UK care-worker visa — how to check the job is real

UK care-sector recruitment has been a major fraud channel: fake sponsors, recycled Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) numbers, and huge “visa fees” for jobs that don’t exist. These checks catch most of it.

1. Check the sponsor licence register

Only employers holding a sponsor licence from the UK Home Office can sponsor a Health and Care Worker visa. The full register of licensed sponsors is public — search GOV.UK for the “register of licensed sponsors: workers”. Check that:

• The employer named in your offer appears on the register,
• The licence covers the right route (Skilled Worker / Health and Care),
• The employer’s name and location match your offer letter exactly.

2. Verify the employer independently

A sponsor licence proves the company exists and can sponsor — not that your offer came from them. Find the employer’s official website and phone number independently (not from the agent’s letter) and confirm the vacancy and the offer directly. Check the company on Companies House (the UK company register) — a care home that was incorporated three months ago and has one director should worry you.

3. Understand what a CoS is

The Certificate of Sponsorship is an electronic record with a unique reference number that the employer assigns to you. Red flags:

• You are asked to pay the agent for the CoS itself. In the UK it is unlawful for a sponsor to recoup its sponsorship costs from the worker, and selling CoS is a known scam.
• The CoS number is “shared” or arrives from anyone other than the sponsoring employer.
• You cannot get the CoS details in writing before paying.

4. Know who charges what

Real costs are paid mostly to the UK government: the visa application fee and, depending on the route, the immigration health surcharge. Recruitment agencies charging workers ₹5–15 lakh for a “care job package” are charging for something that should largely cost the employer, not you. In the UK, charging work-seekers a fee for finding them work is illegal for recruitment agencies.

5. Before you travel

• Have a written employment contract stating your role, hours, and salary, matching the CoS.
• Confirm your accommodation arrangements in writing.
• Keep copies of everything outside your own phone (email them to a family member).

If an agent fails these checks, do not pay — and report them so others see it.