UK Visa Sponsor List 2026

Every company that wants to hire a non-settled worker in the UK must hold a sponsor licence issued by the Home Office. The complete list of these companies — the Register of Licensed Sponsors — is publicly available and updated regularly. As of today, there are 115,846 licensed sponsors on the Skilled Worker route, of which 115,831 hold an A-rating and 15 hold a B-rating.

But the raw register is just a spreadsheet with company names and ratings. It does not tell you which companies are actually hiring, whether they are willing to sponsor for your role, or how likely they are to say yes. That is the problem SkilledWorker solves: we match the register with live job listings to show you which sponsors are actually recruiting right now.

What is the sponsor register?

The Register of Licensed Sponsors is a CSV file published by the Home Office on gov.uk. It contains every UK organisation that holds an active sponsor licence. For each sponsor, the register shows:

• Organisation name: The legal name of the company. This is often different from the trading name (e.g., Alphabet International LLC instead of Google). SkilledWorker shows both where available.
• Town/city: The registered address of the company. For companies with multiple offices, this is just the head office location.
• Rating: Either A (compliant) or B (compliance issues identified).
• Route: Which visa routes the licence covers. A company might be licensed for Skilled Worker only, or for multiple routes.

Register breakdown

Data refreshed daily from the Home Office register.

The vast majority of sponsors are A-rated. B-rated sponsors are relatively rare and are expected to resolve their compliance issues within an agreed timeframe. See our detailed guide on A vs B ratings for what this means for your visa.

Visa routes explained

A sponsor licence can cover one or more visa routes. The main routes you will see on the register are:

• Skilled Worker: The main route for overseas workers filling skilled roles. Requires a job offer at the appropriate salary threshold from a licensed sponsor. This is the route most people use and the one SkilledWorker focuses on.
• Health and Care Worker: A subcategory of Skilled Worker for eligible health and care professionals. Offers reduced fees, no Immigration Health Surcharge, and lower salary thresholds. Eligible roles include doctors, nurses, care workers, and allied health professionals.
• Senior or Specialist Worker (Global Business Mobility): For intra-company transfers of senior managers or specialist employees. The worker must have been employed by the overseas entity for at least 12 months.
• Scale-up: For workers joining fast-growing UK businesses. After 6 months, the worker is no longer tied to the sponsoring employer. Requires the company to meet specific growth criteria.
• Temporary Worker: Covers several subcategories including charity workers, religious workers, creative workers, and government-authorised exchange schemes. Generally shorter duration and more restrictive.

How sponsorship works

The Skilled Worker visa process has four main steps:

1. The company offers you a job. They must hold a valid sponsor licence and the role must be at RQF Level 3 or above (A-level equivalent). The salary must meet the threshold for the relevant SOC code.
2. The company assigns a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS). This is a digital record containing your job title, salary, and SOC code. The company creates this through the Sponsorship Management System (SMS).
3. You apply for the visa. You need your CoS reference number, proof of English language ability (IELTS at B1 level or equivalent), and evidence of financial maintenance (£1,270 in savings for 28 consecutive days, unless the employer certifies maintenance).
4. Decision. Standard processing takes 3-8 weeks. Priority processing (£500 extra) takes 5 working days. Super Priority (£1,000 extra, where available) provides a decision by the end of the next working day.

How to read the register yourself

If you want to check the raw register:

1. Go to gov.uk/government/publications/register-of-licensed-sponsors-workers
2. Download the CSV file (labelled Worker and Temporary Worker)
3. Open it in Excel, Google Sheets, or any spreadsheet application
4. Use Ctrl+F (or Cmd+F on Mac) to search for the company legal name
5. Check the Route column confirms Skilled Worker
6. Check the Rating column for A or B

The register uses legal names, not trading names. Deliveroo is listed as Roofoods Limited. Google is Google UK Limited. If you cannot find a company, try partial name searches or check Companies House for the legal entity name.

How SkilledWorker adds value beyond the raw register

The register tells you who can sponsor. SkilledWorker tells you who is likely to sponsor. Here is what we add:

• Live job data: We continuously index job listings from major job boards and match them to sponsors on the register. You can see not just that a company holds a licence, but whether they are actively hiring.
• Sponsorship likelihood: Our algorithm analyses job listing language, hiring volume, historical patterns, and rating to estimate how likely a company is to sponsor. A company with 50 active jobs mentioning visa sponsorship is very different from one with a licence but no open roles.
• Searchable and filterable: Instead of scrolling through 120,000+ rows in a CSV, you can search by company name, location, or industry and filter by rating, likelihood, and active job count.
• Salary threshold checking: We flag jobs that meet or fall below the Skilled Worker visa salary threshold for the relevant SOC code, so you do not waste time on roles that will not qualify.
• Company profiles: Each sponsor has a dedicated page showing their rating, active jobs, historical hiring data, and sponsorship likelihood.

Key facts for 2026

• The general salary threshold is £38,700 per year (or the going rate for your occupation, whichever is higher)
• Healthcare workers on the Health and Care Worker visa only need to meet the going rate
• New entrants (under 26, recent graduates) may qualify at 70% of the going rate
• The register is updated regularly as companies gain, lose, or surrender their licences
• A Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) from a licensed sponsor is required to apply
• Visa processing takes 3-8 weeks standard, or 5 working days with priority service

Tips for using the sponsor register effectively

1. Do not apply blindly to every company on the list. Having a licence does not mean a company is hiring or willing to sponsor your specific role. Focus on companies with active job listings that mention sponsorship.
2. Check the rating before accepting an offer. A-rated sponsors are strongly preferred. If a company is B-rated, understand the implications (their licence could be revoked, which would affect your visa).
3. Use the likelihood signal. It saves you from the guesswork of checking individual companies one by one.
4. Look beyond London. While London has the highest concentration of sponsors, cities like Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Bristol, and Leeds have thousands of licensed sponsors with less competition.
5. Set up alerts. New sponsors are added regularly. Checking back periodically ensures you do not miss new opportunities.
6. Verify before interviews. Company licences can be revoked between the time they post a job and the time you interview. A quick check on SkilledWorker confirms the company still holds an active licence.
7. Have your documents ready. English language test results, degree certificates, and financial evidence all take time to gather. Having them ready before you apply means you can move quickly when an offer comes.

Frequently asked questions