Backend Engineer II - Data Platform
Added 28 Sept · still live
Likely
Sponsorship likelihood
This employer has issued visas recently
Not disclosed
Salary
Not disclosed by employer
£54,700
Going rate
Skilled Worker going rate
This role likely qualifies for a Skilled Worker visa
SOC 2134 (96% match) is an eligible occupation, with a going rate of £54,700, and Spotify is a licensed sponsor. That is our reading of the rules. Whether they issue a Certificate of Sponsorship is still their call.
In 2025, Spotify assigned 28 or more Certificates of Sponsorship for SOC 2134 jobs, according to the Home Office.
Your salary route
New graduate or PhD holder? Pick one of the lower rates.
What each route needs for this job
| Occupation code | New entrant 70% of going rate | STEM PhD 80% of going rate | Relevant PhD 90% of going rate | Standard rate 100% of going rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2134 Programmers and software development professionals Most likely code | £38,300 | £43,700 | £49,200 | £54,700 |
We use the lowest threshold across the plausible codes. Likelihood is Possible at most when the pay clears only a lower rate, or only under a less likely code. How the Home Office picks the code
About the role
Every dataset at Spotify, from the data behind creator royalties to the signals powering recommendations, is registered, published and traced through systems our team builds. We're the source of truth for what data exists at Spotify, where it lives, who owns it, and how it flows from one pipeline to the next.
These systems sit on the critical path of the platform. Data teams use them every day to publish and find data, and other platform teams build on them for access, retention, governance and incident response. That means our work is judged on correctness and reliability, because every system built on top of ours is only as good as the metadata we provide.
This is a backend role focused on data management, working on the problems at the core of any large data platform: running a data catalog that stays accurate at scale, capturing lineage across batch and streaming workloads, managing schemas as they evolve, and guaranteeing that consumers only read complete data. We build on open standards like OpenLineage and Apache Iceberg, and define the internal standards for naming, storage and metadata that the rest of Spotify builds against. As the platform takes on new storage technologies and new kinds of data assets, those standards and the systems behind them have to evolve with it, and you'll help decide how.
What You'll Do
These systems sit on the critical path of the platform. Data teams use them every day to publish and find data, and other platform teams build on them for access, retention, governance and incident response. That means our work is judged on correctness and reliability, because every system built on top of ours is only as good as the metadata we provide.
This is a backend role focused on data management, working on the problems at the core of any large data platform: running a data catalog that stays accurate at scale, capturing lineage across batch and streaming workloads, managing schemas as they evolve, and guaranteeing that consumers only read complete data. We build on open standards like OpenLineage and Apache Iceberg, and define the internal standards for naming, storage and metadata that the rest of Spotify builds against. As the platform takes on new storage technologies and new kinds of data assets, those standards and the systems behind them have to evolve with it, and you'll help decide how.
What You'll Do
- Build and Evolve Core Services: Design, build and operate the backend services and APIs behind our data catalog, lineage and publishing systems, and evolve them as the platform adopts new storage technologies and new kinds of data. Hold them to a high bar for correctness, performance and reliability.
- Build Data Pipelines: Develop and run the batch and streaming pipelines that keep our metadata current, processing platform events and audit logs to capture how data is created and changed, and turning lineage and metadata into data products other teams build on.
- Own Projects End to End: Turn what the teams using our platform need into technical designs, drive them through delivery and rollout, and own the results once they're in production.
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- You have solid experience building and running backend services and APIs in production with Java, and you care about API design, versioning and backward compatibility.
- You're comfortable with SQL and have worked with data pipelines or a cloud data warehouse such as BigQuery, Snowflake or Databricks. Hands-on experience with batch or streaming frameworks like Beam, Flink or Spark is a plus.
- You have a working understanding of data engineering concepts such as orchestration, metadata management, data quality, governance and lineage.
- You break problems down into clear, shippable steps, reasoning through tradeoffs and risks and converging on clear recommendations.
- You own the quality of what you ship, including code written with AI assistance, and you care about operating it well after launch.
- You are a strong communicator and collaborator who enjoys working across teams, and you're comfortable in a dynamic platform environment where many engineers depend on what you build and priorities evolve with the business.
- This role is based in Stockholm or London.
- We offer you the flexibility to work where you work best! There will be some in person meetings, but still allows for flexibility to work from home.
At Spotify, we are passionate about inclusivity and making sure our entire recruitment process is accessible to everyone. We have ways to request reasonable accommodations during the interview process and help assist in what you need. If you need accommodations at any stage of the application or interview process, please let us know - we’re here to support y
ou in any way we can.
We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us. Find our AI notice here: https://lifeatspotify.com/ai-notice
Today, we are the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service.
We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us. Find our AI notice here: https://lifeatspotify.com/ai-notice
Today, we are the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service.
This description is the source posting as it read when we added it. We are not affiliated with Spotify, so check their own site for the current details.
Where this offer sits in the market
Programmers and software development professionals (SOC 2134) · UK · ONS ASHE 2025 · basic pay · ~399k in sampleSOC 2134
- Middle half £42,536–76,752
- Median £56,784
- Going rate £54,700
- Threshold £41,700
- New entrant £38,300–49,200
Similar sponsored roles
See all UK visa jobsNo close matches live right now.
Browse more sponsored jobs at SpotifyAbout sponsorship for this role
Does this job guarantee visa sponsorship?
Not necessarily. Spotify holds a sponsor licence, but sponsorship for a specific hire is always the employer's decision. In 2025, Spotify assigned 28 or more Certificates of Sponsorship for SOC 2134 jobs, according to the Home Office. Be upfront in your application that you'll require it.
What salary is needed for this role to be eligible?
The offer must clear both the general threshold and the SOC 2134 going rate of £54,700. New-entrant and shortage discounts can lower it.