What a Skilled Worker Visa Actually Costs

Sponsorship costs are split across two sides of the table. Some costs are yours. Some belong to the sponsor, and the sponsor is not permitted to recover them from you. Job seekers usually underestimate the first set and have no idea about the second.

Both matter. Knowing your own total stops a nasty surprise. Knowing the employer's total explains why some companies sponsor readily and others never will, and it tells you immediately when an offer is not legitimate.

All figures below were checked against GOV.UK on 25 August 2026.

Your side: the four costs

1. The application fee

Where you apply	Up to 3 years	More than 3 years
Outside the UK	£819	£1,618
Inside the UK (extend, switch or update)	£943	£1,865
Job on the Immigration Salary List	£628	£1,235
Health and Care Worker visa	£324	£628

The fee is per person. A partner and two children multiply it by four.

The Immigration Salary List discount and the Health and Care Worker rate are the two big reductions available. The Health and Care rate is by some distance the cheapest way into the UK on a sponsored route, and it applies to the same fee whether you apply from inside or outside the UK.

2. The immigration health surcharge

This is normally the largest single item, and it is charged up front for the whole visa length, not annually.

Applicant	Per year
Adult	£1,035
Child under 18	£776
Health and Care Worker visa, and their family	Not payable

A five-year Skilled Worker visa therefore carries £5,175 of surcharge for one adult, payable at the point of application. GOV.UK confirms that Health and Care Worker visa holders, along with their partner and children, do not pay it.

3. Money you must show, but do not spend

You must evidence £1,270 available to you, held for 28 consecutive days, with day 28 falling within 31 days of your application. Add £285 for a partner, £315 for a first child and £200 for each additional child.

This is not a fee. It is a balance requirement. The money stays yours. It is included here because people plan for the fees and then discover they cannot also hold £2,000 untouched for a month.

You are exempt from evidencing it if you have already been in the UK on a valid visa for 12 months or more, or if your A-rated sponsor certifies on the Certificate of Sponsorship that it will cover your first month of costs.

4. Everything the fee schedule does not mention

The published fees are not the whole outlay. Budget separately for:

• an Ecctis assessment, if you are relying on an overseas degree to prove English or qualifications;
• a Secure English Language Test, if you cannot meet the English requirement another way;
• document translation into English or Welsh, where required;
• TB testing, if you are applying from a listed country;
• the priority or super priority service, if you choose to pay for a faster decision; and
• travel, relocation and initial accommodation, which is usually the largest real-world number of all.

A worked example

A Skilled Worker applying from outside the UK for three years, on a standard fee, bringing a partner and one ten-year-old child:

Person	Application fee	Surcharge (3 years)	Total
Main applicant	£819	£3,105	£3,924
Partner	£819	£3,105	£3,924
Child	£819	£2,328	£3,147
Total			£10,995

Plus £1,870 that must be shown in the bank (£1,270 + £285 + £315) but not spent.

The same family on a Health and Care Worker visa for three years would pay £324 each, so £972 in total, with no surcharge at all. That single comparison explains a great deal about which routes people pursue.

The employer's side, and why it matters to you

A sponsor faces its own bill, and the rules on who pays are strict.

Employer cost	Small or charitable sponsor	Medium or large sponsor
Sponsor licence application (Worker)	£611	£1,682
Certificate of Sponsorship (Skilled Worker)	£525	£525
Immigration Skills Charge, first 12 months	£480	£1,320
Immigration Skills Charge, each further 6 months	£240	£660
Immigration Skills Charge, 5-year maximum	£2,400	£6,600

For a three-year Certificate of Sponsorship, a large sponsor pays £525 for the CoS plus £3,960 of skills charge, so £4,485 for that one hire, before any legal or HR time. A small sponsor pays £525 plus £1,440, so £1,965.

That is the real reason many employers with genuine vacancies still decline to sponsor. It is a four-figure decision per hire, repeated at every extension, and it is not recoverable from the worker.

The Immigration Skills Charge has exemptions

The charge is not due on every hire. GOV.UK lists exemptions covering certain occupation codes, including some scientist, researcher and higher education teaching roles, as well as some switching scenarios and certificates assigned before 6 April 2017. No skills charge is due for dependants.

If you are in an exempt occupation, that is a genuine and specific argument to make to a hesitant employer. It is worth checking the list before you assume cost is the obstacle.

Costs the sponsor must not pass to you

This is where cost knowledge becomes a fraud check.

The Home Office sponsor guidance states that a sponsor "must not recoup, or attempt to recoup, by any means, any part of the CoS fee", and that a sponsor "must not pass on any of the ISC to, or attempt to recoup it from, any of your sponsored workers". Recouping these costs will normally result in licence revocation.

In summary, for Skilled Worker sponsorship:

• the sponsor licence fee and associated administrative costs, where recoupment is on or after 31 December 2024;
• the Certificate of Sponsorship fee and associated administrative costs, for a certificate assigned on or after 31 December 2024; and
• the Immigration Skills Charge, in every case where it is due.

If an employer or agent asks you to pay, part-fund, or later repay any of these, that is not a negotiation. It is a compliance breach that puts the licence, and therefore your job, at risk.

The label used does not change the analysis. A "deposit", "processing fee", "training bond", "admin charge" or salary deduction that has the effect of recovering a sponsor-only cost is still recovery of a sponsor-only cost.

Repayment clauses are not automatically prohibited

An employer may lawfully choose to pay your application fee or surcharge and ask you to repay it if you leave within a set period. That is an applicant-side cost, and a clawback on it is a contractual matter rather than an immigration breach.

Read the clause carefully before signing. Ask specifically which fees the clause covers, and confirm in writing that it does not extend to the CoS fee or the skills charge.

Which visa sponsorship costs must the employer pay?

How to spot a sponsorship scam

Before you accept an offer

Ask for a written breakdown covering each fee the employer will pay, whether it pays directly or reimburses you, every repayment condition, and every amount that could be deducted from salary. Note that any deduction affecting your pay can also affect whether your salary still meets the threshold for your occupation code, since the sponsor must report a salary reduction to the Home Office.

Then verify the employer is genuinely licensed, using the exact legal entity name in the offer rather than the brand.

Check a company against the sponsor register

Sources and verification

This guide was checked on 25 August 2026 against:

• GOV.UK: Skilled Worker visa, how much it costs;
• GOV.UK: how much the healthcare surcharge costs;
• GOV.UK: Health and Care Worker visa, how much it costs;
• GOV.UK: immigration skills charge;
• GOV.UK: apply for a sponsor licence; and
• Sponsor guidance Part 2: sponsor a worker.

This is general information, not legal advice. Home Office fees change, usually more than once a year, and exemptions depend on the exact occupation code and circumstances. Confirm every figure on GOV.UK before you budget, and take regulated advice on any repayment clause before signing it.