Lost your job on a Skilled Worker visa? The 60-day rule and your options

If your sponsored job ends, through redundancy, dismissal or resignation, your visa does not end that day. Your employer must tell the Home Office, and the Home Office will then normally cancel ("curtail") your permission so that you have 60 days left, unless you already have less than that. In those 60 days you can apply to work for a new sponsor, switch to a different visa, or leave the UK. This is how the Home Office's own caseworker guidance describes it, checked on gov.uk on 23 October 2026.

This is general information, not immigration advice. Your position depends on your dates, your job and your history. If you have received a letter or email from the Home Office, speak to a regulated adviser, which you can search for on the Immigration Advice Authority register.

What happens to your visa when your sponsored job ends?

Two things happen, in order.

First, your employer reports it. The sponsor guidance, part 3 (version 08/26, checked on 23 October 2026) says a sponsor must report when it stops sponsoring a worker "for any reason", and lists the worker resigning, being dismissed or being made redundant. The deadline is 10 working days after the event. Sponsors also have to report if you are absent without permission for more than 10 consecutive working days.

Second, the Home Office considers cancelling your permission. Its caseworker guidance, Cancellation and curtailment of permission (version 12.0, published for staff on 11 September 2026), tells caseworkers they "must consider cancelling permission to 60 days" when someone on a points-based route has "ceased work". The 60 days are meant to let you apply for further permission or arrange to leave.

When do the 60 days start?

Not on your last working day, and not when your employer files its report. The guidance says that serving the cancellation notice "starts the 60-day period during which the individual must apply to regularise their stay or depart".

Notices go to the postal or email address you gave the Home Office for correspondence. Once your sponsor has reported that you no longer work there, the guidance says caseworkers must not use an email address at your employer's domain, so make sure the Home Office holds a personal email address and your current postal address.

Two situations change the picture:

• You already have less than 60 days left. The guidance says no further action is needed. Your visa simply runs to its existing end date.
• You have already applied for new permission. If an application is pending, the Home Office waits for that decision instead of cancelling. If a new grant is made, there is nothing left to cancel.

Can the Home Office cancel your visa immediately?

Yes, in some cases. The same guidance says immediate cancellation will normally be appropriate where, for example:

• you were complicit in the reasons your sponsor lost its licence
• you stopped working for your sponsor "with no reasonable explanation and evidence" (long-term sickness or a family emergency are given as examples of a reasonable explanation)
• you were dismissed for gross misconduct serious enough that you should not get 60 days to find another sponsor
• your sponsor stopped trading more than 60 days ago and you have not moved to another sponsor

If your sponsor lost its licence and you were not knowingly involved, the guidance says cancellation to 60 days is normally the right outcome.

Can you get more than 60 days?

Only in exceptional compassionate circumstances, and with a senior caseworker's approval. The guidance gives examples: being pregnant and unable to travel, having just given birth, a serious illness or medical condition, or the need to protect a child's welfare, such as letting a child finish a course of treatment or exams. It also says cancellation can never push your permission beyond its original end date.

Can you work during the 60 days?

Not for a new employer, unless and until new permission allows it. Under paragraph SW 18.2 of Appendix Skilled Worker, your visa lets you work in the job you are sponsored for, plus limited extra work only while you continue in that sponsored job. You can also work out a contractual notice period and do voluntary work. Gov.uk's update your visa page says you should not start a new job until you have confirmation of your new permission.

Option 1: find a new sponsor

This is the most common route. You need:

1. A licensed employer. Check its name, town and rating on the Register of Licensed Sponsors. An A-rated sponsor can assign new certificates. You can also use our sponsor licence check or browse visa sponsors by city.
2. An eligible job at the right salary. The new job must meet the current rules. The general threshold is £41,700 or the going rate for the occupation, whichever is higher, with lower rates in some cases, for example if you got your first certificate of sponsorship before 4 April 2024. Our Skilled Worker salary calculator applies the published rates.
3. A new certificate of sponsorship. You must use it in an application within three months of it being assigned.
4. An application to update your visa, made before your current permission ends. Gov.uk says you will usually get a decision within 8 weeks.

There is a catch for "medium skilled" jobs. Gov.uk says you can only update your visa into a medium-skilled occupation code if you got your first certificate of sponsorship before 22 July 2025 and have held Skilled Worker visas continuously since. Otherwise the new job must be higher skilled, or on the Temporary Shortage List or Immigration Salary List, both of which currently only apply to certificates issued before 31 December 2026 (care workers and senior care workers have a later date of 22 July 2028).

Option 2: switch to a different visa

You may qualify for another route, for example as the partner of a British citizen or settled person, or under Global Talent. Gov.uk's check if you need a UK visa tool lists the routes. You cannot switch to the Graduate visa from a Skilled Worker visa: gov.uk's Graduate visa page says your current visa must be a Student visa.

Option 3: leave the UK before your permission ends

If neither of the above works, plan your departure before your permission expires. Leaving on time protects your record for future applications.

What if your employer lost its sponsor licence?

The 60-day approach normally applies here too, provided you were not involved in what went wrong. There is one temporary exception. Since September 2026 the caseworker guidance says caseworkers must not cancel the permission of care workers (6135) or senior care workers (6136) where the sponsor's licence revocation is the only reason. The guidance describes this as "temporary and subject to regular review". It gives you time, but not a new sponsor.

Does losing your job affect settlement?

It can. Indefinite leave to remain on this route currently needs five continuous years. Gov.uk's settlement guide counts time on any combination of Skilled Worker visas, so moving to a new sponsor through a granted update application keeps your time on the route. If you leave the route or the UK, check the continuous residence rules with an adviser before assuming your earlier time still counts.

Sources: every gov.uk page linked in this article was checked on 23 October 2026.

Frequently asked questions

How long can I stay in the UK after losing my Skilled Worker job? Usually 60 days from when the Home Office serves its cancellation decision on you, according to its caseworker guidance. If you already have less than 60 days left on your visa, it normally runs to its original end date instead.

Does the 60-day period start on my last day at work? No. The caseworker guidance says the 60-day period starts when the cancellation notice is served. Your employer has up to 10 working days to report that you have left, and the Home Office then decides and serves its notice.

Can I start a new job while I wait for my new visa? Gov.uk says you should not start your new job until you have confirmation of your new permission. You can keep working in your current job, or work out your notice, while the application is decided, as long as you applied before your visa expired.

What happens if I resign from my sponsored job? The same reporting and cancellation process applies whether you resign, are dismissed or are made redundant. The guidance says immediate cancellation is normally appropriate if you stop working with no reasonable explanation, so keep evidence of why you left.

Can I switch from a Skilled Worker visa to a Graduate visa? No. Gov.uk says you can only apply for a Graduate visa if your current visa is a Student visa.

Will I be told that my visa has been cut to 60 days? The Home Office serves a notice to the postal or email address you gave for correspondence. Keep your contact details current, because once your sponsor has reported that you have left, the guidance says caseworkers must not send the notice to an email address at your employer's domain.