Met Office: does its graduate development scheme sponsor a UK visa?
Only in part. Met Office sponsors its graduate development scheme for some tracks or offices, not all. Met Office's own recruitment approach page states sponsorship is role by role, not a blanket policy, and that roles requiring security clearance need 3 of the last 5 years of UK residency, with 2 of those years immediately preceding the application. The Graduate Development Scheme page itself does not mention visa sponsorship at all, and separately states there is currently no Graduate scheme intake planned for 2027, so there is no live advert right now to check whether this specific scheme is one of the roles that sponsors. Treat as conditional, not guaranteed.
- Sponsors grads?
- Some tracks
- Pay vs threshold
- Not published
- Opportunity
- graduate scheme
- 2027 cycle
- Graduate Development Scheme page states there is currently no Graduate scheme intake planned for 2027.
- Confidence
- medium
What is covered: unspecified, role dependent, disclosed per individual job advert
“We can sponsor Skilled Worker visas on some of our roles, we will always make this clear on each of our adverts. For those living outside of the UK, there are some roles where we can sponsor Skilled Worker visas. However, you will need to pass security clearance which requires you to have resided in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years and 2 of these years must be immediately preceding the point of your application.”
Sources
- https://careers.metoffice.gov.uk/join-us/our-approach-recruitment
- https://careers.metoffice.gov.uk/early-careers/graduate-development-scheme
Verdict last checked 2026-08-11.
Common questions
Does Met Office sponsor visas for its graduate development scheme?
Only in part. Met Office sponsors its graduate development scheme for some tracks or offices, not all. Met Office's own recruitment approach page states sponsorship is role by role, not a blanket policy, and that roles requiring security clearance need 3 of the last 5 years of UK residency, with 2 of those years immediately preceding the application. The Graduate Development Scheme page itself does not mention visa sponsorship at all, and separately states there is currently no Graduate scheme intake planned for 2027, so there is no live advert right now to check whether this specific scheme is one of the roles that sponsors. Treat as conditional, not guaranteed.
Does the pay clear the UK Skilled Worker salary threshold?
The pay for this scheme is not published clearly enough to judge against the threshold.
How should I confirm Met Office's sponsorship before applying?
Read the specific vacancy on Met Office's careers site, ask its early-careers team directly, and check the employer on the gov.uk Register of Licensed Sponsors. Policies and thresholds change, so treat this page as a starting point and confirm for the exact role and cycle.
Other public sector schemes
- NHSSome tracks
- Civil ServiceNo
- Foreign, Commonwealth and Development OfficeNo
- GCHQNo
- Teach FirstNo
- Police NowNo
- FrontlineNo
- Unlocked GraduatesNo
- BBCNot published
- Bank of EnglandSome tracks
- Local Government AssociationNo
- HM Revenue and CustomsNo
- Environment AgencyNo
- Transport for LondonNo
- Network RailNo
- Nuclear Decommissioning AuthorityNo
- National Crime AgencyNo
- OfgemNo
- Bank of EnglandSome tracks
Before you apply
Scan your CV against UK applicant tracking systems for free, then tailor it to the schemes that can actually sponsor you.
Sponsorship data: Home Office register + job ad wording. Not immigration advice, verify on gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.