- What is the UK Seasonal Worker Visa?
- Who can sponsor Seasonal Workers in the UK?
- Requirements for a Seasonal Worker Sponsor licence
- How long can an employer sponsor a Seasonal Worker?
- Sponsor duties and compliance for Seasonal Worker sponsor
- Monitoring Seasonal Worker’s welfare
- If the Seasonal Worker wishes to change employer
- Additional requirements for Seasonal worker sponsors
What is the UK Seasonal Worker Visa?
The UK has long been a hub for seasonal industries, such as food, farming and rural affairs. To meet the demands of these sectors and address labour shortages, the UK government has introduced the Seasonal Worker Visa scheme. The UK Seasonal Worker Visa is a temporary visa category designed specifically for individuals who wish to work in seasonal industries in the UK. It allows employers in eligible sectors to recruit overseas workers to fill temporary job vacancies that cannot be filled by the domestic workforce.
The route is limited to seasonal work in horticulture and poultry production, and it is capped by an annual quota set by the Home Office. For workers with a Certificate of Sponsorship start date in 2027, the quota is 41,000 visas for horticulture and 1,900 for poultry production, the same as in 2026, and each scheme operator can use only its allocated share.
Who can sponsor Seasonal Workers in the UK?
Only an approved scheme operator holding a sponsor licence for the Seasonal Worker route can sponsor seasonal workers in the UK. Growers and other individual employers cannot hold this licence; they receive sponsored workers through a scheme operator. The Home Office will not license any further scheme operator on this route without prior approval to be a scheme operator, and WorkPermitCloud can advise on which sponsorship route fits your business.
If you already hold a sponsor licence for another route, you can add the Seasonal Worker route only if you are a Defra-endorsed scheme operator that meets the requirements below. It is recommended to seek professional advice to ensure a smooth application process and avoid any potential mistakes that could arise.
Requirements for a Seasonal Worker Sponsor licence
To be eligible to apply for a licence to sponsor Seasonal Workers you must be an overarching body (scheme operator) which is:
◉ endorsed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to be an approved scheme operator, and
◉ holds a Fair Work Agency gangmaster’s licence (gangmaster licensing moved from the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority to the Fair Work Agency in April 2026)
Please note individual employers and organisations are not eligible for a sponsor licence on this route, even if you are licensed as a sponsor on other routes. If you intend to hire permanent skilled workers, we recommend referring to the Skilled Worker Route and obtaining a Skilled Worker sponsor license for that purpose.
How long can an employer sponsor a Seasonal Worker?
A licensed scheme operator can sponsor a seasonal worker in horticulture for up to 6 months in the UK in any 10-month period, and the worker must not have been in the UK as a Seasonal Worker during the 4 months immediately before the start date on their Certificate of Sponsorship. A seasonal worker in poultry production can only be sponsored for a period between 2 October and 31 December in the same year, and must submit their visa application by 15 November of that year.
Sponsor duties and compliance for Seasonal Worker sponsor
If you currently hold a sponsor license for the seasonal worker route, it's important to note that in addition to fulfilling the regular sponsor duties of record keeping and reporting, you will also have additional responsibilities as an approved scheme operator. Your additional responsibilities will be ensuring your seasonal workers’ welfare, you must follow the guidance on Employing people and Agricultural workers’ rights pages on the GOV.UK website.
Failure to comply with sponsor duties can lead to your licence being downgraded, suspended or revoked. Seeking professional advice to avoid risk. Contact WorkPermitCloud to maintain sponsor duties.
The Home Office will normally revoke your sponsor licence if, within any 12-month period, any of the following occur:
- ◉ fewer than 95 percent of your sponsored workers are granted entry clearance (a visa)
- ◉ 3 percent or more of your sponsored workers who obtain entry clearance (a visa) fail to arrive at their place of employment
- ◉ fewer than 97 percent of your sponsored workers who obtain entry clearance (a visa) leave the UK at the end of their permitted stay
Monitoring Seasonal Worker’s welfare
According to the Home office guidance:
You must undertake robust and comprehensive monitoring of all the workers you sponsor in their workplace, including ensuring that:
- ◉ the workers’ work environment is safe and complies with relevant Health and Safety requirements
- ◉ employers take adequate steps to ensure workers understand Health and Safety procedures, including providing translations into the workers’ first language if required
- ◉ workers are treated fairly by their employer, including not penalising workers for failing to work at the fair piece rate
- ◉ workers are given an employment contract in their first language, as well as in English – these must not be zero-hours contracts
- ◉ workers are paid properly – this includes paying the minimum hourly rate, alongside satisfying relevant National Minimum Wage regulations, including those on fair rates for piece work, and holiday pay
- ◉ workers are allowed time off and proper breaks
- ◉ workers are made fully aware of procedures if they are sick or injured, including how to make a claim on any medical insurance they may have
- ◉ workers are provided with appropriate equipment to do their job safely and are not charged for it, including any replacements of worn and accidentally damaged items
- ◉ employers with whom you have placed workers do not impose additional, unnecessary charges on workers, whether directly or indirectly
- ◉ workers are housed in hygienic and safe accommodation that is in a good state of repair
- ◉ workers are not transported in unsafe vehicles
- ◉ workers are not threatened with, or subjected to, violence
- ◉ workers are not subject to any discrimination
- ◉ workers’ passports, travel documents or any other identity documents are not withheld from them
- ◉ procedures are in place to enable workers to report any concerns to you
- ◉ workers are made fully aware of the expectations on you and the employer, and how to report any concerns where those expectations are not met
Under the sponsor guidance valid from 8 October 2026, every horticulture worker, and every poultry worker in occupation codes 8111, 9111, 9119 or 9132, must be guaranteed at least 32 hours of paid work each week at no less than £12.71 an hour. Poultry butchers and dressers (codes 5431 and 5433) must be paid at least £15.88 an hour and £38,700 a year, with earnings for shorter stays converted to an annual equivalent.
If the Seasonal Worker wishes to change employer
As a seasonal worker sponsor, you must establish a clear employer transfer pathway. This includes setting transparent criteria for transfer requests and implementing a process for evaluating such requests. It is important to communicate this pathway to workers before they commence work on the farm.
You must not normally refuse requests from seasonal workers to change employers. Participating workers can change employers if they wish and must normally be allowed to do so, unless there are significant reasons not to permit it, for example where their visa will expire soon and the training needed would make the move impractical.
Additional requirements for Seasonal worker sponsors
- ◉ You must not place any additional charges on participating workers, beyond the costs of administrating the scheme.
- ◉ You must not recoup, or try to recoup, any part of the sponsor licence fee, the Certificate of Sponsorship fee or related administrative costs from the workers you sponsor. This applies to workers sponsored on or after 9 April 2025, and the Home Office will normally revoke your licence if you do.
- ◉ You cannot use the Seasonal Worker route to source your own labour needs.
- ◉ You must not place workers at an employment business, agency or similar intermediary, or use such a business to place them.
- ◉ You must only place workers with growers who have demonstrated to you that they are actively engaging with Jobcentre Plus to recruit UK based workers.
- ◉ You must hold a valid Fair Work Agency gangmaster’s licence at all times.
- ◉ You must only sponsor workers in roles you have been endorsed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to offer.
To obtain a sponsor licence for the Seasonal Worker route, a scheme operator must be endorsed by Defra, hold a Fair Work Agency gangmaster’s licence and meet the requirements in the Home Office guidance. Compliance with sponsor duties and additional responsibilities, such as monitoring workers' welfare, is essential. Scheme operators must also normally allow workers to change employers, unless there are significant reasons not to. Seeking professional advice is crucial in navigating the complexities of the process, and WorkPermitcloud can provide valuable assistance in this regard.
Contact us today and experience the ease and convenience of our professional Sponsor Licence Application service.
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