Most work visa refusals and delays come from the paperwork, not the job. A missing police certificate, an untranslated degree or a qualification that has not been recognised can hold up an application that is otherwise straightforward. The good news is that the documents countries ask for fall into a small number of predictable groups, so you can start collecting most of them before you even have an offer.
This checklist explains those groups, shows how four destinations handle them, and flags the items that take longest to obtain. Requirements differ by country, visa route and nationality, so treat this as a preparation list and confirm the final list on the destination’s official immigration website.
The short answer: what almost every work visa asks for
- Identity: a valid passport, plus photos that meet the destination’s specification.
- The job: proof of a genuine offer from an employer allowed to hire foreign workers, usually as a reference number, approval or signed employer form.
- Qualifications: degree or vocational certificates, sometimes with official recognition or a licence to practise.
- Character: police or criminal record certificates, for some routes or jobs.
- Health: a medical examination or specific test, depending on the country and where you have lived.
- Money and insurance: proof you can support yourself, or that your employer will, and health insurance in some countries.
- Translations and authentication: certified translations of foreign-language documents and, in many cases, apostilled or legalised originals.
- Family: marriage and birth certificates if dependants apply with you.
How four destinations handle it
The table below compares the main documents on four official routes. It is a snapshot from official pages checked in November 2026, not a full list for any of them. The German column uses the German Embassy in Muscat’s checklist, dated July 2023; checklists differ between German missions.
| Document group | UK (Skilled Worker) | Canada (work permit) | Germany (skilled worker with a degree) | UAE (employment residence) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Job evidence | Certificate of sponsorship reference number, job title, salary, occupation code, sponsor licence number | Job offer for employer-specific permits; some permits are open and need no offer | Declaration of employment signed by the employer | Employer obtains the work permit from MoHRE |
| Qualifications | Only for some points claims (UK PhD or Ecctis reference) | Depends on the permit | Degree plus recognition (anabin printouts, ZAB statement or licence to practise) | Attested certificates for some jobs |
| Police certificate | For education, health, therapy and social-care jobs when applying from outside the UK | May be needed for applicants aged 18 and over, depending on the programme | Not listed on the embassy checklist we checked | Not covered here |
| Health | TB test if you are from a listed country | Medical exam in some cases (see below) | Health insurance until statutory cover begins | Medical fitness test after arrival; health insurance |
| Translations | Certified translation if not in English or Welsh | Certified translation if not in English or French (police certificates) | Certified German translation if not in German or English | Not covered here |
The checklist, group by group
1. Passport and photos
Check the expiry date first. Many destinations want your passport to stay valid for a period beyond your planned stay or the visa’s validity, and some want blank pages. Germany’s embassy in Muscat, for example, asks for a signed passport with at least two completely empty pages, plus two biometric passport photos and copies of the data page. If your passport expires within the next year or two, renewing it before you apply usually saves trouble later.
2. Evidence of the job
This is normally produced by the employer, not by you. The form it takes varies:
- In the UK you need your certificate of sponsorship reference number, which the employer gives you, plus your job title, annual salary, the occupation code and the employer’s name and sponsor licence number.
- Canada distinguishes between employer-specific work permits, which need a job offer, and open work permits, which do not.
- For Germany’s university-graduate skilled worker visa, the employer completes and signs a declaration of employment form.
- In the UAE, the employer applies to the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) for your work permit before you receive an entry permit.
Keep a copy of your signed offer letter or contract alongside these. You will refer back to it for salary, job title and start date, and the details on every form must match.
3. Qualifications, recognition and licences
This group takes the longest, so start early. There are three layers, and you may need one, two or all three:
- The certificate itself. Degree certificates and, often, transcripts. Germany’s checklist asks for all pages of the university qualification.
- Recognition or comparability. Some countries want proof that a foreign qualification matches a local one. For Germany, that means printouts from the anabin database, a Statement of Comparability from the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB), or, for regulated professions, a permission to practise from the competent authority.
- Authentication. Proof that the document is genuine. Germany’s embassy checklist asks for originals with an apostille or legalisation. The UAE says certificates issued abroad must be authenticated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the country of origin and then by a UAE embassy or consulate.
Regulated jobs such as nursing, medicine, teaching and engineering often need a licence from a professional regulator as well as a visa. That licence process can involve its own checks and exams and may run in parallel with the visa, so ask the employer which comes first.
4. Police and criminal record certificates
Police certificates can take weeks, especially from a country you no longer live in. The UK’s Skilled Worker route asks for one if you apply from outside the UK and will work in education, healthcare, therapy or social services. If you are under 28, you need one from any country where you stayed for 12 months or more in total since turning 18; if you are 28 or over, you need one from any country you have stayed in over the last 10 years. Canada says applicants and family members aged 18 or older may need one, depending on the programme, and that you may have to supply the addresses and dates you lived in each country.
Make a list now of every country where you have lived for a year or more as an adult. That list decides how many certificates you may need to request.
5. Medical examinations and tests
Health requirements depend on the destination, the job and your travel history:
- The UK asks for TB test results if you are from a listed country.
- Canada requires a medical exam for workers staying more than six months if they lived in or travelled to a listed country for six months or more in a row in the year before arriving. Workers in jobs where public health must be protected, such as health care, clinical laboratories, schools, child care, domestic work and in-home caregiving, need one even for shorter stays.
- In Dubai, the medical fitness test happens after you arrive and typically includes a blood test and chest X-ray at an authorised centre.
Where a test must be done before travel, it usually has to be done by a clinic the destination has approved. A certificate from your own doctor will not count.
6. Money, insurance and family
The UK asks for proof of personal savings unless your certificate of sponsorship shows the employer can support you. Germany’s embassy checklist notes that statutory health insurance can only start when you take up residence and employment, so you need private cover until then. Dubai’s guidance also tells new residents to make sure they have health insurance.
If your partner or children apply with you, prepare marriage and birth certificates. These often need the same translation and authentication steps as your degree.
7. Translations and certified copies
Expect to translate anything that is not in the destination’s accepted languages. The UK requires a certified translation for documents not in English or Welsh, Canada wants a certified translator for police certificates not in English or French, and Germany’s embassy asks for a certified German translation of documents not in German or English. “Certified” has a specific meaning in each country, so check who is allowed to certify before you pay for a translation.
Documents that slow people down
When applicants run out of time, it is usually because of one of these:
- Police certificates from a previous country of residence. Request them as soon as you start applying for jobs abroad.
- Authentication chains. A degree may need stamps from the university, a state or education authority, the foreign ministry and the destination’s embassy, in that order.
- Recognition of qualifications. Comparability statements and professional licences are separate processes with their own queues.
- Name mismatches. If your name is spelt differently on your passport, degree and marriage certificate, you may need an affidavit or extra evidence. Fix this before the documents are authenticated.
How to keep the paperwork under control
- Build a master folder. Scan every original at good resolution and name the files clearly (for example “Passport_datapage_2026.pdf”). Free PDF tools for merging and compressing scans help when portals cap file sizes.
- Keep one set of facts. Use the same spelling of your name, dates and job history everywhere: on the visa form, your contract and your CV. An international-format resume that matches your documents avoids awkward questions.
- Record dates. Note when each document was issued and when it expires. Some countries only accept police certificates or medical results issued within a recent period.
- Ask the employer for their list. Sponsoring employers often have a checklist for your nationality and role. Compare it with the official page and ask about any differences.
- Do not book travel early. Germany’s embassy explicitly advises against booking flights before the visa is issued.
If you are moving to the UAE, verify the offer itself before spending money on attestation; our separate guide covers how to check a UAE offer with MoHRE.
Where to check the official list
Use only government sources for the final list: the UK’s gov.uk visa pages, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada on canada.ca, the German embassy or consulate responsible for where you live, and, for the UAE, MoHRE and the official government portals. Consular checklists can differ between embassies of the same country, so use the one for the mission where you will apply.
This is general information, not legal or immigration advice. Visa rules change, and these requirements are as of November 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Can I apply for a work visa without a job offer?
Some routes allow it. Canada, for example, has open work permits that do not need a job offer, while employer-specific permits do. Most employer-sponsored routes need the employer’s approval or reference number first.
Do I need original documents or copies?
Both, often. Germany’s embassy in Muscat asks for originals plus two copies of most documents and returns the originals after processing. Online applications usually need scans, with originals checked later.
How early should I start collecting documents?
Start on police certificates, authentication and qualification recognition as soon as you are seriously applying abroad, because these can take weeks. Passport renewal and photos can wait until you have an offer, unless your passport is close to expiry.
Do I need my degree attested for every country?
No. It depends on the destination and the job. The UAE requires attested academic certificates for some jobs; other countries may ask only for a copy, a recognition statement or nothing at all for your route.
Sources
- Skilled Worker visa: documents you’ll need to apply, GOV.UK (UK Visas and Immigration)
- Work permit: Who can apply, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
- Medical exams for visitors, students and workers, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
- Police certificates for immigration and citizenship, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
- National visa: Visa for skilled workers holding a university degree (Section 18b (1) Residence Act), German Embassy Muscat, July 2023
- Residence Visa for Work, Dubai Digital Authority (dubai.ae)
- Preparing to work, The UAE Government portal (u.ae)