UK visa sponsor checker
Search the Home Office register of licensed sponsors by company name or town. If an employer is listed, it holds a licence to sponsor workers. That is not a promise of sponsorship for any job, and you should never pay an employer or agent for a job or for sponsorship.
Our copy of the register is dated 23 October 2026 and lists 126,830 organisations.
Search the register
How to use it
How to read the register, and what it does not tell you
What it is. The Home Office publishes a list of UK organisations that hold a licence to sponsor workers and temporary workers, with one row for each route. Our copy holds 126,830 organisations. Each row gives the organisation's name, town and county, the route and an A or B rating.
What it is not. A listing is not a job. A licensed employer chooses which roles to sponsor, and a job must have an eligible occupation (SOC) code and pay at least the going rate for it. The general minimum is £41,700 a year or the going rate, whichever is higher, and it can be £33,400 for under-26s, recent graduates and people in professional training (checked 28 October 2026).
Agencies. A recruitment agency on the register sponsors its own staff, not the client's job. Our job tags never mark agency adverts as licensed sponsors.
Scams. You should never pay an employer or agent for a job or for sponsorship. Genuine employers pay the licence fee and the Immigration Skills Charge themselves. A firm that is not on the register cannot sponsor you. Read how to stay safe when you look for work, and report an employer that asks for money.
Jobs. See live engineering jobs from licensed sponsors, or browse by trade and city: maintenance, electrical, graduate engineers and visa sponsorship jobs in London.
Source: Register of licensed sponsors: workers, GOV.UK (opens in a new tab).
Checked 28 October 2026
Rules at a glance, checked 28 October 2026
These are the Skilled Worker rules that matter for this trade. They change, so read GOV.UK before you act. This is not immigration advice.
- General salary threshold: £41,700 a year, or the going rate for the occupation code if that is higher.
- Lower threshold: £33,400 if you are under 26, a current or recent UK student or Graduate visa holder, or in professional training (70% of the going rate).
- Skill level: since 22 July 2025 the route generally needs a job at degree level (RQF level 6). Medium-skilled jobs qualify only if they are also on the Temporary Shortage List or the Immigration Salary List and meet the salary rules.
- English: level B2 for new applicants (since 8 January 2026).
- Source: Skilled Worker visa: your job, GOV.UK (opens in a new tab); when you can be paid less (opens in a new tab)
Occupation codes for this trade
| SOC | Job type | Skill level | Shortage list |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2122 | Mechanical engineers | Higher | Not needed |
| 2123 | Electrical engineers | Higher | Not needed |
| 2125 | Production and process engineers | Higher | Not needed |
| 3113 | Engineering technicians | Medium | On list, £42,500 |
| 3112 | Electrical and electronics technicians | Medium | On list, £39,300 |
| 5223 | Metal working production and maintenance fitters | Medium | On list, £39,300 |
| 5241 | Electricians and electrical fitters | Medium | On list, £38,800 |
| 5221 | CNC setters and setter-operators | Medium | Not on list |
| 5224 | Calibration and precision instrument technicians | Medium | Not on list |
The Temporary Shortage List has 52 occupations and expires on 31 December 2026. The Migration Advisory Committee's report of 23 July 2026 recommends 28 occupations for 18 months more. The government had not decided when we checked, so we update this page when it does.
Source: Temporary Shortage List, GOV.UK (opens in a new tab); MAC Stage 2 report (opens in a new tab).
Two things to remember
- A sponsor licence is not a promise of sponsorship for this job. The employer decides that for each role, and the Home Office decides the visa.
- You should never pay an employer or agent for a job or for sponsorship. Check any employer on the Home Office register before you share documents.
FAQ
Questions people ask
How do I check if a company is a licensed visa sponsor?
Type the company's name into the search above, or search the Home Office register of licensed sponsors on GOV.UK. If the organisation is listed, it holds a licence to sponsor workers on the routes shown. The register has no company number, so check that the town matches the employer you are dealing with.
Does a sponsor licence mean the company will sponsor me?
No. A sponsor licence is not a promise of sponsorship for any job. A licensed employer chooses which roles to sponsor, and the job must be eligible: a degree-level job, or a medium-skilled job on the Temporary Shortage List, paid at least the going rate. The Home Office decides the visa.
What do the A and B ratings and the routes mean?
An A rating means the sponsor meets the Home Office's requirements; a B rating means it has to improve and cannot issue new certificates of sponsorship until it does. The route says what the licence covers, for example Skilled Worker, or Global Business Mobility for staff transferring within a company. Only routes for employees are relevant to a job search.
How often is the register updated?
The Home Office publishes the register on working days. Our search reads a copy that we update from the published file, and the date of the copy is shown on this page, so a very recent change may not be in it yet. Check the GOV.UK register for the latest.
Can I trust a recruiter who asks for money to arrange sponsorship?
No. You should never pay an employer or agent for a job or for sponsorship. Check that the employer is on the register, ask for the job offer in writing and read our guide to staying safe when you look for work. The Home Office has warned that overseas workers have lost thousands of pounds to firms that were not on the register.
Which engineering jobs can be sponsored?
Degree-level engineering jobs, such as control and instrumentation, production and electrical engineers, can be sponsored under the general rules. Maintenance fitters, electricians and technicians are medium skilled, so they qualify only while their occupation code is on the Temporary Shortage List, which expires on 31 December 2026 (checked 28 October 2026).
Licence and sources
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (opens in a new tab). EDWartens does not sponsor visas, does not give immigration advice and does not check right to work. This page is a search of a public list, not an endorsement of any employer.