How to Show Visa Status on Your CV: Wording by Country

If you're applying for jobs in a country where you aren't a citizen, a recruiter's first question is often simple: can this person legally start work, and will we need to sponsor them? Knowing how to show visa status on your CV lets you answer that in one honest line. You avoid being filtered out by guesswork, and you avoid overstating rights you don't have.

This guide gives you a placement rule, a wording formula, country-by-country examples and a checklist. Immigration rules change often, and this post is general information, not legal advice. Always confirm your own situation on the official government sites linked below.

Where to put your visa status on a CV

Put it in one short line directly under your contact details. That is where recruiters look first. It also stays visible if your CV is parsed into a plain-text profile.

For example:

Jane Okafor | London, UK | jane.okafor@email.com | +44 7xxx xxx xxx Right to work: UK Graduate visa, valid until June 2026

A few placement rules:

• Use plain text, not a text box, icon or header/footer. Some applicant tracking systems ignore content in headers and footers. A normal line in the document body is safest.
• Don't repeat it everywhere. One line near the top is enough. You can add a sentence in your cover letter if sponsorship needs explaining. See how to mention visa sponsorship in a cover letter.
• Answer application form questions separately and accurately. Many online forms ask directly about work rights and sponsorship. Your CV line should match what you put in the form.

The wording formula: status, type, dates, sponsorship

Most good visa lines include up to four parts:

1. Status: do you have the right to work now?
2. Type: the visa, permit or stamp name, in the terms local employers recognise.
3. Dates: the expiry, if the permission is time-limited.
4. Sponsorship: whether you need it now, later or not at all.

You don't always need all four. A citizen or permanent resident only needs the first. A temporary visa holder usually needs all of them, because a recruiter will ask anyway.

What to leave out

• Passport, visa or permit numbers. Employers collect these during formal right-to-work checks, not from your CV.
• Copies of documents, unless the application explicitly asks for them.
• Your date of birth, marital status or religion. These are not needed to explain work rights.
• Vague phrases like 'visa in progress' or 'eligible to work' when you aren't sure that's true. If an application is pending, say so plainly. For example: 'Partner visa application lodged March 2025; currently on bridging visa with full work rights.' Only write this if it is actually your situation.

Wording examples by country

Use these as templates. Swap in your real visa type and dates, and never borrow a status you don't hold.

United Kingdom

UK employers must check right to work before hiring. Many visa holders now prove this online with a share code through the GOV.UK 'Prove your right to work' service.

• Right to work: British citizen or Right to work: Indefinite leave to remain
• Right to work: EU Settlement Scheme (settled status)
• Right to work: Graduate visa, valid until September 2026. Would require Skilled Worker sponsorship after this date.
• Right to work: Dependant visa (partner of Skilled Worker), valid until 2027. No sponsorship required for this role.
• Requires Skilled Worker visa sponsorship. Use this if you're applying from abroad.

If you need sponsorship, check the employer can offer it before you apply. Our guide on how to search the UK Register of Licensed Sponsors walks through it.

United States

US employers verify work authorisation after hire using Form I-9. Many application forms also ask whether you will 'now or in the future' require sponsorship. Answer that truthfully. Details are on USCIS. In the US, your CV is usually called a resume.

• Work authorization: US citizen or Permanent resident
• Work authorization: F-1 OPT (EAD valid until May 2026). Will require H-1B sponsorship for long-term employment.
• Work authorization: H-4 EAD, valid until 2026. No sponsorship required. Only use this if you actually hold an EAD.
• Requires visa sponsorship

Canada

Canadian work permits are either open (any employer) or employer-specific. Check yours on Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

• Status: Canadian permanent resident
• Status: Open work permit (Post-Graduation Work Permit), valid until August 2026
• Status: Spousal open work permit, valid until 2027. No employer sponsorship required.
• Requires an employer-specific work permit to work in Canada. Some employers then need a Labour Market Impact Assessment, so be upfront.

Australia

Australian employers can check visa conditions online through the government's VEVO system. Get details from the Department of Home Affairs.

• Work rights: Australian citizen / permanent resident
• Work rights: Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485), full work rights until March 2026
• Work rights: Secondary applicant on partner's visa, full work rights until 2027
• Work rights: Student visa, limited hours during study periods. State the limit honestly if it affects the role.
• Requires employer sponsorship

Ireland

Irish employers recognise the stamp system. Check the conditions of your stamp on Irish Immigration.

• Right to work: Irish/EU/EEA citizen, no permit required
• Right to work: Stamp 4, no employment permit required
• Right to work: Stamp 1G (graduate), valid until January 2026
• Requires an employment permit (e.g. Critical Skills Employment Permit)

New Zealand

Check your visa conditions on Immigration New Zealand.

• Work rights: NZ resident visa
• Work rights: Open work visa (partner), valid until 2026
• Requires Accredited Employer Work Visa sponsorship

UAE and Singapore

In the UAE, work is usually tied to a residence visa and work permit. People on a family-sponsored residence visa generally need a separate work permit, which the employer arranges. Check the UAE government portal for current rules. Example: 'Visa status: UAE residence visa (family-sponsored); employer would need to arrange a work permit.'

In Singapore, most foreigners need a work pass such as an Employment Pass. Dependant's Pass holders should check the Ministry of Manpower on whether they need their own work pass. Example: 'Work pass: Dependant's Pass holder; would require an employer-sponsored work pass.'

Applying from abroad or for remote roles

Many readers in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, India and the Philippines apply for roles in another country. Your line depends on the job type:

• Relocation roles: 'Based in Lagos, Nigeria. Would require UK Skilled Worker visa sponsorship.'
• Fully remote roles hiring internationally: 'Based in Nairobi, Kenya. Available for remote work as a contractor; no relocation or visa sponsorship needed.'
• Remote roles restricted to one country: if a role says 'US only' or 'must be based in the UK', it usually means legal work rights in that country. A remote setup does not get around that, so don't apply as if it does.

If you want help checking whether a remote or international role is open to applicants in your location, and adapting your CV for it, the QuickApplyPilot remote and international jobs tool can help you review the ad's location requirements and draft your work-rights line. It can't confirm your legal status, so still check the official source for your visa.

Dependant and partner visas: be specific

Dependant visa holders often get filtered out unnecessarily. A recruiter sees 'visa' and assumes sponsorship. If your dependant or partner visa gives you full work rights, say so clearly:

Right to work: UK Dependant visa with unrestricted work rights, valid until 2027. No sponsorship required.

Two honesty points:

• Your rights depend on the main visa holder's status. If their visa ends or changes, yours may too. Don't imply permanence you don't have.
• Some dependant permissions have restrictions. These may include limits on certain jobs, hours or self-employment. Read your own conditions rather than assuming they match someone else's.

Expiring visas and future sponsorship

If your visa expires within the likely length of the job, include the date. Hiding it only delays the conversation, and it may come out in the right-to-work check anyway.

It helps to show you've thought ahead:

• 'Graduate visa valid until September 2026; eligible to switch to Skilled Worker with a sponsoring employer.' Only write 'eligible' if you've checked the official criteria.
• 'Open work permit valid until August 2026; permanent residence application planned.' Use 'submitted' only once it truly is.

Be wary of anyone who offers 'guaranteed sponsorship' for a fee. Read our list of fake visa sponsorship job offer scam signs before paying anyone or sharing documents.

Quick checklist before you send your CV

• One work-rights line, directly under contact details, in plain body text
• Uses the visa, permit or stamp name employers in that country recognise
• Expiry date included if the permission is time-limited
• Sponsorship need stated clearly: now, later or not at all
• No passport or permit numbers, no document scans
• Matches what you answer on the application form
• Checked against the official government source for your visa, not a forum post
• Location and work-rights requirements in the job ad actually fit your situation

A clear, accurate visa line won't guarantee an interview, and it won't change whether an employer can sponsor. What it does is remove guesswork, so recruiters judge your application on your skills, with the facts they need in front of them.