A UK visa sponsorship job needs a licensed employer, a degree-level role, and a salary of £41,700 or the going rate. This guide explains each rule, the costs, and how to check a sponsor.
This guide is general information, not immigration advice. Check GOV.UK before you apply or pay anyone. ukjobly.com publishes guides only and cannot promise you a job, a visa, or sponsorship.
Key takeaways
- You need a job offer from a Home Office-approved employer — you cannot apply for sponsorship on your own.
- Since 22 July 2025, most Skilled Worker jobs must be degree-level (RQF 6) and pay at least £41,700 a year or the going rate, whichever is higher.
- Some people can qualify on £33,400 — new entrants, recent graduates, PhD holders, and jobs on the Immigration Salary List.
- Check every employer on GOV.UK’s Register of licensed sponsors before you apply or pay anything.
- Your employer pays the £525 Certificate of Sponsorship fee and the Immigration Skills Charge. Never pay for sponsorship yourself.
- Health and care roles use the Health and Care Worker visa (no health surcharge). UK graduates can work first on a Graduate visa and switch later.
What a UK visa sponsorship job is
Sponsorship means a licensed UK employer offers you a job and issues a Certificate of Sponsorship, the document you need for a work visa. Without a licensed employer, there is no sponsorship route.
The three main routes are the Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, and Graduate visas, the last needs no sponsor, but only for students who finished an eligible UK course.
ukjobly.com lists no jobs. This guide explains the rules so you can check the employer is licensed before you apply.
Skilled Worker visa: the rules that decide it
The Skilled Worker visa is the main route, replacing the Tier 2 (General) visa. Five checks decide it: a licensed employer, a Certificate of Sponsorship, an eligible occupation code, a salary that meets the rule, and English at level B2. You need 70 points: 50 fixed, 20 from one salary option.
The visa lasts up to 5 years per grant, extendable if you still meet the rules. After 5 years you may be able to settle permanently.
Salary: £41,700 and the going rate
Your salary must be the higher of £41,700 a year or the going rate for your occupation code. Every code has its own annual going rate, published by the Home Office.
- Standard: £41,700 or going rate, whichever is higher
- New entrant (under 26, Student/Graduate switch, professional training): £33,400 a year
- STEM PhD: 80% of going rate (min £33,400)
- Non-STEM PhD: 90% of going rate (min £37,500)
- Postdoctoral: 70% of going rate
- ISL job: £33,400 + full going rate
GOV.UK example: £42,000 against a £45,000 going rate does not meet the rule, even though £42,000 is above the £41,700 floor.
Note: salary is paid in each pay period, not averaged across the year, so check the current rule on GOV.UK.
Skill level: RQF 6 and the two shortage lists
Since 22 July 2025, Skilled Worker jobs must normally be degree-level (RQF 6). Over 100 occupations that used to qualify at RQF 3–5 no longer do.
The Immigration Salary List (ISL) gives skilled jobs lower salary rules and a lower fee, at least £33,400 a year plus the full going rate. The Temporary Shortage List (TSL) covers medium-skilled jobs that can be sponsored for a limited time.
GOV.UK gives no end date for either list, both are interim measures that can change, so check the current list on GOV.UK and whether a job is listed for the part of the UK you will work in.
Find your 4-digit occupation code from the employer or GOV.UK’s CASCOT tool, then check the Home Office table.
What your employer must do: licence and Certificate of Sponsorship
An employer needs a sponsor licence first: £611 for small businesses and charities, £1,682 for medium and large organisations. A licence application usually takes around 8 weeks.
Once licensed, the employer assigns you a Certificate of Sponsorship, an electronic record, not a paper document, with a reference number for your visa application. Apply within 3 months of getting it, and up to 3 months before your start date.
Each hire costs the employer £525 for the certificate, plus the Immigration Skills Charge (£480 or £1,320 for year one, then £240 or £660 per extra 6 months). The employer must pay these costs itself, it cannot pass them to you, and a licence may be revoked if it asks you to pay them.
How to check an employer is a licensed sponsor
GOV.UK publishes the Register of licensed sponsors: workers, every organisation holding a Worker or Temporary Worker licence, with name, town, route and rating. It is updated often, so download a fresh copy each time (last checked: 11 November 2026).
Open the register on GOV.UK and download the latest copy. Search the employer’s exact legal name (try part of it, as the legal name can differ from the brand name). Check the route column says Skilled Worker and the town or city matches your offer.
Being on the register proves the employer can sponsor, not that the job is real or that it will sponsor you. Check the job itself: a real interview, a written contract, and a salary that meets the rules in this guide.
What it costs you — and what your employer pays
Your costs are the visa fee and the Immigration Health Surcharge. All fees below are per person, from the fee table in force from 8 April 2026. Fees change, usually each April, so check GOV.UK first.
- Outside the UK: £819 up to 3 years, £1,618 over 3 years
- Inside the UK: £943 up to 3 years, £1,865 over 3 years
- ISL job: £628 up to 3 years, £1,235 over 3 years
- Health surcharge: usually £1,035 a year (£776 under-18s)
- Maintenance: at least £1,270, held for 28 days
GOV.UK example: a 2-year visa from outside the UK costs £819 + (2 × £1,035) = £2,889; a 5-year visa costs £1,618 + (5 × £1,035) = £6,793.
Your employer pays the £525 certificate fee and the Immigration Skills Charge, it cannot pass them to you.
English language: B2
New applicants must prove English at level B2 (CEFR) in reading, writing, speaking and listening. If you held this visa before 8 January 2026 and are extending it, level B1 applies and you do not need to prove it again.
Prove it with an approved Secure English Language Test (SELT), a UK degree, a degree taught in English (checked through Ecctis), a UK school qualification, or nationality of a listed majority-English-speaking country. Doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives and vets can use their regulator’s assessment.
If you are switching from a Health and Care Worker visa, you do not need to prove your English again.
Health and Care Worker visa: the related route
This visa is for qualified doctors, nurses, health professionals and adult social care professionals working for the NHS, an NHS supplier, or in adult social care. It needs a confirmed eligible job, a licensed health or care employer, and a Certificate of Sponsorship.
No Immigration Health Surcharge applies: you and your dependants do not pay it, and you can use the NHS free from the day your visa starts. The fee is lower than the Skilled Worker fee; check it on GOV.UK.
Salary is usually at least £25,000 a year or the going rate, whichever is higher (some listed codes: £31,300 or the lower going rate). NHS roles follow national pay scales by band and area. Decisions take about 3 weeks; the visa lasts up to 5 years, and settlement is possible after 5 years.
Graduate visa: work first, sponsor later
The Graduate visa is for international students who finished an eligible UK course on a Student or Tier 4 (General) visa. You must be in the UK when you apply. No sponsor is needed: you can work in most jobs, look for work, or be self-employed.
It lasts 2 years if you apply on or before 31 December 2026, 18 months if you apply on or after 1 January 2027, and 3 years for PhD or other doctoral graduates.
The fee is £937 plus the Immigration Health Surcharge (usually £1,035 a year). Decisions usually come within 8 weeks. The visa cannot be extended, but you can switch to Skilled Worker if you find a sponsored job. Time on a Graduate visa counts towards the 4-year limit for the new-entrant salary rate.
Care worker jobs: what changed in 2025
New overseas sponsorship for care workers (occupation codes 6135) and senior care workers (6136) closed on 22 July 2025. Adverts that still promise overseas care sponsorship are out of date or not genuine.
What still works: people already in the UK on another visa can still switch into care roles until 22 July 2028, under a transitional arrangement. Employers of care workers in England must be registered with the Care Quality Commission.
If care work is your route, look at other health roles on the Health and Care Worker visa instead.
Scams and red flags
Never pay for a job offer or a Certificate of Sponsorship: a real sponsor pays the £525 certificate fee and the Immigration Skills Charge itself. Anyone asking you to pay for sponsorship is a red flag.
- Payment by bank transfer to a personal account, gift card, or crypto.
- A “guaranteed visa” promise; no one can guarantee a visa.
- No written contract.
- An agent who will not give a UK company address.
- Pressure to pay at once.
The check that protects you: search the employer on GOV.UK’s Register of licensed sponsors, with a fresh download, before you pay or send documents. If the name is not on the register, or it does not match your offer letter, stop. Report suspected fraud to Action Fraud and to the Home Office.
Your step-by-step plan
- Pick roles that match the rules: degree-level (RQF 6), salary at least £41,700 or the going rate. The Civil Service Jobs in London also hires, but many Civil Service roles need existing right to work, so do not count on sponsorship there.
- Find employers on GOV.UK’s Register of licensed sponsors holding a Skilled Worker licence.
- Apply with a UK-style CV.
- Attend the interview, get the offer and your Certificate of Sponsorship. First read Interview Tips UK.
- Prove your English and show the maintenance money, unless your sponsor certifies it.
- Apply online within 3 months of getting it, and no earlier than 3 months before your start date.
- Wait for the decision: usually 3 weeks from outside the UK, 8 weeks from inside.
Also read How to Find a Job in the UK.
Frequently Asked Questions
What salary do I need for a Skilled Worker visa?
Usually £41,700 a year or the going rate for your job, whichever is higher. Some people can qualify on £33,400 — for example, new entrants under 26, recent graduates, and jobs on the Immigration Salary List.
Do I need a job offer before I apply?
Yes. You need a confirmed job offer from a Home Office-approved employer, and the employer must give you a Certificate of Sponsorship before you apply.
How do I check if an employer can sponsor me?
Search the employer’s exact legal name on GOV.UK’s Register of licensed sponsors: workers. Check the route column says Skilled Worker and the name matches your offer letter.
How much does a Skilled Worker visa cost?
From outside the UK, £819 for up to 3 years or £1,618 for longer, plus £1,035 a year for the health surcharge. Your employer pays the £525 certificate fee and the Immigration Skills Charge.
Can I get a sponsored job as a care worker?
Not from outside the UK. New overseas sponsorship for care workers closed on 22 July 2025. People already in the UK on another visa can still switch into care roles until 22 July 2028.
What English level do I need?
New applicants need English at level B2 in reading, writing, speaking and listening. You can prove it with an approved test, a UK degree, or a degree taught in English.
Sources
- Skilled Worker visa: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa
- Skilled Worker visa: How much it costs: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/how-much-it-costs
- Skilled Worker visa: Knowledge of English: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/knowledge-of-english
- Health and Care Worker visa: https://www.gov.uk/health-care-worker-visa
- Graduate visa: https://www.gov.uk/graduate-visa
- Register of licensed sponsors: workers: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/register-of-licensed-sponsors-workers
Sources checked November 2026.
