How do you know if a company is open to hiring Tech Talent from abroad?
As a recruiter who curates relocation-friendly jobs, I can recognize some telltale signs that prove that a company is open to hiring talent from abroad. Here’s a good primer on them.
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As a recruiter in tech, I’ve been writing on the many ways professionals who want to relocate and work abroad can achieve it. Some of those ways are not that obvious. Lately, I’ve identified some unconventional, yet quite effective, paths that can make it happen. For example, I’ve written about how you can leverage a remote job to kind of self-promote your relocation. Or I’ve written about talent visas, which don’t even require a job offer in the first place!
But as a tech professional who wants to relocate, you’ll also want to try the traditional route, too: getting a job from a company that is willing to sponsor your relocation.
As someone who curates and shares relocation-friendly jobs weekly, I know that one of the greatest headaches is figuring out which companies are actually open to hiring international talent and which ones aren’t. Job ads don’t always say it outright.
As a matter of fact, some companies love hiring globally but don’t advertise it well. Others might be strong local hirers but have little infrastructure to support visa sponsorship. So how do you tell the difference early in your job search?
Here are practical, tried-and-tested methods I often use to identify truly international-friendly employers.
Step 1: Investigate their team on LinkedIn
One of the most overlooked indicators is hidden in plain sight: the actual employees.
Head to the company’s LinkedIn page and open the People tab. LinkedIn makes it easy to filter employees by country or previous company. If you see a team composed of people from different nationalities, particularly in engineering or product roles, that’s a very good sign.
Companies that hire internationally often highlight this diversity as a point of pride.
If the company actively celebrates cultural diversity (posts about their global team on social media, features employee stories from around the world, or mentions “employees across X countries”), that’s usually intentional. A lot of content showing their diversity often means that they are actively looking for talent from around the world.
Step 2: Connect on LinkedIn
You could also connect with people from those companies on LinkedIn or check the feed.
First, you might come across occasional posts in your feed, or you can actively search for them using keywords like “relocation support,” “business sponsorship,” or “we support international candidates.” These posts are frequently published by founders or recruiters who regularly share hiring updates.
Secondly, you can reach out directly to recruiters. Some specifically label themselves as “Global Tech Recruiter” or “International Tech Recruiter,” which usually means they work with candidates from various nationalities and may also handle visa-sponsored roles.
Lastly, if you often see posts from heads of engineering or others who lead technical teams, and they mention that they’re hiring, it can be worthwhile to send them a short direct message—especially if the post is in English and the company is international. You can briefly express your interest, mention your application, and ask whether they currently consider international applicants from abroad.
Step 3: Start with the simplest filter: the Careers page
Now, head straight to the company’s Careers page or job board. Then do one easy step: search for keywords like “visa,” “relocation,” “work permit,” “sponsorship,” or “international applicants.” These words make it clear that the company is willing to hire people from around the world.
Companies that frequently relocate hires tend to reference these topics clearly.
If you’re not sure where to start, recur to your old, clanging keyboard and try using the built-in search bar on a Careers page or simply press Ctrl+F (Cmd+F on Mac) with “visa” or “relocation.”
If you find nothing at all, no matter the job category, that’s frequently a sign the company isn’t active in global hiring.
Step 4: Study the language of the job posting
Language is a subtle but very telling filter.
A role written only in the local language (German, Danish, Dutch, Spanish) typically signals a preference for local or locally fluent applicants. And if the requirements list “native speaker” or “full professional proficiency” in the local language as mandatory, it’s safe to assume the company is not prioritizing international hiring.
On the flip side, companies open to global candidates nearly always:
Post job ads in English.
List English as the working language.
Add “knowledge of X language is a plus,” rather than a requirement.
This pattern is true across Europe, Canada, Australia, and most of Asia.
If English appears as the “company language,” the green light is even more noticeable.
Step 5: Check official government lists of companies allowed to sponsor visas
Not all companies can legally sponsor visas. Many countries maintain public databases of employers officially recognized or licensed to hire foreign talent. If you can find your target company on one of these lists, that’s as solid a confirmation as you can get.
A few examples:
Netherlands: IND list of Recognised Sponsors for Highly Skilled Migrants.
United Kingdom: Register of Licensed Sponsors for the Skilled Worker visa.
Germany: While there’s no universal sponsor list, employers that regularly hire foreign IT specialists often reference the Blue Card EU or Fast-Track procedure on their Careers pages. You can also explore the government’s Make It in Germany portal. (Or you can also read the handbook I published on the EU Blue Card.)
You can often discover similar lists simply by Googling “recognized sponsors + France” or “visa sponsor list + United Kingdom.”
Step 6: Use curated, community-maintained lists of companies hiring internationally
If you want a shortcut, there are some of us already doing this work for you.
My International Job Search Handbook on GitHub includes a list of companies known for, at least once, having hired talent from abroad. So this is not a list of companies that are actively hiring international talent. If I have to share an estimate, I’d say that 50% of these companies are supporting relocation right now. This is still a very good reference point because you can check the markets and sectors that these companies belong to and start drawing your own conclusions. And if it helps you, consider giving it a star. You can also check out my weekly, hand-curated tech jobs with relocation here on The Global Move.
Additionally, one of the best community resources out there is Geshan Manandhar’s list of Australian companies providing work visa sponsorship. You can access it on GitHub: Australian companies that provide work visa (and/or relocation) to their employees (mainly tech).
Step 7: Take advantage of targeted job boards for relocation-friendly employers
If you’re open to searching for opportunities beyond a single company, don’t rely solely on specific Careers’ pages. There is a lot more information about moving and getting a visa on niche job boards that were made just for global mobility.
Platforms like Relocate.me make this incredibly easy if what you want is a job that offers relocation support. Every job post clearly labels whether the employer offers relocation support, visa sponsorship, or both. You can search by country plus other categories and avoid wasting time on employers who don’t hire internationally at all.
Other examples include:
Hacker News thread (“Who is hiring” monthly section)
Step 8: Bonus: Find unadvertised jobs using Boolean search operators
Some relocation-friendly companies don’t actively promote sponsorship in every job ad. That’s where old-school Google tricks still work wonders. I’ve written a full blog post showing how to use these search operators to uncover hidden opportunities. It’s worth a read if you’re serious about your international job search.
Which countries offer the most relocation-friendly jobs?
If you want to know which job markets have the biggest offerings of relocation-friendly jobs, you will want to read my report on which I analyzed over 1,500 job postings. Some countries will surprise you. Read it here: The Relocation-Friendly Tech Jobs Report (2025)
Remember: I’m curating jobs for you
Finding companies open to hiring international tech talent isn’t as mysterious as it seems. Most leave clear footprints, perhaps on their Careers pages, in their team composition, through the language of their job ads, or via government sponsorship lists. And when in doubt, niche platforms like Relocate.me or community lists like my International Job Search Handbook give you a head start.
The global job market is developing fast. With the right filters, and perhaps joining the The Global Move newsletter, you can find employers ready to hire you, help you relocate, onboard, and get along well in a new country. If you want these relocation-friendly jobs directly in your inbox, then you should subscribe to this newsletter.
Good luck!