UK Work Visa Sponsorship for Filipinos
The UK's care boom brought tens of thousands of Filipino workers over on sponsored visas. Then the rules tightened. Sponsorship is still open, but the jobs have shifted: trades, agriculture, and health roles that clear the current salary thresholds. Here's what the data shows.
Grants by year
Data starts in 2020. The Skilled Worker route launched in December 2020 and the Health & Care Worker visa in August 2020, replacing earlier Tier 2 categories.
In 2025, 2,574 Filipino nationals were granted UK work visas on the Skilled Worker or Health & Care Worker routes, down 45% on 2024. About 72% came through the Skilled Worker route, spanning professional, technical, and managerial jobs.
The most common occupation for Filipino nationals in 2025 was Care workers and home carers (305 grants), followed by Butchers (281) and Farmers (250). Other eligible Skilled Worker occupations are sponsorable too, as long as the employer holds a Home Office sponsor licence and the role clears the salary and skill-level thresholds for its SOC code.
Search the roles below to see who's currently hiring Filipino nationals. Filter by sponsor licence, visa route, or occupation.
Top occupations for Filipino nationals
| # | Occupation | Grants | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Care workers and home carers | 305 | H&CHealth & Care |
| 2 | Butchers | 281 | SWSkilled Worker |
| 3 | Farmers | 250 | SWSkilled Worker |
| 4 | Welding trades | 207 | SWSkilled Worker |
| 5 | Electrical and electronic trades n.e.c. | 135 | SWSkilled Worker |
| 6 | Other registered nursing professionals | 110 | H&CHealth & Care |
| 7 | Engineering technicians | 86 | SWSkilled Worker |
| 8 | Medical radiographers | 85 | H&CHealth & Care |
| 9 | Carpenters and joiners | 67 | SWSkilled Worker |
| 10 | Vehicle technicians, mechanics and electricians | 64 | SWSkilled Worker |
Full occupation distribution for Filipino nationals
Each rectangle is one occupation, sized by grant count and grouped by SOC major category. Color shows year-over-year change vs 2023. Total: 2,551 grants across 139 occupations.
Frequently asked questions
Can Filipinos work in the UK? Yes, through employer sponsorship. A job offer from a UK employer holding a Home Office sponsor licence gets you a Skilled Worker or Health & Care Worker visa; nationality is no barrier. In 2025, 2,574 Filipinos were granted UK work visas.
Can Filipino care workers still get UK sponsorship? Not from abroad. The UK closed care worker and senior care worker roles to new overseas applicants on 22 July 2025. Workers already in the UK on other visas can still switch into care jobs during a transition period running to 2028. Nurses and other health professionals are unaffected and can still be sponsored directly from the Philippines.
How many Filipinos got UK work visas in 2025? 2,574: 1,855 through the Skilled Worker route and 719 through Health & Care Worker. That's well down from the peak of 11,117 in 2022, when care recruitment was running at full speed.
What jobs do Filipinos get sponsored for in the UK? In 2025 the top occupations were Care workers and home carers, Butchers, and Farmers. Skilled trades now rank alongside care and health work. Any occupation on the Skilled Worker eligible list qualifies if the employer holds a licence and the pay clears the salary floor for that occupation code; health roles have lower thresholds than the general £41,700 rate.
Which UK companies sponsor Filipino workers? Any employer with a Home Office sponsor licence, and every company on Hunt UK Visa Sponsors holds one. Use the search below to see who's hiring now. One warning: sponsors cannot legally charge you for a Certificate of Sponsorship. If a recruiter in Manila or anywhere else asks you to pay for UK sponsorship, walk away.
Keep exploring
Current openings from Home Office licensed sponsors. Filter by visa route, salary, and occupation.
Visa trends and top occupations for every nationality, browsable by region.
See what a UK salary is really worth compared with Philippines — tax, purchasing power and visa costs.