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F1 Offer line, stop 1 of 5

Check a sponsored offer before you sign it

Flip each switch only when the offer, or HR's written reply, confirms it.

Checked against gov.uk, 7 October 2026

Before you sign: seven switches

Flip each one when you have checked it. They stay set on this device only.

  1. The job title and the occupation code on the Certificate of Sponsorship must describe the job you will do.

  2. At least £41,700, or £33,400 as a new entrant, and the occupation's going rate if higher.

  3. Only pay for the first 48 hours a week counts towards the salary rules.

  4. You must apply within 3 months of the certificate being assigned. A degree-level Student may start the job before the course ends while the application is pending, within the limits in Appendix Student.

  5. The Immigration Skills Charge is the employer's to pay: The employer, never the worker. Read any repayment clause on visa cost clauses.

  6. If you switch from a Student visa, the charge is not payable, so ask for the certificate while you still hold Student permission.

  7. Send the offer-stage questions below, and keep the reply.

Check this offer against your occupation's going rate with Visavi's salary checker (opens visavi.uk); it opens with your figures filled in.

Ask HR four questions in one email

Ask about the Certificate of Sponsorship

Subject: Questions on my offer for [target role]

Hi [contact name],

Thank you for the offer. Before I sign, could you confirm four things: the occupation code you will use on my Certificate of Sponsorship, the salary on it, the weekly hours, and when you plan to assign it? I want to apply for my visa in good time.

Thank you,
[your name]

When to send
As soon as the offer arrives.
If they say no
Ask who in HR handles sponsorship, and send the same four questions to them.

Fill these in once. Every script fills in as you type.

Your name, course and role are kept on this device only. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Why each switch matters

The Certificate of Sponsorship is the record the visa is decided on. If its occupation code, salary or hours differ from the job you will do, the application can fail after you have resigned elsewhere.

If the salary is close to a line, work through the salary threshold check before you sign. If the contract mentions repaying visa costs, read the cost clause plates. Then follow the steps from offer to visa.

An empty Underground platform curves beside the rails into a dark tunnel mouth under a tiled ceiling.
Underground platform and tunnel, London.Jacek Herbut, Pexels Licence.

Before you ask

Can the start date on the certificate change?

Ask HR before it is assigned. Once assigned, the dates on it matter for your application, so agree them first.

Who should pay the Immigration Skills Charge?

The employer, always. A sponsor may lose its licence if it asks you to pay it.

Should I sign before the certificate arrives?

You may sign the offer, but keep the four answers in writing first. The certificate should match them.

Sources

  1. Immigration Rules, Appendix Skilled Worker, SW 4.4 option A; figure substituted by Statement of Changes HC 997 (APP SW2) (opens gov.uk)
    "You’ll usually need to be paid the ‘standard’ salary rate of at least £41,700 per year, or the ‘going rate’ for your job, whichever is higher."
    Checked 7 October 2026
  2. Immigration Rules, Appendix Skilled Worker, SW 4.4 option E; figure substituted by Statement of Changes HC 997 (APP SW4) (opens gov.uk)
    "You can be paid 70% of your job’s standard going rate if your salary will be at least £33,400 per year and one of the following applies:"
    Checked 7 October 2026
  3. Immigration Rules, Appendix Skilled Worker, SW 4.4 option A; Immigration Rules, Appendix Skilled Occupations, Table 1 notes (opens gov.uk)
    "Going rates in Table 1 are per year and based on a 37.5-hour working week. They must be pro-rated for other working patterns, based on the weekly working hours stated by the applicant’s sponsor."
    Checked 7 October 2026
  4. Immigration Rules, Appendix Skilled Worker, SW 14.3 (opens gov.uk)
    "SW 14.3. If the applicant is being sponsored to work more than 48 hours a week, subject to SW 14.3A, only the salary for the first 48 hours a week will be considered towards the salary thresholds referred to in the table following SW 4.4."
    Checked 7 October 2026
  5. gov.uk guidance, Skilled Worker visa: Your job (opens gov.uk)
    "You must apply for your visa within 3 months of getting your certificate of sponsorship."
    Checked 7 October 2026
  6. gov.uk guidance, UK visa sponsorship for employers: Immigration skills charge (opens gov.uk)
    "You must pay the immigration skills charge yourself. Your licence may be revoked if you ask the sponsored worker to pay the fee or any costs linked to your application."
    Checked 7 October 2026
  7. gov.uk guidance, UK visa sponsorship for employers: Immigration skills charge (opens gov.uk)
    "You will not have to pay the charge if they switch to either a Skilled Worker or Senior or Specialist Worker visa and then extend their stay on the new visa."
    Checked 7 October 2026
  8. Immigration Rules, Appendix Student, ST 26.6 (opens gov.uk)
    "ST 26.6. A Student who makes a valid application for permission to stay under the Skilled Worker, or Graduate route, may start employment in a full-time permanent vacancy either up to 3 months prior to the course completion date (for the Skilled Worker route) or once they have successfully completed their course of study (for the Graduate route), provided all of the following apply:"
    Checked 7 October 2026

Updated Checked against gov.uk on

What changed

  • 7 October 2026: First published.

This is a playbook, not immigration advice. Before you act, check the rule on gov.uk or ask a regulated immigration adviser or a solicitor.