Visa Sponsorship in 2025: Data From 1.5M+ Records Across 6 Countries

We analyzed 1,532,507 employer-level visa sponsorship records across 6 countries — the US, Canada, UK, Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand — spanning 2009 to 2025. All data comes from official government sources: USCIS, US DOL, IRCC, UK Home Office, Australian DHA, Ireland's DETE, and Immigration New Zealand.

Here's what the data shows about who's hiring internationally, who's pulling back, and where the opportunities are shifting.

US H-1B: 346,132 Unique Employers Across 15 Years

80% of Sponsors Are Small Companies

In 2022, out of 51,671 employers who received at least one H-1B approval, 41,504 (80%) had just 1–5 approvals. Only 1,069 employers had 50 or more. The perception that H-1B is dominated by a handful of tech giants is misleading — the vast majority of sponsors are small and mid-size companies that hire one or two international workers per year.

Denial Rates: A Political Story

The most striking pattern in H-1B data isn't about companies or occupations — it's about politics. Denial rates swung dramatically depending on who was in the White House:

Under the first Trump administration (2017–2020), denial rates climbed from 8.7% to 14.8% in 2018 — the highest in our dataset. Under Biden (2021–2024), they dropped to 2.0% in 2022, the lowest recorded. That's a 7x difference for the same visa category with the same eligibility rules on paper.

What to expect in 2025–2026: The current Trump administration has announced H-1B fee increases and stricter eligibility criteria. Given the pattern from the first term, denial rates are likely to climb again. Our 2024 and 2025 data comes from DOL LCA filings (showing 0 and 0 unique employer applications respectively), but USCIS has not yet published approval/denial breakdowns for these years. When they do, this will be the single most important metric to watch.

Top H-1B Employers (2022)

Canada LMIA: The Tightening Is Visible Quarter by Quarter

Canada's Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) data tells a clear story of a government pulling back. We track 160,686 unique employers across all available LMIA data.

Quarterly LMIA Approvals

From the peak of 29,517 LMIAs in 2024 Q1 to 18,516 in 2025 Q2 — that's a 37% decline. Both the number of approvals and the number of participating employers are falling every quarter. The Canadian government has explicitly stated it's reducing temporary worker intake, and the data confirms it.

UK Skilled Worker: From Boom to Sharp Correction

The UK has 139,425 licensed visa sponsors — the largest sponsor registry of any country we track, and it's publicly searchable. You can check whether a company is licensed to sponsor before you apply.

UK Skilled Worker visa grants saw an extraordinary run-up through 2023, followed by a sharp correction as the new government tightened rules:

• 2010: 99,958 grants
• 2023: 652,687 grants (all-time peak)
• 2025: 266,239 grants (through Q3)

The drop isn't random — it's the result of specific policy changes the UK government introduced in 2024:

• Salary threshold raised from £26,200 to £38,700 — this alone priced out a large segment of applications, especially in healthcare and hospitality
• Dependant visa restrictions — care workers can no longer bring family members, reducing the incentive to apply
• Immigration Health Surcharge increased from £624 to £1,035/year — a significant cost increase for multi-year visas
• Shortage Occupation List replaced with a narrower Immigration Salary List

The result: the post-COVID boom that saw grants surge from 98K (2020) to 652K (2023) has reversed sharply. If you're considering a UK move, the data says act sooner rather than later — the trend is clearly downward and the policy direction is to reduce intake further.

Australia: Steady Recovery

Australia has 3,580 accredited sponsors for the Subclass 482 (Temporary Skill Shortage) visa — a much smaller pool than the UK, which means accredited employers are genuinely committed to international hiring.

Visa grants have recovered strongly from the COVID low: 69,066 (2020) → 202,361 (2024). The 2025 data (101,847 so far) is on pace to match or slightly beat 2024.

Ireland: Growth Has Peaked

Ireland saw significant growth in employment permits through 2024, but the trend is now reversing:

Permits grew from 16,419 in 2020 to a peak of 39,390 in 2024 — but 2025 is tracking around 31,000, a 20% decline. The number of sponsoring companies grew from 3,470 to 8,330 (as of 2025), but the market is shifting.

What's happening: The post-COVID tech and healthcare hiring boom has ended. Major tech layoffs hit Ireland in 2024-2025 (TikTok, Intel, Workday, PayPal). Combined with a severe housing crisis (Dublin rent averages €2,540/month, with only ~1,900 homes available nationwide), Ireland is becoming less attractive despite its EU access and English-speaking workforce. First-residence permits (new arrivals) already declined 10% in 2024.

New Zealand AEWV: Visas Growing Despite Recession

New Zealand's Accredited Employer Work Visa scheme launched in 2022. With 24,823 accredited employers, grant volumes are rising:

New Zealand is one of the few countries where 2025 numbers are up compared to 2024. However, context matters: NZ's economy contracted 0.5% in 2024 (the worst among developed economies), and unemployment hit 5.3% — the highest since 2016.

Who's actually getting sponsored? The growth is concentrated in specific sectors: Accommodation & Food (16% of sponsors), Construction (14%), Agriculture (10%). IT/Telecom represents just 1.4%. Top occupations: Builder's Labourer, Carpenter, Chef, Care Assistant, Cook, Truck Driver, Dairy Farm Worker. If you're in tech, this "growing market" isn't really for you — it's filling roles in sectors where locals won't work at offered wages.

2025 Trend Summary: Who's Tightening, Who's Growing?

Key Takeaways

1. 80% of US H-1B sponsors are small companies (1–5 visas/year). Don't only target household names — thousands of employers you've never heard of sponsor regularly.
2. H-1B denial rates are cyclical and political. 2.0% under Biden (2022) vs 14.8% under Trump (2018). With the second Trump term underway and fee increases announced, expect a return to higher denial rates. Watch the USCIS data when it drops.
3. Canada and UK are both pulling back hard. Canada's LMIA approvals are down 37% from peak, declining every quarter. UK grants nearly halved in 2 years. If you're considering either country, don't wait.
4. Ireland has peaked; New Zealand is complicated. Ireland's permit numbers are declining after a post-COVID boom, with tech layoffs and housing crisis adding pressure. NZ visas are growing but in hospitality/construction — if you're in tech, it's not the opportunity it appears. Australia remains the steadiest option.
5. All of this data is public. Every country publishes visa sponsorship data through official government datasets. Most people just don't know where to find it — or how to read it.

You can check whether any specific company has sponsored visa workers using our free Sponsor Check tool, which searches across all 6 countries. For country-specific data, explore our visa sponsorship pages for the US, Canada, UK, Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand.