The Register of licensed sponsors contains a list of all employers in the UK who can legally sponsor workers. However, it can be difficult to understand.
This guide shows you how up to date it is, each column it contains, what information it does not include and how best to keep track.
This is general information on a publicly available Home Office data set.
Where is it?
The Register of licensed sponsors: workers is published by the Home Office on GOV.UK. It is a single spreadsheet (CSV file). It includes a list of every organisation which has a Worker or Temporary Worker licence.
The file is large. As of 9th November 2026 it contained around 143,000 rows. This included around 127,700 current sponsors. Some sponsors have multiple rows depending on how many different types of licences they have.
How up to date is it?
Whilst there is no official schedule there are frequent updates. New versions are published regularly.
Since we started monitoring on 24th October 2026, there have been 5 updates on 5 different dates up to 9th November. Each update added and removed new sponsors. For example, 225 sponsors were added and 327 were removed during the update on 5th November.
Given there are so many updates it is likely any version you download will be outdated. We check for new versions every night and update automatically.
Columns
There are 5 columns in the spreadsheet.
- Organisation Name: This is the name the sponsor used when registering with the Home Office. This is usually the legal name of the company but may be a trading name.
- Town/City: The town the sponsor put. This is usually the head office.
- County: Often left blank or inconsistently filled.
- Type & Rating: This shows the type of licence the sponsor has and the rating. For example Worker (A rating). See our A rated and B rated sponsors guide.
- Route: This shows the visa route they can use. For example Skilled Worker. See our Sponsor routes explained.
Understanding
Below is an example of what a row could look like.
Example Care Ltd · Birmingham · West Midlands · Worker (A rating) · Skilled Worker
This means Example Care Ltd in Birmingham has an A rated Worker licence and can sponsor people on the Skilled Worker route.
What doesn’t the register show?
Whilst it can be very helpful, it can be quite restrictive. It does not show:
- If they’re currently recruiting. Just because they have a licence does not mean they have a vacancy.
- What they do. There is no column for sector or industry.
- Licence number or address. Only town is provided.
- History. This file only shows current information. If a sponsor was demoted last week and then reinstated today, you would not know.
- When they were removed. They just won’t appear in the new version.
- Why something changed. The Home Office does not include reasons why they were demoted or revoked.
Keeping track of changes
As it only shows the most current information, you will need to compare versions of the register. We do this automatically.
Each time a new version is published we compare it to the previous version. We log:
- New sponsors added.
- Sponsors removed.
- Rating changes (for example from A to B or B to A).
- New routes added/removed.
- Town changes.
This can be viewed on each companies page. We also have pages for sponsors who have been removed so you can still check the company.
Our statistics page will also provide you with totals for each route, rating and town.
Top tips
- Try searching for the legal name. If you only know the brand name search Companies House.
- Use less words. Try searching for Example Care instead of Example Care Services Limited.
- Try different spellings. For example & instead of and or St instead of Saint.
- Check nearby towns. Sponsors will decide how to spell their town.
- Check it’s up to date. We show you when the data was last updated. Make sure you’re looking at a recent version.
View our guide on how to check if a UK company has a sponsor licence to walk you through checking.
FAQs
Is it updated daily?
No. It is updated frequently, usually several times per week.
Why has a company been removed?
They may have had their licence revoked, surrendered or expired. They may have also changed their company name. View their page on our site to see when they were removed.
Can I download it?
Yes! It is free to download from GOV.UK. You will never have to pay for a list of sponsors.
Does it mean they will sponsor me?
No. It means they are allowed to. Whether they will depend on if they have vacancies and if your job meets the visa rules.
Sources
Data from Register of licensed sponsors on 9th November 2026. Checked November 2026.
This guide is general information, not legal or immigration advice. Rules change, so check the official GOV.UK guidance for sponsors and take advice from a regulated adviser before acting. SponsorCheck is not connected to the Home Office.