Sponsor Licence for UK Employers In 2023: A Perfect Guide 

How can you tell if you’re a small or charitable Sponsor?

When applying for a Sponsorship Licence UK, make sure you know the following. You are a small Sponsor if at least 2 of the following apply:

• Your turnover is £10.2 million or less, per year
• Your total assets are worth £5.1 million or less
• You have fewer than 50 employees

You are a charitable Sponsor if:

• You are registered charity in England & Wales
• You are a registered charity in Scotland
• You are a registered charity in Northern Ireland – if you’re not on the register, you must provide proof of your charitable status for tax purposes from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
• You are an excepted charity
• You are an exempt charity

Points to be aware about when making a Sponsor Licence application for UK employers:

Besides meeting the eligibility requirements for a Sponsor Licence or documents required for a Sponsorship Licence UK, you must be aware of the following points, when making a Sponsor Licence application UK:

Inability to prove ‘genuineness’:

• The UKVI assesses the genuineness of the company/Sponsor based on the history, HR policies, capability of performing duties, staff and key personnels
• They will also assess whether the jobs you are offering are at an appropriate skill and salary level
• The UKVI also assesses the company, Sponsor and key personnel’s immigration history, criminal background, etc.
• Make sure to submit all documents to prove the genuineness of the organisation – these could be staff attendance, logistics, everyday activities on paper, etc.

If you need assistance in accessing your documentation and Sponsor Licence application and to make sure they are all in the proper format and order before submission – you can contact our UK immigration consultants or book a consultation for an expert’s advice.

Sponsorship Licence UK management roles:

• When applying for Sponsorship Licence UK, you must choose someone within your company to oversee the Sponsorship process
• The Sponsorship management system will be their primary tool (SMS)
• The following are the roles –

1. Authorising officer — a senior and knowledgeable someone who is accountable for the acts of employees and representatives who use SMS
2. Key Contact – Your primary point of contact with UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI)
3. Level 1 user – in charge of managing your Licence on a day-to-day basis via SMS
4. These positions can be filled by the same person or by two or more people
5. Relevant HR processes to stay updated of the migrant employees

Are you familiar with your duties and responsibilities as a Sponsor?

• Evidence you have checked that each of your Sponsored workers is entitled to work in the UK and do the work in question for you
• Complying with immigration laws
• Co-operating with the Home Office
• Employee’s background check
• Employee’s contact information – updated address, contact information
• Making sure the Sponsor assessment procedures are followed
• Notifying UKVI if there are any relevant changes to the Sponsoring entity (for example, change of ownership/shareholding/acquisition, change of address, different key personnel, changes in the size of the Sponsor (from small to large company, etc.)
• Observing and reporting patterns of the migrant’s behaviour that raise concerns
• Monitor migrant worker’s compliance with immigration rules
• Monitoring the Sponsored worker’s attendance/absence
• Retaining documents as set out in Appendix D of the Sponsor Guidance
• The employer must also understand internal HR systems to fulfil their responsibilities as a Sponsor

Sponsor Licence application – Key points:

As a Sponsor, you must:

• Stay updated of your migrant worker’s visa status (when their visa expires)
• And when that happens, what you will do about it
• Do you have a reliable mode of contact with the migrant worker, in case they don’t turn up for work?
• Stay up-to-date with the migrant worker’s contact information