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Check If A Company Sponsors UK Visas
Search the official Home Office register of licensed sponsors. See licence status, sponsorship history, and activity level — in one click.
Why check before you apply
To hire a worker on a Skilled Worker visa, a UK employer must hold an active sponsor licence issued by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI). Without one, they cannot make you a job offer that leads to a visa — regardless of how much they want to hire you.
The problem is that most job listings don't say whether the company can sponsor. You can spend 45 minutes writing a tailored cover letter, get to the final round, and only then hear: "We can't sponsor visas at this time."
Checking takes 10 seconds and saves hours of wasted effort. That's what the search tool above does — and what the UK Visa Sponsorship Checker Chrome extension does automatically as you browse job boards.
Three ways to check
1. Use the free search tool (above)
Type the company name and press Search. The tool maps trading names to registered legal entities — searching 'Deloitte' correctly returns 'Deloitte LLP'. Results include visa route, location, and annual CoS history since 2022.
2. Install the Chrome extension (fastest while job searching)
The UK Visa Sponsorship Checker extension works on LinkedIn, Indeed, Glassdoor, Totaljobs, and every other job board. It automatically shows sponsor status and history next to each company as you browse — no searching needed.
Install free — Chrome Web Store3. Check the official Home Office register directly
The UK government publishes the register of licensed sponsors: workers as a downloadable spreadsheet, updated roughly every two weeks. It contains over 125,000 rows and is not searchable by trading name. The search tool above solves this.
What the results mean
| Result | What it means |
|---|---|
| ✅ Confirmed Visa Sponsor | Appears on the active register — can legally make a Skilled Worker visa offer. |
| ❌ Not a registered sponsor | Not on the list. Cannot sponsor a Skilled Worker visa. Try the full legal name. |
| ★★★ Actively Sponsoring | Has issued Certificates of Sponsorship in 2025 — bringing in international workers right now. |
| ★★ Limited Activity | Sponsored in 2024 but not yet in 2025. May still sponsor but less frequently. |
| ★ No Recent Sponsorship | On the register but no recent CoS. Technically licensed but not actively hiring visa workers. |
Tips for accurate results
- ✓Search by legal name, not brand — Trading names and registered legal entities often differ. If 'Meta' returns nothing, try 'Facebook UK Ltd'. If 'PwC' returns nothing, try 'PricewaterhouseCoopers'.
- ✓Try partial names — If you get no match, search just the first word. Suffixes like Ltd, LLP, Limited, or PLC affect matching.
- ✓Look at activity, not just the licence — Focus on ★★★ Actively Sponsoring companies — they are issuing CoS right now.
- ✓Use the extension for bulk checking — If you are job searching at volume, the Chrome extension checks every company automatically as you scroll.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check if a UK company sponsors visas?▾
Use the search tool at the top of this page — type the company name and press Search. The tool checks the official Home Office register and returns licence status and visa history within seconds.
What does it mean if a company is on the sponsor licence list?▾
UKVI has approved them to sponsor workers on the Skilled Worker visa, Health and Care Worker visa, or related routes. Being on the list means they're legally able to sponsor — not necessarily that they're actively hiring sponsored roles right now.
Can I trust the results?▾
Yes. Results come from the official Home Office register. The search engine maps trading names to registered legal entities so you get the right match even when the brand name and legal name differ.
What if the company doesn't appear?▾
If no result is returned, the company is not a licensed UK visa sponsor. Try their full legal name (Ltd, LLP, PLC). If still nothing, they genuinely are not on the register.
Related tools & guides
Check on every job board, automatically
The free Chrome extension shows sponsor status on LinkedIn, Indeed, Glassdoor and every job board as you browse — no searching required.
Install Free — Chrome Web Store