Experienced bricklayer jobs in the UK pay £25 to £30 an hour on self-employed day rates in London and the South East in 2026, and £16 to £22 an hour on PAYE contracts elsewhere. The trade has been short of skilled hands for a decade, the government’s housebuilding targets have widened the gap, and bricklayers are one of the few skilled trades that can still, at the time of writing, be sponsored from overseas.
That sponsorship route is narrow and time-limited. Bricklayers and masons appear on the Temporary Shortage List, which keeps selected trades below graduate level eligible for the Skilled Worker visa until the end of 2026, subject to review, with no right to bring dependants for new applicants. If you are reading this in 2027, check gov.uk before doing anything else.
This guide covers how much bricklayers really earn by region and employment type, the CSCS card and NVQ Level 2 you need to get on site, who hires, how sponsorship works for this trade, and how to qualify if you trained abroad.
How much do bricklayers earn in the UK in 2026?
Bricklayer pay depends on three things: where you work, whether you are employed or self-employed, and whether you are paid by the hour or by the thousand bricks. The ranges below reflect advertised rates and industry surveys at the time of writing; check current adverts for your area.
| Region | PAYE hourly rate | Self-employed day rate | Approximate annual (full time) |
|---|---|---|---|
| London and South East | £19–£23 | £220–£280 | £40,000–£58,000 |
| East of England, South West | £17–£21 | £190–£240 | £35,000–£50,000 |
| Midlands, Yorkshire, North West | £16–£20 | £170–£220 | £33,000–£46,000 |
| North East, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland | £15–£19 | £160–£210 | £31,000–£43,000 |
Price work, paid per 1,000 bricks laid, can push a fast gang well above these figures on large housing sites, but it also shifts the risk of bad weather and slow deliveries onto you. Brickwork foremen and site supervisors typically earn £45,000 to £60,000 on PAYE. Improvers (newly qualified) start around £13 to £15 an hour.
PAYE, CIS or day rate: which is better?
Most bricklayers on housing sites are self-employed under the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS). The contractor deducts 20 per cent tax at source if you are registered with HMRC (30 per cent if not), and you settle the balance through a self-assessment tax return, claiming tools, travel and other expenses. There is no holiday pay, sick pay or employer pension, which is why day rates look higher than PAYE rates.
PAYE employment with a housebuilder or specialist brickwork contractor pays a lower headline rate but includes 28 days’ holiday, pension contributions, sick pay and often a van or travel allowance. Some contractors use umbrella companies, which put you on PAYE but charge a weekly fee; read the illustration carefully.
For visa purposes this distinction is decisive. A sponsored worker must be directly employed by the licensed sponsor. You cannot be sponsored to work as a CIS subcontractor, through an agency or through an umbrella company. The full picture on rates and routes is in our guide to UK construction worker visa sponsorship jobs.
What qualifications do you need?
CSCS card
Almost every site in the UK requires a Construction Skills Certification Scheme card. For a bricklayer that means the blue Skilled Worker card, which needs an NVQ or SVQ Level 2 in Bricklaying (or a recognised equivalent) plus a pass in the CITB Health, Safety and Environment test. The test costs in the region of £25 and the card around £36; details are on cscs.uk.com.
NVQ Level 2 Bricklaying
If you trained in the UK, you will have this from college or an apprenticeship. If you trained abroad you have two options. Experienced workers can take an on-site assessment (often called OSAT or an Experienced Worker Practical Assessment), where an assessor observes your work over a few days and awards the NVQ without a classroom course; expect to pay several hundred pounds. Alternatively, CSCS accepts some overseas qualifications if Ecctis confirms they are comparable to Level 2, so get a statement of comparability before you spend money on an assessment.
Other useful cards and tickets
- Abrasive wheels and manual handling certificates, often provided by the employer.
- PASMA (mobile towers) and a working-at-height course, because most brickwork is done from scaffolds.
- A full UK driving licence, which many housebuilders list as essential for travelling between sites.
- Level 3 NVQ or a Site Supervisor Safety Training Scheme certificate if you want to move into supervision.
Who hires bricklayers?
The biggest volume of work comes from the national housebuilders: Barratt Redrow, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey, Vistry, Bellway and Berkeley all run large sites that need brickwork gangs for years at a time. Much of that labour is supplied by specialist brickwork subcontractors, which hire directly and through construction recruitment agencies. Main contractors on commercial, education and healthcare projects need bricklayers for facade and blockwork packages, and local builders and heritage contractors offer smaller, often better-paid restoration work.
None of this means a specific company is hiring today. Check each firm’s official careers page and the Register of Licensed Sponsors if you need a visa. Housebuilders are generally licensed; small brickwork subcontractors usually are not, which is the practical bottleneck for overseas applicants.
Can bricklayers get visa sponsorship in 2026?
Yes, but only through a licensed sponsor offering direct employment, and only while the occupation remains on the Temporary Shortage List. The conditions at the time of writing are:
- The job must be a genuine bricklayer or mason vacancy with a Certificate of Sponsorship from a licensed employer.
- Salary must meet the general threshold of £41,700 or the going rate for the occupation, whichever is higher. At the rates above that is achievable in the South but tight in lower-paying regions.
- English at CEFR B2, proved by an approved test unless you are exempt.
- New applicants sponsored under the Temporary Shortage List cannot bring a partner or children as dependants.
- The list is scheduled to run to the end of 2026 and is being reviewed by the Migration Advisory Committee; occupations can be removed, and the government has said employers must show they are training domestic workers.
Costs on your side include the visa application fee, the Immigration Health Surcharge of £1,035 per year, the English test and the CSCS assessment. The employer pays the sponsor licence, the Certificate of Sponsorship and the Immigration Skills Charge, and cannot lawfully pass those on to you. Anyone asking you to pay for a sponsorship certificate is running a scam.
If the route is closed when you read this, the realistic alternatives are the Youth Mobility Scheme (for eligible nationalities aged 18 to 30 or 35), coming as the dependant of a partner on a qualifying visa, or looking at countries with a live trades route such as Germany, covered in our guide to construction and skilled trades visas in Germany.
How to get a bricklayer job in the UK: step by step
- Sort your paperwork. UK residents: CSCS card and NVQ. Overseas applicants: Ecctis statement of comparability, B2 English certificate, and evidence of experience such as references and photographs of completed work.
- Build a one-page CV that lists brick types and bonds you have worked with, block and cavity work, arches and feature work, speed (bricks per day), and any supervisory experience.
- Target the right employers. For sponsorship, apply only to firms on the sponsor register. For CIS work, register with two or three construction agencies in your target region and with the labour desk of the local housebuilders.
- Expect a trade test. Larger employers will ask you to lay a panel to a line and level, sometimes with a corner, before confirming a rate.
- Agree terms in writing: rate, hours, travel, whether tools and PPE are supplied, and for CIS whether you are paid weekly or fortnightly.
- Register with HMRC for CIS or provide your National Insurance number for PAYE within your first week.
Costs, insurance and money matters
Self-employed bricklayers should carry public liability insurance, which typically costs a few hundred pounds a year, and consider income protection because there is no sick pay. Tools are a start-up cost of roughly £300 to £600 for a full kit, and a van adds fuel, insurance and maintenance. Keep every receipt: they reduce your tax bill at self-assessment.
Housing near large sites in the South East is expensive, and many gangs share digs during the week; our guide to finding cheap UK housing covers deposits and guarantors. If you are sending money home from a UK account, compare specialist transfer providers, and open a UK account as soon as possible because CIS contractors pay by bank transfer only.
Scam warning
Bricklaying’s sponsorship status makes it a magnet for fraud. Fake “UK bricklayer visa” adverts ask for fees to secure a Certificate of Sponsorship, promise dependant visas that the Temporary Shortage List does not allow, or claim a Dubai- or Lagos-based agent can “process” a Skilled Worker visa. Legitimate employers never charge for job offers or sponsorship, and only advisers regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority or practising solicitors may charge for immigration advice. Verify every employer on the official register and contact them through the website listed there.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I work as a bricklayer in the UK without a CSCS card?
Legally the card is not a statutory requirement, but almost all main contractors and housebuilders refuse site access without one. Small domestic builders sometimes do not ask, but pay and volume are lower. Treat the card as essential.
Will my overseas bricklaying certificate be accepted?
Sometimes. CSCS relies on Ecctis to confirm whether an overseas qualification matches NVQ Level 2. If it does not, an experienced-worker assessment on site is the fastest route, and many assessment centres offer it in a week or two once you have a job.
How many bricks does a UK bricklayer lay per day?
Employers generally expect 400 to 600 facing bricks a day in a gang with a labourer, or considerably more blockwork by area. Price work rewards speed, so be realistic about your rate in interviews.
Can I bring my family on a bricklayer Skilled Worker visa?
Not if you are sponsored under the Temporary Shortage List as a new applicant at the time of writing. Workers already in the UK with dependants before the rule change keep their rights. Check gov.uk, as this condition is one of the points under review.
Is there an apprenticeship route for people already in the UK?
Yes. A Level 2 bricklaying apprenticeship takes around two years, pays at least the apprentice minimum wage rising with age and experience, and leads directly to the blue CSCS card. Housebuilders and colleges recruit each September.
Bottom line
Bricklaying is one of the best-paid trades in the UK for its training time, with £40,000 or more realistic in the South and a genuine, if temporary, sponsorship route for overseas workers in 2026. Secure your NVQ Level 2 and CSCS card, decide between PAYE security and CIS day rates with your eyes open, apply only to licensed sponsors if you need a visa, and treat any fee demand as the scam it is.