like historical CSV data downloads for researchers and professionals who need bulk data access.
No, UK Sponsors is an independent service and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the UK Government, Home Office, or any government agency. We use publicly available data from official government sources but are an independent commercial service. For official immigration advice, always consult GOV.UK or a regulated immigration adviser.
We offer CSV downloads of the sponsor database for users who need bulk access to the data. This includes historical snapshots showing how the sponsor register has changed over time. Visit our Downloads page to learn more about available data exports and access options.
You can verify any company's sponsor status by searching our database, which is synced daily with the official government register. For additional verification, you can cross-reference with the official Register of Licensed Sponsors published on GOV.UK. Never trust claims of sponsorship without verification.
Our data comes directly from the official government register, so any errors likely exist in the source data. However, if you notice discrepancies between our data and the official register, please contact us at hello@uksponsors.com and we'll investigate. We strive to maintain perfect accuracy with the official source.
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