Sponsor Licence Change of Circumstances
Given the business-critical nature of sponsoring migrant workers, careful and effective management of your sponsor licence is essential to avoid Home Office enforcement action that could impact your operations. As a UK sponsor licence holder, you must ensure you have the necessary HR processes in place to maintain an up-to-date sponsor licence at all times […]
Recruiting Social Care Workers from Overseas
As part of new temporary measures to address the workforce challenges faced by the health and social care sector in the UK, a number of care sector roles have been added to the UK Shortage Occupation List (SOL) from 16 February 2022, and for 12 months will be eligible for Health and Care visas. Under […]
Register of Licensed Sponsors List 2023
The Register of Licensed Sponsors, previously known as the Tier 2 sponsor list, is a public list of all UK organisations which hold a valid sponsorship licence. The Home Office maintains the sponsorship list to identify all employers that have the required permission to employ sponsored workers under routes such as the Skilled Worker visa and other […]
Immigration Skills Charge FAQs
The Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) is payable by employers each time they sponsor a worker under the Skilled Worker or the Senior or Specialist Worker visa, with limited exemptions. Since all UK employers are required to have a sponsorship licence to employ migrant workers from 1 January 2021 under certain work visa routes, the Immigration Skills Charge has […]
Sponsor Licence Application Guide 2023
You need a sponsor licence to employ most types of workers from outside the UK, including Skilled Visa workers. To secure a UK visa sponsorship licence, you will need to make an application to the Home Office and pay the relevant fees. The Home Office will only grant a sponsor licence to an organisation that […]
Sponsor Licence Key Personnel Duties
One of the requirements on sponsor licence holders is to appoint ‘key personnel’, who will be responsible for certain compliance duties related to managing the organisation’s licence. Failure to appoint key personnel, or to meet the sponsor compliance duties, can result in Home Office enforcement action, impacting the sponsor’s ability to hire sponsored workers. In […]
Sponsor Licence Duties & Compliance Guide
Sponsor licences permit organisations to access the global talent market and recruit skilled non-UK resident workers – but they come with onerous compliance duties for the employer/sponsor. Fundamentally, the purpose of these duties is to place an onus on employers to play their part in preventing illegal working in the UK. Meeting your duties as […]
Sponsor Management System: User Guide
As a licensed sponsor you are subject to a number of strict duties to ensure compliance with the UK Immigration Rules and to prevent illegal working. These duties include monitoring and reporting certain activities about sponsored workers and assigning certificates of sponsorship (CoS) to skilled visa workers. The Sponsor Management System (SMS) is the Home Office’s […]
SMS Level 1 User Guide
The role of key personnel in managing an organisation’s sponsor licence can’t be underestimated in ensuring compliance with the employer’s duties under its sponsor licence. The management of the sponsorship licence is conducted through the sponsor management system and therefore it is essential that the key personnel, in particular any level 1 user(s), are able […]
UK Sponsorship Visa Guide
The UK immigration system comprises a range of routes and visas allowing non-British nationals to come to the UK to visit, work, study, for humanitarian reasons or to join loved ones. Many of the work visa routes require the individual to be sponsored by an employer. In this guide, we explain what UK sponsorship visas […]
