Software Engineer Jobs in the UK with Visa Sponsorship 2026/2027: Earn Up to £150,000 a Year

Software Engineer jobs in the UK with visa sponsorship can offer international technology professionals access to a large digital economy, globally recognised companies and a potential five-year route to permanent residence.

A current UK Senior Software Engineer vacancy offers:

£120,000 to £150,000 per year plus equity

The employer explicitly states that visa sponsorship is available and that it welcomes international applicants. The role requires at least five years of experience and involves artificial intelligence, workflow architecture, mobile applications and end-to-end product ownership. This demonstrates that sponsored Software Engineers can earn £150,000 in selected senior positions, although it is not a typical starting salary for every international applicant.

Other current UK engineering vacancies include:

£115,000 to £130,000 plus share options for a London Senior Software Engineer position offering visa sponsorship.
£120,000 to £140,000 for a Founding Senior Platform Engineer role offering visa sponsorship.
£123,000 to £149,000 plus equity for a London Senior Software Engineer.
£110,000 to £150,000 plus equity for a Lead Software Engineer.
£100,000 to £120,000 plus equity for a Senior Platform Engineer.

These figures represent selected senior, staff, lead and founding-engineer positions rather than the wider UK software-development market.

The UK National Careers Service gives a broader Software Developer salary range of approximately:

£30,000 for starters to £75,000 for experienced professionals

It also reports typical working hours of around 37 to 40 hours per week. Senior specialists, engineering leaders and developers employed by high-growth London technology companies may earn substantially more than this general career range.

For most applicants from outside the United Kingdom and Ireland, the principal employer-sponsored immigration route is the:

Skilled Worker visa

A successful applicant normally needs:

A confirmed job offer.
A qualifying occupation.
A Home Office-licensed employer.
A Certificate of Sponsorship.
Salary meeting both the general threshold and the occupation’s going rate.
English-language evidence.
Sufficient maintenance funds unless the sponsor certifies maintenance.
Approval from UK Visas and Immigration.

The visa can normally be granted for up to five years and may lead to indefinite leave to remain after five qualifying years.

Quick Overview

Occupation: Software Engineer or Software Developer
Primary occupation code: 2134
Official occupation: Programmers and software development professionals
Skill classification: Higher skilled
Main visa: Skilled Worker visa
Employer requirement: Home Office sponsor licence
Sponsor rating normally required: A-rated
Certificate of Sponsorship: Electronic sponsorship record
Standard general salary threshold: £41,700 per year
Software-development going rate: £54,700 per year
Normal minimum for occupation code 2134: £54,700 for a 37.5-hour week
Relevant non-STEM PhD rate: £49,200
Relevant STEM PhD rate: £43,700
New-entrant going rate: £38,300
Minimum new-entrant general threshold: £33,400
Practical new-entrant minimum for code 2134: £38,300
English requirement for most new applications: CEFR B2
Visa validity: Up to five years
Outside-UK application fee for up to three years: £819
Outside-UK application fee for more than three years: £1,618
Immigration Health Surcharge: Usually £1,035 per year
Maintenance funds for the principal applicant: Normally £1,270
Typical decision time outside the UK: Three weeks
Typical decision time inside the UK: Eight weeks
Dependants: Eligible partners and children can normally apply
Dependant partner work rights: Generally unrestricted, except professional sportsperson or coach
Permanent-residence route: Potentially after five years
Selected high-end sponsored salary: Up to £150,000 plus equity
2027 rules: Salary, fee and immigration requirements must be checked again before applying

Can Foreign Software Engineers Get Visa Sponsorship in the UK?

Yes. UK employers can sponsor overseas Software Engineers when they hold the correct sponsor licence and the role satisfies the Skilled Worker requirements.

The applicant must have a confirmed job offer from a Home Office-approved employer. The employer assigns an electronic Certificate of Sponsorship containing information about the job, salary, occupation code and proposed employment dates. The worker then uses the certificate reference number in the visa application.

A typical sponsorship process involves:

The employer identifies a genuine Software Engineer vacancy.
The employer confirms the correct occupation code.
The employer checks that the salary meets the immigration rules.
The candidate completes technical and behavioural interviews.
The employer issues a written employment contract.
The sponsor requests or allocates the appropriate Certificate of Sponsorship.
The employer assigns the certificate to the selected candidate.
The applicant gathers English, financial and identity evidence.
The applicant submits the Skilled Worker visa application.
UK Visas and Immigration assesses the application.
The applicant receives the immigration decision.
The employee travels to the UK and begins work under the approved conditions.

The Certificate of Sponsorship is an electronic record rather than a paper certificate. A worker must normally submit the visa application within three months of receiving it.

A sponsored job offer does not guarantee:

Visa approval
Entry to the United Kingdom
Employment after probation
Indefinite leave to remain
British citizenship
A £150,000 salary
Approval of future employer changes

The Home Office independently assesses each application.

What Does Visa Sponsorship Mean in the UK?

Visa sponsorship means that a licensed UK employer accepts immigration responsibilities for employing an eligible overseas worker.

The sponsor normally:

Offers a genuine eligible position.
Selects the appropriate occupation code.
Confirms the salary and working hours.
Assigns the Certificate of Sponsorship.
Pays the Certificate of Sponsorship fee.
Pays the Immigration Skills Charge where applicable.
Keeps required employment and immigration records.
Reports specified employment changes to the Home Office.
Confirms that the sponsored employee continues to perform the approved role.

Employers generally need a sponsor licence to recruit workers from outside the UK, including most EU, EEA and Swiss citizens who arrived after December 31, 2020. Sponsorship does not guarantee that the worker will receive a visa.

An employer that has been approved for sponsorship normally receives an A-rated licence. An A-rating allows the organisation to assign Certificates of Sponsorship and appear in the public sponsor register.

The Certificate of Sponsorship fee for a Skilled Worker is currently £525 and must be paid by the sponsoring employer. Government guidance warns that a sponsor’s licence may be revoked if it asks the worker to pay the certificate fee or costs linked to the sponsor’s own application.

Software Engineer Occupation Code

The main occupation code for Software Engineers is:

2134 — Programmers and software development professionals

It covers job titles such as:

Computer Programmer
Software Developer
Computer Games Designer
Programmer
Software Development Professional

The occupation is classified as higher skilled and remains eligible for the Skilled Worker route.

However, not every technology position belongs under code 2134.

Related occupations include:

Occupation code	Job category
2131	IT project managers
2132	IT managers
2133	IT business analysts, architects and systems designers
2134	Programmers and software development professionals
2135	Cybersecurity professionals
2136	IT quality and testing professionals
2137	IT network professionals
2139	Other information technology professionals, including DevOps Engineers
2141	Web design professionals

The employer must select the code matching the employee’s real duties rather than simply choosing the code with the most convenient salary requirement.

For example:

A Backend Software Engineer will often fit code 2134.
A DevOps Engineer may fit code 2139.
A Data Engineer may fit code 2133.
A Cybersecurity Engineer may fit code 2135.
A Software Development Manager may fit code 2132.
A Web Designer may fit code 2141.

A misleading occupation code can cause:

Visa refusal
Sponsor compliance action
Problems when changing employers
Problems when extending the visa
Problems when applying for settlement

The job title, responsibilities, seniority, working hours and salary should all be consistent with the selected code.

Skilled Worker Salary Requirements for Software Engineers

The ordinary Skilled Worker salary rule requires payment of at least whichever is higher:

£41,700 per year, or
The standard going rate for the occupation.

For occupation code 2134, the standard going rate is:

£54,700 per year or £28.05 per hour

The annual figure is based on a 37.5-hour working week. Therefore, a standard Software Engineer applicant under code 2134 will normally need at least £54,700 rather than merely £41,700.

This is one of the most important points for applicants.

A job offer paying £45,000 is higher than the general £41,700 threshold, but it does not normally satisfy the full £54,700 going rate for code 2134.

The salary can be lower only when the applicant qualifies for an authorised discount, such as:

A relevant PhD.
A relevant STEM PhD.
New-entrant status.
Transitional arrangements for certain existing Skilled Workers.
Another specific immigration-rule provision.

Salary Table for Occupation Code 2134

The current salary levels for Programmers and Software Development Professionals include:

Skilled Worker category	General threshold	Percentage of going rate	Code 2134 salary
Standard applicant	£41,700	100%	£54,700
Relevant non-STEM PhD	£37,500	90%	£49,200
Relevant STEM PhD	£33,400	80%	£43,700
New entrant	£33,400	70%	£38,300

The applicant must satisfy both the general threshold and the applicable percentage of the occupation’s going rate. Because the code 2134 going-rate figure is higher in every category shown above, the occupation-specific amount will usually determine the actual minimum.

These figures are based on a 37.5-hour week.

An employer offering a longer contractual week may need to increase the annual salary because the going rate must be adjusted to reflect the stated hours. The sponsorship salary calculation generally considers up to 48 hours per week for the general threshold.

New-Entrant Salary Discount

A Software Engineer may qualify as a new entrant when one of the following applies:

The applicant is under 26 on the application date.
The applicant is currently on a qualifying UK Student visa.
The applicant held a qualifying Student visa during the previous two years.
The applicant is currently on a Graduate visa.
The applicant held a Graduate visa during the previous two years.
The applicant is working toward recognised professional registration or chartered status.

A qualifying new entrant can be paid 70% of the standard occupation going rate, provided the salary also meets the £33,400 general threshold.

For Software Engineers under occupation code 2134:

Seventy percent of the going rate is £38,300.
The general threshold is £33,400.
The higher figure is £38,300.

Therefore, the practical new-entrant minimum is normally:

£38,300 per year

The new-entrant route has a time limit. The applicant’s total stay under the relevant new-entrant provisions cannot normally exceed four years, including time already spent on a Graduate visa.

A company should not advertise a permanent £33,400 Software Engineer sponsorship salary without checking the occupation-specific rate.

Relevant PhD Salary Discounts

A Software Engineer with a relevant doctorate may qualify for a reduced going rate.

Relevant STEM PhD

A relevant doctorate in a science, technology, engineering or mathematics subject can reduce the salary requirement to 80% of the standard going rate.

For occupation code 2134, this is:

£43,700 per year

The applicant must still receive at least the £33,400 general threshold.

Possible relevant qualifications may include doctorates in:

Computer Science
Software Engineering
Artificial Intelligence
Machine Learning
Data Science
Mathematics
Computer Engineering
Robotics
Cybersecurity

Relevance is not determined by the doctorate title alone. The sponsor must be able to explain how the qualification relates to the sponsored position.

Relevant Non-STEM PhD

A relevant non-STEM doctorate can reduce the occupation going rate to 90%.

For code 2134, this is:

£49,200 per year

The general threshold for this category is £37,500, so the higher £49,200 occupation rate normally applies.

An overseas doctorate used for the salary discount must normally be assessed through Ecctis to confirm equivalence to a UK PhD.

Can a Software Engineer Qualify Without a Degree?

Yes. The Skilled Worker route does not generally impose a separate university-degree requirement on Software Engineers.

The principal requirements concern:

A qualifying job.
A licensed sponsor.
A Certificate of Sponsorship.
The correct occupation code.
Salary meeting the applicable thresholds.
English-language ability.
Genuine employment.

The employer can impose its own educational requirements, but immigration eligibility does not automatically depend on holding a Computer Science degree.

A self-taught engineer may therefore qualify when they have:

Strong commercial experience.
Verifiable technical employment.
Skills matching the vacancy.
An eligible salary.
A sponsor willing to issue a Certificate of Sponsorship.
Sufficient English evidence.

Useful experience evidence includes:

Employer reference letters.
Employment contracts.
Payslips.
Tax or social-insurance records.
Promotion letters.
Project descriptions.
Technical leadership evidence.
Professional certifications.
Public technical contributions.

A GitHub profile can strengthen an application for employment, but it does not replace the sponsor, salary or visa requirements.

English-Language Requirement

Most new Skilled Worker applicants must prove English ability at:

CEFR level B2

The applicant must be able to read, write, speak and understand English at the required level.

English can generally be proved through:

An approved Secure English Language Test.
A UK degree taught in English.
A qualifying UK school English credential.
An overseas degree taught in English and assessed by Ecctis.
Nationality from an exempt majority-English-speaking country.
Evidence already accepted in a previous qualifying UK visa application.

An overseas degree must normally be assessed by Ecctis to confirm that it is equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree or higher and was taught in English.

Applicants who already held Skilled Worker permission before January 8, 2026 and are extending or updating that permission may continue under the B1 provision specified in the current guidance. A person switching from a different immigration route generally needs B2.

An employer may require a higher practical level of English for:

Architecture discussions.
Product meetings.
Documentation.
Code reviews.
Customer communication.
Incident response.
Engineering leadership.

Skilled Worker Visa Costs

A standard Skilled Worker applicant must normally budget for:

Visa application fee.
Immigration Health Surcharge.
Maintenance funds.
English test or Ecctis costs.
Document translations.
Travel.
Family application fees.

For applications submitted from outside the UK, the current standard visa fees are:

Visa length	Application fee per person
Up to three years	£819
More than three years	£1,618

For applications from inside the UK, the fees are:

Application	Fee per person
Up to three years	£943
More than three years	£1,865

The Immigration Health Surcharge is usually:

£1,035 for each year of permission

The principal applicant must also normally show at least:

£1,270 in maintenance funds

unless the sponsor certifies maintenance or another exemption applies.

Partners and children normally pay their own visa application charges and Immigration Health Surcharge.

For example, a family applying for five-year visas can face a substantial upfront cost because the visa fee and annual health surcharge apply separately to each person.

A relocation package should clearly state whether the employer pays:

Principal applicant’s visa fee.
Family visa fees.
Immigration Health Surcharge.
English test.
Ecctis assessment.
Priority processing.
Flights.
Temporary accommodation.

How Long Does the Visa Take?

A Skilled Worker application can normally be submitted up to three months before the employment start date shown on the Certificate of Sponsorship.

After the applicant has applied, proved their identity and submitted the required documents, a decision normally takes:

Three weeks for an application from outside the UK.
Eight weeks for an application from inside the UK.

Faster paid services may be available in some locations and circumstances.

An application can take longer when:

Documents need verification.
The applicant needs an interview.
The sponsor’s information requires clarification.
The salary calculation is unclear.
The occupation code appears inconsistent.
Security or suitability checks are required.
The applicant has a complex immigration history.
Family documents require additional review.

A target processing period is not a guaranteed decision date.

How Long Can a Software Engineer Stay?

The Skilled Worker visa can be issued for up to:

Five years

The employee can apply to extend the visa repeatedly as long as the job, sponsor, salary and other requirements continue to be satisfied.

The visa must normally be updated when the employee:

Changes employer.
Changes to a job with a different occupation code.
Moves to a job requiring a new Certificate of Sponsorship.
Experiences another material change covered by the immigration rules.

A promotion within the same company does not always require a new visa application, but the sponsor should review whether the occupation code, duties or salary have changed sufficiently to require an update.

Salary Versus Total Compensation

Technology employers often advertise a total compensation package rather than only guaranteed salary.

A package can include:

Base salary.
Annual cash bonus.
Signing bonus.
Share options.
Restricted stock.
Pension contribution.
Private medical insurance.
Life insurance.
Learning budget.
Relocation assistance.

The Skilled Worker salary calculation focuses on qualifying guaranteed gross pay for the sponsored employment.

Applicants should not assume that all of the following will count:

Discretionary bonuses.
Unvested equity.
Share-option estimates.
Employer pension contributions.
Medical insurance.
Relocation allowance.
Accommodation.
Meals.
Equipment.
Reimbursed expenses.

A role advertised as providing £100,000 in total compensation might contain:

£75,000 base salary.
£10,000 target bonus.
£10,000 estimated equity.
£5,000 in benefits.

The employer and immigration adviser should confirm the qualifying salary stated on the Certificate of Sponsorship.

Software Engineer Salaries in the UK

Junior Software Engineer

A junior or graduate Software Engineer may earn approximately:

£30,000 to £50,000 per year

A salary below £38,300 will not normally satisfy the 2026 new-entrant requirement for occupation code 2134, even when the applicant is under 26 or recently held a Graduate visa.

International graduates should therefore target roles that satisfy both:

The £33,400 new-entrant general threshold.
Seventy percent of the £54,700 occupation going rate.

The second requirement produces the higher £38,300 minimum.

Mid-Level Software Engineer

A mid-level Software Engineer may receive approximately:

£50,000 to £80,000 per year

An ordinary applicant who does not qualify for a discount will need at least £54,700 under occupation code 2134.

Roles paying between £50,000 and £54,699 may be suitable only where the applicant qualifies for a relevant discount or a different occupation code genuinely applies.

Senior Software Engineer

A Senior Software Engineer may earn:

£70,000 to £120,000 or more

A current sponsored London role offers £115,000 to £130,000 plus share options. It requires ownership of revenue-critical infrastructure and participation in on-call work.

Staff or Principal Engineer

Staff and Principal Engineers may earn:

£100,000 to £150,000 or more

A current UK Senior Software Engineer position advertises between £123,000 and £149,000 in London, with lower but still six-figure compensation outside London.

Staff-level work often involves:

Cross-team architecture.
Technical strategy.
Reliability standards.
Security.
Mentoring.
Incident leadership.
Complex system design.
Organisational influence.

Lead Software Engineer

A current Lead Software Engineer position in London advertises:

£110,000 to £150,000 plus equity

The position combines hands-on engineering with technical leadership and ownership of an artificial-intelligence-enabled platform.

Founding Engineer

A current Founding Senior Platform Engineer position advertises:

£120,000 to £140,000 plus equity

The employer states that visa sponsorship is available. The role involves cloud infrastructure, identity federation and early-stage platform design.

General Career Range

The National Careers Service reports a general Software Developer range of:

£30,000 for starters.
Up to £75,000 for experienced professionals.

The service notes that developers can progress into senior development, project management, systems design, architecture, consultancy or company ownership.

Highest-Paying Software Engineering Fields

Artificial Intelligence Engineering

AI Engineers may work on:

Large language models.
Agent systems.
Retrieval-augmented generation.
Model evaluation.
Machine-learning infrastructure.
Recommendation systems.
Computer vision.
Natural-language processing.
AI safety.
Production monitoring.

Current high-paying sponsored positions increasingly require engineers who can integrate artificial intelligence into reliable products rather than only experiment with models.

Useful skills include:

Python.
TypeScript.
PyTorch.
TensorFlow.
Model-serving infrastructure.
Vector databases.
Evaluation frameworks.
Cloud platforms.
Security.
Cost optimisation.

Financial Technology

London remains a major market for banking, payments, trading and financial software.

Fintech engineers may build:

Payment platforms.
Billing systems.
Trading infrastructure.
Fraud-detection tools.
Digital banking.
Investment platforms.
Risk systems.
Regulatory technology.
Reconciliation services.

A current London Senior Software Engineer position paying £115,000 to £130,000 involves revenue-critical billing infrastructure and explicitly offers visa sponsorship.

Platform Engineering

Platform Engineers build the infrastructure and internal systems used by product-development teams.

Responsibilities may include:

Continuous integration and deployment.
Cloud infrastructure.
Kubernetes.
Terraform.
Internal developer platforms.
Observability.
Secrets management.
Identity systems.
Reliability.
Deployment tooling.

A current Senior Platform Engineer vacancy offers £100,000 to £120,000 plus equity.

Site Reliability Engineering

Site Reliability Engineers focus on:

Availability.
Service-level objectives.
Incident response.
Capacity planning.
Monitoring.
Performance.
Automation.
Disaster recovery.
Production readiness.

Candidates should ask whether compensation includes payment for:

On-call availability.
Incident call-outs.
Weekend work.
Night work.
Overtime.

Cybersecurity Engineering

Cybersecurity roles may involve:

Application security.
Cloud security.
Product security.
Detection engineering.
Identity and access management.
Security automation.
Incident response.
Secure development.
Threat modelling.

Cybersecurity professionals use a separate occupation code, normally 2135, with a different standard going rate. The current full going rate for that code is £48,500.

Data Engineering

Data Engineers may fall under occupation code 2133 depending on the role.

Their work can involve:

Data pipelines.
Streaming platforms.
Data warehouses.
Analytics infrastructure.
Governance.
Machine-learning data systems.
Cloud data platforms.
Real-time processing.

The current standard going rate for occupation code 2133 is £54,900, slightly higher than the £54,700 rate for software development.

DevOps Engineering

DevOps Engineers are specifically listed among the example roles for occupation code 2139.

The standard going rate for code 2139 is:

£52,300 per year

An employer should not automatically classify every DevOps position as Software Developer code 2134. The actual responsibilities determine the correct code.

Cloud Engineering

Cloud Engineers commonly work with:

Amazon Web Services.
Microsoft Azure.
Google Cloud.
Kubernetes.
Docker.
Terraform.
Helm.
Continuous-delivery pipelines.
Monitoring systems.
Cloud security.

Senior Cloud Engineers with architecture, reliability and security responsibilities are more likely to receive salaries comfortably above the Skilled Worker going rate.

Embedded Software Engineering

Embedded Software Engineers may work in:

Automotive systems.
Aerospace.
Robotics.
Telecommunications.
Medical devices.
Consumer electronics.
Industrial automation.
Defence.

Useful skills include:

C.
C++.
Rust.
Embedded Linux.
Real-time operating systems.
Firmware.
Hardware integration.
Safety-critical development.

Some defence and security roles may require nationality, residency history or security clearance that an international applicant cannot immediately satisfy.

Games Development

Computer Games Designers and Programmers can fall under occupation code 2134.

Relevant positions may involve:

Gameplay engineering.
Graphics.
Physics.
Engine development.
Multiplayer systems.
Tools development.
Artificial intelligence.
Console optimisation.

Games salaries vary widely, and not every studio offers sponsorship.

Major UK Hiring Locations

London

London offers the largest concentration of high-paying technology positions in the UK.

Major sectors include:

Financial technology.
Artificial intelligence.
Payments.
Enterprise software.
Cybersecurity.
E-commerce.
Advertising technology.
Health technology.
Investment platforms.
Cloud infrastructure.

Many roles paying above £100,000 are London-based, although the city also has some of the UK’s highest housing and transport costs.

Cambridge

Cambridge offers opportunities involving:

Artificial intelligence.
Semiconductors.
Biotechnology software.
Scientific computing.
Cybersecurity.
Hardware engineering.
Research.
Embedded systems.

Technical employers may value advanced academic qualifications, research experience or specialist engineering expertise.

Manchester

Manchester has growing employment in:

Financial technology.
E-commerce.
Cloud computing.
Cybersecurity.
Media technology.
Government digital services.
Enterprise software.

Some remote-first employers advertise UK-wide roles with separate London and regional salary bands.

Bristol

Bristol is relevant to:

Aerospace.
Semiconductors.
Robotics.
Defence technology.
Financial services.
Embedded software.
Cybersecurity.

Certain defence-related jobs may be unsuitable for new international arrivals because of security-clearance requirements.

Edinburgh and Glasgow

Scotland offers opportunities in:

Financial services.
Artificial intelligence.
Games.
Data engineering.
Government technology.
Cloud services.
Cybersecurity.

Applicants should ensure that any advertised role is attached to an employer licensed for the Skilled Worker route.

Belfast

Belfast has employers in:

Cybersecurity.
Financial technology.
Software consulting.
Cloud services.
Data analytics.
Telecommunications.

UK immigration rules apply throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, although local salaries and living costs vary.

Oxford

Oxford supports roles in:

Artificial intelligence.
Biotechnology.
Health technology.
Scientific software.
Autonomous systems.
Research-intensive start-ups.

Several UK-wide remote engineering vacancies list Oxford among the accepted locations.

How to Find Licensed Sponsors

The Home Office publishes an official register of organisations licensed to sponsor workers.

The register includes:

Organisation name.
Town or city.
County.
Sponsor type.
Licence rating.
Immigration route.

The register was updated on July 28, 2026.

Applicants should check that the company appears under the:

Skilled Worker route

The organisation name in the register may differ slightly from its public trading name.

For example:

The brand may be owned by another legal company.
The UK subsidiary may sponsor the worker.
The employer may use a group-company name.
The company may have several sponsor licences.

Ask the recruiter for the exact legal entity that will issue the Certificate of Sponsorship.

Being listed in the sponsor register does not mean that the employer:

Sponsors every role.
Has an unlimited certificate allocation.
Will sponsor junior applicants.
Will accept every nationality.
Will cover immigration costs.
Has approved the specific vacancy for sponsorship.

It confirms only that the organisation holds a relevant sponsor licence at the time the register was updated.

Can a Company Sponsor You Without an Existing Licence?

A company that does not currently hold a sponsor licence can apply for one.

Current government guidance states that the sponsor-licence fee is:

£611 for eligible small businesses and charities.
£1,682 for medium and large organisations.

The application usually takes approximately eight weeks.

However, licence approval is not guaranteed.

The business must demonstrate that it:

Is genuine and operating lawfully.
Can offer eligible employment.
Has suitable human-resources systems.
Can monitor sponsored workers.
Can comply with immigration reporting duties.
Has appropriate personnel managing sponsorship.

A candidate should not resign from a current job merely because a start-up promises to obtain a sponsor licence in the future.

Wait for:

Sponsor-licence approval.
A-rated status.
Certificate availability.
A formal contract.
An assigned Certificate of Sponsorship.
Visa approval.

How to Find Visa-Sponsoring Software Jobs

Useful search phrases include:

Software Engineer UK visa sponsorship
Senior Software Engineer London sponsorship
Skilled Worker Software Developer UK
Backend Engineer visa sponsorship UK
DevOps Engineer Skilled Worker visa
Platform Engineer UK visa sponsorship
Staff Engineer London sponsorship
AI Engineer UK relocation support
Software Developer occupation code 2134 jobs
Cybersecurity Engineer UK sponsorship
Data Engineer UK Skilled Worker
Software Engineer UK 2026/2027

Look for phrases such as:

Visa sponsorship available.
Skilled Worker sponsorship.
Certificate of Sponsorship available.
International applicants welcome.
UK relocation support.
Global mobility assistance.
Immigration support.
Sponsor licence.
Right-to-work support.
Sponsorship considered.

A vacancy saying one of the following usually does not offer new sponsorship:

Must already have the right to work in the UK.
Sponsorship is not available.
No visa support.
Applicants must hold unrestricted UK work permission.
Cannot sponsor this position.

Some application forms ask whether the candidate requires sponsorship even when the job advertisement does not state whether sponsorship is available.

Answer honestly.

How to Verify a Sponsoring Employer

Before accepting an offer:

Confirm the employer’s legal name.
Check the official sponsor register.
Confirm that the employer is licensed for Skilled Worker sponsorship.
Check the company website and official vacancy.
Verify that the recruiter uses a company email address.
Request the complete job description.
Confirm the occupation code.
Confirm the guaranteed annual salary.
Ask whether the working hours affect the going-rate calculation.
Confirm who pays visa and relocation costs.
Review repayment clauses.
Ask when the Certificate of Sponsorship will be assigned.

A genuine employer should be able to explain:

Position duties.
Reporting structure.
Salary.
Working hours.
Contract duration.
Work location.
Sponsoring legal entity.
Occupation code.
Visa process.
Proposed start date.

Employment Contract Checks

Salary

Confirm:

Gross annual base salary.
Monthly salary.
Guaranteed allowances.
Annual bonus.
Signing bonus.
Equity.
Pension contribution.
On-call payments.
Overtime.
Salary-review date.

The salary on the employment contract should be consistent with the amount on the Certificate of Sponsorship.

Working Hours

Going rates are based on a 37.5-hour week.

Confirm:

Contractual weekly hours.
Expected overtime.
On-call rota.
Weekend responsibilities.
Whether overtime is paid.
Whether salary is adjusted for hours above 37.5.

A £54,700 salary based on a substantially longer workweek may not satisfy the adjusted occupation going rate.

Job Duties

Ensure that the duties genuinely fit the occupation code.

For code 2134, responsibilities may include:

Designing software.
Writing production code.
Testing.
Debugging.
Maintaining software systems.
Reviewing technical requirements.
Participating in architecture.
Supporting deployed applications.

A job primarily involving technical support, testing, management, data analysis or network administration may require another code.

Work Location

Confirm whether the role is:

Office-based.
Hybrid.
Remote within the UK.
Attached to multiple offices.
Temporarily remote from abroad.

A UK Skilled Worker visa does not automatically authorise permanent residence and employment from another country.

Probation

Ask:

How long is probation?
What notice period applies?
What happens to sponsorship if probation ends?
Will the employer notify the Home Office immediately?
Must relocation expenses be repaid?
Is a signing bonus repayable?

Equity

Confirm:

Type of equity.
Number of shares or options.
Vesting schedule.
Exercise price.
Tax treatment.
Treatment after termination.
Whether the advertised package includes estimated equity value.

Equity should not be treated as guaranteed salary.

Relocation Repayment

Review:

Costs covered.
Repayment period.
Whether repayment reduces over time.
Treatment of redundancy.
Treatment of visa refusal.
Treatment of employer termination.
Treatment of resignation.
Family expenses.
Tax consequences.

Skilled Worker Visa Documents

A Software Engineer application commonly requires:

Valid passport.
Certificate of Sponsorship reference number.
Job title.
Annual salary.
Occupation code.
Sponsor name.
Sponsor-licence number.
English-language evidence.
Maintenance evidence where required.
Tuberculosis certificate where required.
Certified translations.
Relationship documents for dependants.
Previous immigration documents where relevant.
Ecctis confirmation when using an overseas degree or PhD.

The Home Office may request additional documents based on the applicant’s circumstances.

A criminal-record certificate is generally required for specified healthcare, education, therapy and social-services occupations. Ordinary Software Engineer applications are not included in the main occupation categories identified for this requirement, although an applicant must still answer all suitability questions truthfully.

How to Write a Strong UK Software Engineering CV

A UK technology CV should normally include:

Name and contact details.
Current country.
Relocation availability.
Professional summary.
Technical skills.
Employment history.
Measurable achievements.
Education.
Certifications.
Languages.
GitHub, portfolio or LinkedIn.
Current UK immigration status, where relevant.

A photograph, date of birth and marital status are generally unnecessary.

The CV should allow a recruiter to identify quickly:

Current seniority.
Years of experience.
Main programming languages.
Cloud and infrastructure expertise.
Production-system scale.
Leadership experience.
Sponsorship requirement.
Relocation timeline.

Professional Summary Example

Senior Software Engineer with eight years of experience designing distributed financial platforms using Java, Kotlin, Kafka, PostgreSQL and Kubernetes. Led systems processing more than 20 million monthly transactions while maintaining 99.99% availability. Available to relocate to the United Kingdom through Skilled Worker sponsorship under occupation code 2134.

For an artificial-intelligence engineer:

Software Engineer with seven years of production experience and recent specialisation in large-language-model applications, retrieval systems and AI evaluation. Built customer-support automation serving more than three million monthly interactions. Seeking a UK-based Senior Engineer position with Skilled Worker sponsorship.

For a self-taught engineer:

Self-taught Backend Engineer with nine years of verifiable commercial experience in Go, Python, AWS and distributed systems. Designed and operated services supporting more than eight million monthly users and led technical architecture across three engineering teams. No university degree required for the proposed Skilled Worker route, subject to sponsorship and salary eligibility.

Strong Achievement Statements

Weak:

Developed backend services.

Stronger:

Designed and deployed 16 Java and Kotlin services processing 22 million monthly requests with 99.98% availability.

Weak:

Improved application performance.

Stronger:

Reduced median API latency by 52% through database indexing, caching and asynchronous event processing.

Weak:

Managed cloud infrastructure.

Stronger:

Migrated 65 production workloads to Kubernetes and Terraform, reducing deployment time from 90 minutes to 11 minutes.

Weak:

Led developers.

Stronger:

Led a distributed team of nine engineers, introduced architecture reviews and increased quarterly delivery completion from 71% to 93%.

Weak:

Worked on artificial intelligence.

Stronger:

Built a retrieval-augmented support platform that resolved 37% of incoming queries without human escalation while maintaining audited accuracy and safety thresholds.

Portfolio Guidance

A useful portfolio may include:

Public GitHub repositories.
Open-source contributions.
Technical articles.
Architecture case studies.
Deployed applications.
Conference presentations.
Performance benchmarks.
Security research.
System-design explanations.

Do not publish:

Employer source code.
Customer information.
Production credentials.
Confidential architecture.
Proprietary datasets.
Internal business documents.
Restricted security information.

Candidates without public code can create anonymised case studies explaining:

The problem.
Technical constraints.
Architecture.
Personal responsibilities.
Trade-offs.
Measurable results.

Software Engineer Interview Process

A UK Software Engineer interview process may involve:

Recruiter screening.
Hiring-manager interview.
Coding assessment.
Live technical interview.
System-design interview.
Product or stakeholder interview.
Behavioural interview.
Founder or executive interview.
Compensation discussion.
Sponsorship review.

A current sponsored Senior Software Engineer role describes an initial call, collaborative technical exercise, co-founder interview and on-site product interview.

Another sponsored London role describes a process involving technical, product, system-design and founder interviews completed over approximately one to two weeks.

Software Engineer Interview Questions

Prepare for questions such as:

Describe a distributed system you designed.
How would you design a scalable payment service?
How do you maintain idempotency?
What causes database deadlocks?
How do you diagnose a slow API?
When would you use asynchronous messaging?
How do you handle duplicate events?
How do you design for regional failure?
How do you secure a public API?
How do you test microservices?
Describe a serious production incident.
How do you participate in on-call work?
How do you review code?
How do you manage technical debt?
How do you mentor engineers?
How do you resolve technical disagreement?
Why do you want to work in the UK?
Do you require Skilled Worker sponsorship?
Does your salary expectation meet the going rate?
When can you relocate?

Strong answers demonstrate:

Technical depth.
Production experience.
Clear trade-offs.
Security awareness.
Communication.
Ownership.
Reflection.
Measurable results.

Step-by-Step Application Process

Step 1: Identify the Correct Occupation Code

Determine whether the role fits:

2134 for Software Development.
2133 for Data Engineering or Systems Architecture.
2135 for Cybersecurity.
2139 for DevOps or other IT roles.
Another eligible technology code.

Step 2: Calculate the Required Salary

For code 2134, compare:

£54,700 standard going rate.
£49,200 relevant non-STEM PhD rate.
£43,700 relevant STEM PhD rate.
£38,300 new-entrant rate.

Do not rely only on the £41,700 general threshold.

Step 3: Check the Employer

Search the official sponsor register and confirm:

Legal company name.
Skilled Worker route.
Sponsor rating.
Sponsoring office.
Whether the specific vacancy is eligible.

Step 4: Prepare the CV and Portfolio

Highlight:

Relevant technologies.
Production experience.
System scale.
Measurable outcomes.
Leadership.
Sponsorship requirement.
Relocation availability.

Step 5: Apply to Sponsorship-Ready Roles

Prioritise vacancies that explicitly mention:

Visa sponsorship.
Skilled Worker support.
International hiring.
Relocation.
Global mobility.

Step 6: Complete Interviews

Prepare for:

Coding.
Algorithms.
Debugging.
System design.
Architecture.
Behavioural examples.
Immigration eligibility questions.

Step 7: Review the Offer

Confirm:

Base salary.
Occupation code.
Working hours.
Contract duration.
Bonus.
Equity.
Work location.
Visa support.
Family support.
Relocation repayment.

Step 8: Employer Assigns the Certificate of Sponsorship

The employer provides the electronic certificate reference number and sponsorship information.

The worker must normally apply within three months of receiving the certificate.

Step 9: Prepare the Visa Documents

Gather:

Passport.
Certificate reference.
English evidence.
Financial evidence.
Tuberculosis certificate where required.
Certified translations.
Family documents.
Ecctis confirmation where applicable.

Step 10: Submit the Online Application

The applicant pays:

Visa fee.
Immigration Health Surcharge.
Any optional priority fee.

Step 11: Prove Identity

Depending on nationality and location, the applicant may:

Use a digital identity application.
Attend a visa-application centre.
Provide fingerprints and a photograph.

Step 12: Receive the Decision

The normal target is three weeks outside the UK and eight weeks inside the UK.

Step 13: Travel and Begin Employment

Follow the decision instructions and begin work only after receiving the required immigration permission.

Step 14: Maintain Compliance

Keep copies of:

Employment contract.
Certificate of Sponsorship.
Decision letter.
Immigration status.
Payslips.
Tax records.
Sponsor communications.
Updated passport.
Family permissions.

Changing Employers

A Skilled Worker can change employers, but they must normally obtain:

A new eligible job.
A new Certificate of Sponsorship.
Salary meeting the current rules.
An approved application to update the visa.

The employee should not begin the new sponsored job until the required immigration approval has been granted. The Skilled Worker overview states that changing a job or employer normally requires the visa to be updated.

Before accepting a new offer, confirm:

New sponsor’s licence.
Occupation code.
Salary.
Working hours.
Start date.
Visa-application responsibility.
Impact on dependants.
Impact on settlement timing.

Time already spent as a Skilled Worker can normally continue counting toward the five-year settlement period when the employee changes sponsors lawfully.

Can Software Engineers Bring Their Families?

Eligible Skilled Worker applicants can normally bring:

Husband, wife or civil partner.
Eligible unmarried partner.
Children under 18.
Certain children over 18 who already hold dependant permission.

Each family member submits a separate application and normally receives permission ending on the same date as the principal worker’s visa.

Eligible dependants can generally:

Work.
Study.
Travel outside the UK and return.
Apply for settlement after completing the relevant qualifying period.

A dependant partner can work in most jobs but cannot work as a professional sportsperson or sports coach.

Dependants generally cannot claim most public funds.

Family costs can be substantial because each person may need to pay:

Visa application fee.
Immigration Health Surcharge.
Maintenance funds.
Tuberculosis testing where applicable.
Document translation.
Travel expenses.

Can Sponsorship Lead to Permanent Residence?

Potentially.

A Skilled Worker may apply for indefinite leave to remain after completing:

Five qualifying years in the UK

The applicant must also normally:

Meet the continuous-residence requirement.
Have no more than the permitted absences.
Continue to be required by the sponsoring employer.
Meet the settlement salary requirement.
Pass the Life in the UK Test.
Meet the English-language requirement.
Satisfy suitability rules.

The general absence limit is normally no more than:

180 days outside the UK in any 12-month period

during the qualifying period.

For current Skilled Worker applicants, the settlement salary requirement is normally at least whichever is higher:

£41,700.
The standard going rate for the occupation.

For occupation code 2134, this can mean a settlement salary of at least £54,700 under the current rules. Transitional provisions may apply to workers sponsored under earlier rules.

Settlement is not automatic after five years.

The employee must submit a separate application and satisfy the rules applying on the application date.

Can Dependants Obtain Permanent Residence?

A dependant partner can generally apply for indefinite leave to remain after completing five continuous years as the worker’s eligible dependant.

The couple must continue to have a genuine relationship and intend to live together. The partner must also satisfy the applicable financial, language and Life in the UK requirements.

Children have separate settlement requirements.

A dependant’s five-year period does not always finish on the same date as the principal applicant’s period. A partner who joined later may need to extend their dependant visa after the principal worker receives indefinite leave to remain.

Can Indefinite Leave Lead to British Citizenship?

Indefinite leave to remain can provide a pathway to British citizenship.

A person will usually need to hold indefinite leave for at least 12 months before applying for naturalisation, unless a different rule applies, such as being married to a British citizen.

Citizenship has additional requirements concerning:

Residence.
Absences.
Good character.
English.
Life in the UK.
Intention to make the UK a principal home.

Indefinite leave and British citizenship are separate applications.

Common Software Engineer Sponsorship Scams

Warning signs include:

Guaranteed Skilled Worker visa approval.
A job offer without a technical interview.
Payment requested for a Certificate of Sponsorship.
A recruiter selling sponsor-licence access.
Cryptocurrency payment requests.
Communication only through messaging applications.
A recruiter using an unrelated personal email.
A company absent from the sponsor register.
An occupation code unrelated to the job.
Salary returned to the employer after payment.
Requests to falsify experience.
Requests to alter degree documents.
A fake Home Office decision letter.
Pressure to provide passport details immediately.
Guaranteed permanent residence.
Guaranteed British citizenship.

The sponsoring employer must pay the £525 Certificate of Sponsorship fee itself and can face licence action if it asks the worker to pay the fee or associated sponsor costs.

Verify:

Company identity.
Sponsor-register entry.
Recruiter email.
Official vacancy.
Salary.
Occupation code.
Contract.
Certificate details.
Visa process.
Relocation terms.

Relocation Packages

A UK technology employer may offer:

Visa application support.
Immigration lawyer.
Visa-fee reimbursement.
Immigration Health Surcharge reimbursement.
Flights.
Temporary accommodation.
Relocation allowance.
Household shipping.
Family visa assistance.
Private medical insurance.
Bank-account support.
National Insurance guidance.
Housing-search assistance.

Ask for written confirmation of:

Costs covered.
Maximum reimbursement.
Required receipts.
Payment date.
Tax treatment.
Minimum service period.
Repayment conditions.
Treatment of visa refusal.
Treatment of redundancy.
Treatment of probation termination.
Family coverage.

A relocation package is an employment benefit rather than an automatic right created by the Skilled Worker visa.

Important 2027 Sponsorship Outlook

The confirmed rules in August 2026 include:

General salary threshold of £41,700.
Code 2134 going rate of £54,700.
Relevant non-STEM PhD rate of £49,200.
Relevant STEM PhD rate of £43,700.
New-entrant rate of £38,300.
B2 English for most new Skilled Worker applicants.
Standard Immigration Health Surcharge of £1,035 per year.
Potential settlement after five qualifying years.

The exact rules applying to applications filed during 2027 had not been separately confirmed as of August 2026.

Applicants planning a 2027 start should recheck:

General salary threshold.
Occupation going rate.
New-entrant salary.
PhD salary discounts.
English-language requirement.
Visa fees.
Immigration Health Surcharge.
Sponsor-register status.
Dependant rules.
Settlement requirements.
Occupation-code eligibility.

UK immigration rules can change between the job-offer date, Certificate of Sponsorship date and visa-application date.

The relevant salary and immigration requirements should therefore be checked again:

Before accepting the offer.
Before the Certificate of Sponsorship is assigned.
Before submitting the visa application.
Before changing employers.
Before extending the visa.
Before applying for settlement.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can foreigners get Software Engineer jobs with visa sponsorship in the UK?

Yes. Programmers and Software Development Professionals under occupation code 2134 are classified as higher-skilled workers and remain eligible for Skilled Worker sponsorship.

Can a sponsored Software Engineer earn £150,000?

Yes. A current UK Senior Software Engineer vacancy offers £120,000 to £150,000 plus equity and explicitly states that visa sponsorship is available.

Does every Software Engineer earn £150,000?

No. This is a high-end salary for selected senior roles. The National Careers Service gives a broader career range of approximately £30,000 to £75,000.

What is the occupation code for a Software Engineer?

The primary code is 2134 for Programmers and Software Development Professionals.

What is the standard Skilled Worker salary threshold?

The general threshold is £41,700, but the applicant must also satisfy the occupation’s going rate.

What is the Software Engineer going rate?

The standard going rate for occupation code 2134 is £54,700 per year, based on a 37.5-hour week.

Is a £45,000 Software Engineer salary enough?

Not normally for a standard code 2134 application because the full going rate is £54,700. It may be sufficient only if the applicant qualifies for an authorised discount.

What is the new-entrant salary for Software Engineers?

The 70% going rate for code 2134 is £38,300. Because this is higher than the £33,400 general new-entrant threshold, the applicant will normally need at least £38,300.

Who qualifies as a new entrant?

Potential applicants include people under 26, qualifying Student or Graduate visa holders and workers pursuing specified professional registration or chartered status.

How long can someone use the new-entrant provision?

The relevant total stay is normally limited to four years, including time already spent on a Graduate visa.

What is the STEM PhD salary?

For code 2134, 80% of the going rate is £43,700.

What is the non-STEM PhD salary?

For code 2134, 90% of the going rate is £49,200.

Is a degree required?

No separate university degree is generally required by the Skilled Worker route for a Software Engineer. The employer may still require one.

Can a self-taught developer qualify?

Yes, when they receive a genuine eligible offer from a licensed sponsor and meet the salary, English and other visa requirements.

Does the employer need a sponsor licence?

Yes. The employer must normally be approved by the Home Office and authorised for the Skilled Worker route.

How can I check whether an employer is licensed?

Use the official Home Office register of licensed sponsors and verify that the organisation is listed for the Skilled Worker route.

Can an unlicensed company apply to sponsor me?

Potentially. It can apply for a sponsor licence, but approval is not guaranteed. Current guidance states that processing usually takes around eight weeks.

What is a Certificate of Sponsorship?

It is an electronic sponsorship record containing details of the worker and approved job. It is not a physical certificate.

How long is a Certificate of Sponsorship valid?

The worker must normally apply for the visa within three months of receiving the certificate.

Can the employer charge me for the Certificate of Sponsorship?

The employer must pay the £525 certificate fee itself. Its sponsor licence can be affected if it asks the worker to pay the fee or linked sponsor costs.

What English level is required?

Most new applicants need CEFR B2 in reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Is IELTS mandatory?

No. An applicant can use an approved Secure English Language Test or another accepted method, such as a qualifying English-taught degree.

How much does the visa cost?

For an application outside the UK, the standard fee is £819 for up to three years or £1,618 for more than three years.

How much is the Immigration Health Surcharge?

It is usually £1,035 for each year of permission.

How much maintenance money is required?

The principal applicant normally needs £1,270 unless exempt or the sponsor certifies maintenance.

How long does visa processing take?

A decision normally takes approximately three weeks outside the UK or eight weeks inside the UK after identity and documents have been provided.

How long can the visa last?

Up to five years before an extension is required.

Can the visa be extended?

Yes. It can be extended repeatedly while the applicant continues to satisfy the requirements.

Can a Software Engineer change employers?

Yes, but a new Certificate of Sponsorship and an approved visa update are normally required before beginning the new sponsored job.

Can Software Engineers bring their spouses?

Eligible spouses, civil partners and qualifying unmarried partners can normally apply as dependants.

Can a dependant spouse work?

Yes. A dependant partner can normally work in most occupations, except as a professional sportsperson or sports coach.

Can sponsored workers bring children?

Eligible children can normally apply as dependants. Children over 18 face additional requirements.

Can the visa lead to permanent residence?

Potentially. Skilled Workers can normally apply for indefinite leave to remain after five qualifying years.

What is the absence limit for settlement?

The applicant must normally have spent no more than 180 days outside the UK in any 12-month period.

What salary is required for settlement?

A current Skilled Worker normally needs at least £41,700 and the full standard going rate for the occupation. For code 2134, this may mean at least £54,700. Transitional exceptions can apply.

Do dependants qualify for settlement?

Eligible partners can normally apply after completing five continuous years as dependants and satisfying the other requirements.

Does five years guarantee settlement?

No. The applicant must submit a separate application and satisfy residence, salary, employment, English, Life in the UK and suitability requirements.

Are the 2027 salary requirements confirmed?

Separate 2027 figures had not been confirmed as of August 2026. Applicants should verify the rules applying when the Certificate of Sponsorship and visa application are prepared.

Can an employer guarantee permanent residence?

No. The Home Office independently decides settlement applications.

Professional UK Software Engineer Application Support

Professional application and relocation support may include:

UK-style CV preparation.
Position-specific cover letters.
LinkedIn optimisation.
Technical portfolio development.
Sponsor-register research.
Occupation-code review.
Skilled Worker salary calculation.
New-entrant eligibility review.
English-evidence planning.
Employment-reference formatting.
Interview preparation.
Compensation analysis.
Employment-contract review.
Visa-document organisation.
Family-document preparation.
Relocation planning.
Application tracking.

No legitimate professional service can guarantee:

A Software Engineer job.
A £150,000 salary.
Sponsor-licence approval.
Certificate of Sponsorship assignment.
Skilled Worker visa approval.
Indefinite leave to remain.
British citizenship.

Professional assistance should help candidates present genuine experience, identify suitable employers and avoid preventable application mistakes.

Final Thoughts

Software Engineer jobs in the UK with visa sponsorship provide strong career and immigration opportunities for skilled international professionals.

Current salary evidence includes:

£100,000 to £120,000 for selected Senior Platform Engineers.
£115,000 to £130,000 plus equity for a sponsored London Senior Software Engineer.
£120,000 to £140,000 plus equity for a sponsored Founding Platform Engineer.
£120,000 to £150,000 plus equity for a sponsored Senior Software Engineer.
£123,000 to £149,000 for selected London Senior Software Engineers.

However, most Software Developers do not earn £150,000. The official National Careers Service gives a broader range of approximately £30,000 to £75,000, with higher compensation generally reserved for senior, staff, lead, founding and specialist positions.

The strongest sponsorship candidates generally have:

Verifiable commercial experience.
In-demand programming skills.
Production-system ownership.
Strong measurable achievements.
Cloud or distributed-systems knowledge.
Clear professional English.
A focused UK-style CV.
A credible technical portfolio.
A realistic salary target.
A correct occupation code.
Flexibility regarding location.
A clear family and relocation plan.

For a standard Software Engineer application under code 2134, the key 2026 salary is not merely the £41,700 general threshold. The standard going rate is £54,700, and the applicant must normally receive the higher amount. New entrants may qualify at £38,300, while eligible STEM PhD applicants may qualify at £43,700.

Before signing a contract, confirm:

Sponsor-register status.
Sponsoring legal entity.
Occupation code.
Guaranteed salary.
Contractual working hours.
Bonus and equity treatment.
Certificate timeline.
Visa costs.
Family costs.
Probation.
Relocation repayment.
Settlement planning.

For a visa application submitted during 2027, verify all current salary, English, fee and settlement rules before the Certificate of Sponsorship is assigned.

Never pay a recruiter or employer to purchase a UK job offer or Certificate of Sponsorship. Verify the company, sponsor licence, vacancy, occupation code, salary and immigration process before sending money or sensitive documents.