How a CoS fits into the process
- A licensed sponsor offers you an eligible job at a qualifying salary.
- The employer assigns a CoS with your details, the occupation code, salary and start date.
- You receive the CoS reference number and apply for your visa, usually within three months of the CoS being assigned.
- The Home Office checks the CoS against your application and decides the visa.
Two kinds of certificate
Employers use one type of CoS for people applying from outside the UK (previously called a “defined” CoS), which they request from the Home Office for each role. People already in the UK who are switching visa or extending use a different type that the employer assigns from its own allocation. Either way, each CoS is for one person and one application.
Who pays
- The employer pays the CoS fee and, in most cases, the Immigration Skills Charge.
- Sponsors are not allowed to pass the CoS fee or the Immigration Skills Charge on to you.
- You normally pay your own visa application fee and the Immigration Health Surcharge, unless you are on the Health and Care visa or your employer offers to cover them.
Spotting CoS scams
Genuine employers do not sell certificates or jobs. If an agent or “employer” asks you to pay for a CoS, promises a guaranteed visa, or offers a job you never interviewed for, walk away. Check the employer on the sponsor register, look for a real advert on its own website, and never pay large fees to secure a role.