Overview
The Home Office charges fees for most visa applications, sponsor licence applications, and associated services. Fees are reviewed periodically and increases typically take effect in April each year. This article covers the fees most relevant to UK care sector sponsors and their sponsored workers, reflecting the rates effective 8 April 2026.
Skilled Worker visa application fees
The fee a worker pays depends on whether they are applying from outside the UK or extending/switching in the UK, and whether their Certificate of Sponsorship covers a period of three years or less, or over three years.
For applications made outside the UK:
Standard Skilled Worker, up to 3 years: £819
Standard Skilled Worker, over 3 years: £1,618
Health and Care Visa, up to 3 years: £324
Health and Care Visa, over 3 years: £628
For in-country applications (extensions or switches):
Standard Skilled Worker, up to 3 years: £943
Standard Skilled Worker, over 3 years: £1,865
Health and Care Visa, up to 3 years: £324
Health and Care Visa, over 3 years: £628
The reduced Health and Care Visa fee applies to workers in eligible health and social care roles, including those on SOC codes 6135 and 6136. This reduction applies regardless of whether the role is on the Immigration Salary List.
Sponsor licence fees
Organisations applying for a new Worker sponsor licence pay:
Small sponsor: £611
Large sponsor: £1,682
Whether an organisation qualifies as small or large is determined by the Companies Act 2006 definition. Organisations that meet two or more of the following thresholds are considered large: annual turnover above £10.2m, balance sheet total above £5.1m, or more than 50 employees.
Certificate of Sponsorship fee
The CoS assignment fee is £525 per Skilled Worker CoS and has not changed. This is paid by the sponsor, not the worker.
ILR application fee
Workers applying for indefinite leave to remain after completing five years on a Skilled Worker visa pay £3,226 per applicant. Dependants applying at the same time are charged the same fee each.
What sponsors cannot charge workers
Sponsors are prohibited from passing the cost of the sponsor licence fee or the CoS assignment fee to sponsored workers as a condition of employment. Workers may choose to fund their own visa application fee but this cannot be made a contractual requirement.
Priority and premium services
The Home Office offers an optional priority service for in-country applications at £500, which targets a decision within five working days. The super priority service costs £1,000 and aims for a next working day decision. These fees are unchanged from the previous fee schedule.
How Borderless is handling the fee change
If you manage applications through Borderless, the following dates apply:
By end of day 31 March 2026: Any application that is billed (offer accepted or submitted to Borderless) by this date will be charged at the current fee rates.
From 1 April 2026: All new applications entering the pipeline will be billed at the updated fee rates.
By 6pm on 7 April 2026: This is the latest point at which applications can realistically be submitted to the Home Office at the current fees. Applications submitted after this point will be subject to the new, higher rates.
From 8 April 2026: Borderless will review any cases where a refund may be due (for applications billed at the new rate but submitted to the Home Office before the deadline), or where re-billing is necessary (for applications billed at the old rate that were not submitted in time).
If you have candidates with offers ready to accept or applications close to submission, we recommend getting them into the pipeline before 31 March to give us enough lead time to submit to the Home Office before the 7 April cutoff. Speak to your account manager if you need help prioritising.