Immigration routes for hospitality workers

Senior chefs and speciality cuisine cooks have historically featured on UK, Irish, and Australian shortage lists, though thresholds have tightened. Hotel and restaurant managers usually follow the generic skilled-migration route.

Also searched as: chef, cook, restaurant manager, hotel manager.

What decides which route fits

Hospitality workers are not usually a licensed profession, so the route that fits you turns mostly on whether you have a qualifying job offer (for sponsored routes) and whether you meet each country's salary or points threshold.

By destination

Frequently asked questions

Do hospitality workers need a job offer to work abroad?+

It depends on the route. Many countries offer skilled-migration or self-employment routes that do not require a job offer up front, while employer-sponsored work visas do. The country guides below flag which of each destination's routes need a sponsor.

Which countries have visa routes for hospitality workers?+

We map hospitality worker routes across all 178 full-coverage destinations we cover, and 7 currently have at least one route that fits hospitality workers directly. Open any country below for its specific routes and official sources.