Tribunal Awards Care Worker £28k for Employer’s Abuse of Sponsorship System
21st September 2026
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What happened in the Shaji case? Shabin Shaji was sponsored by Swan Care Solutions Ltd to work as a care worker. His Certificate
Section A: What this article is aboutHR advisory helps employers manage their people, workplace processes and workforce risks effectively. It combines strategic HR expertise with practical support on the day-to-day issues that arise throughout the employment lifecycle, from establishing the right policies and HR systems to managing performance, absence, employee relations, organisational change and compliance.For some organisations, HR advisory provides access to expertise where there is no dedicated internal HR function. For others, external advisers work alongside HR directors, people teams and senior management, providing additional capability, specialist input or independent support when difficult or unusual workforce issues arise.The scope of HR advisory can therefore be extensive. Employers may need advice on an individual employee matter, support with a disciplinary or grievance, an independent workplace investigation, help managing long-term sickness absence or guidance through a redundancy or restructuring exercise. At an organisational level, HR advisory can involve developing HR strategy, reviewing employment policies, auditing HR practices, improving management processes, implementing HR systems or providing ongoing outsourced HR support.Effective HR advisory also has an important preventative role. Poorly managed HR issues can escalate into employee disputes, inconsistent management decisions, operational disruption, compliance failures and unnecessary cost. Clear policies, reliable processes, appropriate records and managers who understand how to deal with workforce issues can reduce these risks considerably.HR advisory is not limited to resolving problems after they arise. It can help employers create the infrastructure needed to manage a workforce consistently as the organisation grows and changes. This can include defining responsibilities, improving employee lifecycle processes, establishing management procedures, identifying weaknesses through HR audits and ensuring that HR arrangements remain appropriate for the organisation.The need for HR advice can also change over time. A small employer may initially need support establishing employment documentation and basic HR procedures. A growing organisation may need more sophisticated performance management, absence management and employee relations processes. Larger employers may use external HR advisers for specialist projects, difficult employee matters, investigations, restructuring exercises or additional support for an established internal HR team.HR advisory consequently sits across both strategic and operational people management. It connects decisions about the organisation and its workforce with the policies, systems, documentation and management practices required to put those decisions into effect.This guide provides a comprehensive overview of HR advisory for UK employers. It explains what HR advisory is, what HR advisers do and how HR advisory differs from HR consultancy, internal HR and employment law advice.It examines the principal areas in which employers may require HR support, including HR strategy, HR policies and documentation, employee relations, performance management, absence management, disciplinary matters, grievances and workplace investigations.The guide also considers HR support during organisational change, including restructuring, redundancy and TUPE transfers, together with the role of HR compliance, HR audits and HR systems in identifying and managing workforce risk.It also addresses areas where HR management can intersect with statutory and regulatory obligations, including equality, whistleblowing, sexual harassment prevention, flexible working, right to work, data protection and sponsor compliance.Finally, it looks at outsourced HR, the different ways external HR advisory services can be provided, when employers should seek HR advice, how to choose an HR advisory provider and the factors that can affect the cost of HR support.Taken together, these areas form the core of effective HR advisory: helping employers establish appropriate HR infrastructure, manage employees fairly and consistently, respond to workforce problems and support the organisation as its people and business needs develop.
A sponsor licence is an authorisation granted by the Home Office to an eligible organisation to sponsor overseas workers under UK immigration routes that require sponsorship.
For employers that rely on international recruitment, the licence provides the regulatory framework through which they can sponsor eligible workers to apply for permission to work in the UK.
Holding a sponsor licence also brings significant responsibilities. Licensed sponsors are subject to ongoing Home Office requirements relating to the workers they sponsor, record keeping and reporting, management of the licence and compliance with wider UK law. The Home Office can check compliance before or after a licence is granted and can take enforcement action where a sponsor fails to meet the required standards.
The sponsor licence therefore operates as more than an administrative permission to recruit overseas workers. It creates an ongoing regulatory relationship between the sponsoring organisation and the Home Office.
Once licensed for the relevant route, an organisation can assign a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) to an eligible worker.
A CoS is an electronic sponsorship record containing information about the worker and the role being sponsored. The worker uses the CoS when applying for immigration permission under the relevant sponsored work route.
The basic relationship is:
Home Office → Sponsor Licence → Certificate of Sponsorship → Worker Immigration Application → Sponsored Employment
These are separate stages.
The sponsor licence authorises the organisation to participate in the sponsorship system.
The Certificate of Sponsorship connects an individual worker and role to the sponsorship process.
The worker must then make their own immigration application and satisfy the requirements of the relevant immigration route.
No.
A sponsor licence gives the organisation permission to sponsor eligible workers. It does not itself give an individual immigration permission or a right to work in the UK.
Likewise, assigning a Certificate of Sponsorship does not guarantee that the worker’s immigration application will be successful.
Both the sponsor and worker must satisfy the requirements that apply to the relevant route.
This distinction is important because sponsor licensing and individual immigration permission are separate regulatory processes.
An organisation can hold a valid sponsor licence while an individual worker may still fail to qualify for immigration permission. Equally, a worker who would otherwise satisfy the requirements of a sponsored work route cannot normally use that route without sponsorship from an appropriately licensed organisation.
The sponsor licensing system covers sponsored work routes within the Worker and Temporary Worker categories.
The principal sponsored work route for many UK employers is the Skilled Worker route.
Other sponsored routes operate for particular types of work and circumstances. An organisation must be licensed for the appropriate route before it can sponsor a worker under that route.
The scope of the organisation’s licence is therefore important. Holding a sponsor licence does not necessarily authorise the organisation to sponsor workers under every sponsored work route.
The Home Office broadly divides work sponsorship into Worker and Temporary Worker routes.
Worker routes generally concern longer-term or otherwise specified categories of sponsored employment.
Temporary Worker routes provide sponsorship mechanisms for particular forms of temporary work.
An organisation can apply for the categories and routes relevant to its recruitment requirements, provided it satisfies the applicable eligibility and suitability requirements.
Obtaining a sponsor licence means accepting ongoing sponsor duties.
These include requirements relating to:
These duties continue throughout the period in which the organisation holds and uses its sponsor licence.
The Home Office can undertake compliance activity to assess whether the organisation is meeting these requirements.
Where a sponsor fails to comply, UKVI can take enforcement action. Depending on the circumstances and the applicable sponsor guidance, this can include downgrading, suspension or revocation of the licence.
| Sponsor Licence | Current position |
|---|---|
| Regulator | Home Office, through UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) |
| Purpose | Allows an eligible organisation to sponsor qualifying workers under specified UK immigration routes |
| Main licence categories | Worker and Temporary Worker |
| Main sponsored work route | Skilled Worker |
| Management system | Sponsor Management System (SMS) |
| Key personnel | Authorising Officer, Key Contact and Level 1 User |
| Certificate of Sponsorship | Electronic sponsorship record assigned by a licensed sponsor to an eligible worker |
| Licence rating | Sponsors are generally granted an A-rating; a licence can be downgraded to a B-rating in specified circumstances |
| Licence duration | Most Worker and Temporary Worker sponsor licences no longer require routine renewal and generally continue unless surrendered, revoked or otherwise brought to an end |
| Compliance duties | Continue while the organisation holds and uses its sponsor licence |
| Home Office compliance checks | Can take place before or after a licence is granted |
| Potential enforcement | Can include downgrading, suspension or revocation, depending on the circumstances |
A sponsor licence is the Home Office authorisation that allows an eligible organisation to sponsor qualifying workers under specified UK immigration routes. It does not itself give a worker permission to work. Holding the licence also subjects the organisation to ongoing sponsorship and compliance duties.
What happened in the Shaji case? Shabin Shaji was sponsored by Swan Care Solutions Ltd to work as a care worker. His Certificate
Section A: What are Right to Work Checks? A Right to Work check is the prescribed process used by an employer to establish
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What is changing for business visitors to the UK in 2026? The existing Visitor Rules already allow a range of business activities, including
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