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UK Visa Sponsorship Q3 2025 Report: 18.4% Growth, Key Sectors & Role Trends

March 18, 2026
3 min read
By Amogh Kanvinde

The latest official UK government data on visa sponsorship is here, and the numbers tell a compelling story for international candidates.

Explore the full data

Use the interactive dashboard to explore the complete breakdown by sector, role, company, salary band, and biggest movers.

New Data

UK Visa Sponsorship: Q3 2024 vs Q3 2025

Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) issued — official UK government data

Total CoS Q3 2024
65,078
Total CoS Q3 2025
77,075
▲ +18.4%
Unique sponsors 2024
22,633
Unique sponsors 2025
26,793
▲ +18.4%

CoS by sector

Q3 2024Q3 2025
Health & Social Care
29,390
32,880
Other
11,406
13,552
Tech & IT
8,014
9,877
Sales & Marketing
3,717
4,957
Finance
3,594
4,035
Hospitality & Food
2,903
4,264
Engineering
1,868
2,277
Education & Research
1,851
1,926
Consulting & Mgmt
1,739
2,523
Legal
596
784
17,288
New sponsors appeared in Q3 2025 that weren't in Q3 2024
13,128
Sponsors from Q3 2024 did not return in Q3 2025

In Q3 2025, a total of 77,075 Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) were issued — an 18.4% increase compared to Q3 2024 (65,078). The number of unique sponsoring employers also grew by 18.4%, from 22,633 to 26,793.

What this means for your job search

The market is expanding. More companies are sponsoring, more roles are being filled through the visa route, and some sectors are growing at nearly double the overall rate.

If you're actively looking for a sponsored role right now, this data gives you a significant edge — you can see exactly which sectors, roles, and companies are sponsoring the most, and where growth is accelerating.

Key highlights

Here are the standout trends from the data:

  • Health & Social Care remains the dominant sector with 32,880 CoS (up from 29,390)
  • Tech & IT saw strong growth, rising from 8,014 to 9,877 CoS — a 23.2% increase
  • The £50k–£79,999 salary band grew 33.4% — nearly double the overall market growth
  • 17,288 brand-new sponsors entered the market in Q3 2025 who weren't there in Q3 2024
  • Restaurant & catering managers saw the most dramatic role growth at +109.9%

Check sponsorship history for any company you're applying to

Our free Chrome extension shows you real GOV.UK sponsorship data for any company and role — right on LinkedIn, Indeed, and every job board.