The Skills Charge Rose 32%. Here Is What That Changes for Job Seekers

If you are applying for sponsored roles and getting polite refusals from companies that clearly have vacancies, there is a number behind some of those refusals that almost nobody explains to candidates.

The Immigration Skills Charge rose by 32% on 16 December 2025, under the Immigration Skills Charge (Amendment) Regulations 2025. It was the first increase since the charge was introduced in 2017, and it was described as bringing the charge into line with inflation over that period.

The new numbers

Previously the annual figures were £364 and £1,000.

The charge is paid when the sponsor assigns a Certificate of Sponsorship, covering the period of employment stated on it. A large employer sponsoring someone for five years pays £6,600 for that one hire, on top of £525 for the certificate itself.

Why this lands on you

Add it up from the employer's side. A medium or large sponsor hiring for three years pays £525 for the certificate plus £3,960 of skills charge, so £4,485 before anyone has done any legal or HR work. If it does not already hold a licence, add £1,682 for the licence application.

That is a four-figure premium on one candidate over another, for the same role and the same salary. It is repeated at extension. And it is not recoverable.

This is the real content of "unfortunately we are not able to offer sponsorship for this position". It is usually not prejudice and often not policy. It is a line item that a hiring manager may not even control, sitting in a budget that was set before the vacancy opened.

Nobody can pass it to you

GOV.UK is unambiguous: the sponsor must pay the charge itself, and its licence may be revoked if it asks the sponsored worker to pay the fee or any costs linked to its application. The sponsor guidance puts it as: "You must not pass on any of the ISC to, or attempt to recoup it from, any of your sponsored workers."

So if an employer or agent responds to the higher charge by asking you to cover it, share it, or repay it later, that is not a creative solution to a budget problem. It is a compliance breach that puts the licence, and therefore your job, at risk. The framing does not matter: a deposit, a training bond, an admin fee or a salary deduction that has the effect of recovering the charge is still recovering the charge.

Expect to see more of these requests, not fewer, precisely because the number went up.

Two things worth knowing

Not every hire attracts the charge. GOV.UK lists exemptions, including certain occupation codes covering some scientist, researcher and higher education teaching roles, certificates assigned before 6 April 2017, and some switching scenarios. No charge is due for dependants. If your occupation is exempt, say so early. It removes the largest single objection from the conversation.

Small sponsors pay a third of what large ones pay. A small or charitable sponsor pays £480 for the first year against £1,320. Smaller organisations are often assumed to be the harder sell, and on cash flow they can be, but per hire the charge is substantially lighter. Charities and small firms with existing licences are worth more of your attention than most job search advice suggests.

What to do with this

Target employers that already hold a licence, since they have already absorbed the licence fee and have made the decision in principle. Check the register rather than guessing from a careers page. Then, where your occupation is exempt from the skills charge, put that in the conversation rather than waiting to be screened out on cost.

We have set out the full cost picture, on both sides of the table, here:

What a Skilled Worker visa actually costs →

Sources and verification

• The Immigration Skills Charge (Amendment) Regulations 2025, in force 16 December 2025.
• GOV.UK: immigration skills charge, for current amounts, exemptions and who pays.
• Sponsor guidance Part 2: sponsor a worker.
• GOV.UK: apply for a sponsor licence, for licence fees.

Verified against the sources above on 25 August 2026. Charge levels and exemptions change. Confirm the current figures on GOV.UK, and take advice before agreeing to any arrangement that recovers a sponsor cost from you.