JMW Solicitors does not offer services related to finding employment in the UK. If you are looking to speak to a solicitor about any legal matters concerning an immigration application, contact us today.
Sponsor Licence Applications
If you want to employ a member of staff from outside of the United Kingdom who needs permission to remain in the UK, you need to secure a sponsor licence. A sponsor licence acts as a pledge from you - the sponsor - that you will accept the responsibilities of sponsorship and will act in accordance with relevant immigration and employment law.
The immigration law team at JMW will help you to make an application for a sponsor licence and can provide ongoing support to ensure that you remain fully compliant with the stringent regulations.
To speak to a solicitor about making a sponsor licence, contact us by calling 0345 872 6666, or fill in our online enquiry form and we will get back to you.
How JMW Can Help
Our immigration solicitors manage the sponsor licence process for a number of employers. The reason they choose JMW is that we take the stress away from employers by handling the entire process from the start. This includes updating the Home Office’s Sponsor Management System as and when required.
There are currently two sub-categories under the sponsor licence scheme:
Worker licence
This will let you employ people long-term or permanently and is split into:
- Skilled Worker
- Senior or Specialist Worker (Global Business Mobility)
- Minister of Religion
- International Sportsperson
Temporary worker licence
This will let you employ people on a temporary basis and is split into:
- Scale-up Worker
- Creative Worker
- Charity Worker
- Religious Worker
- Government-Authorised Exchange
- International Agreement
- Graduate Trainee (Global Business Mobility)
- Service Supplier (Global Business Mobility)
- UK Expansion Worker (Global Business Mobility)
- Secondment Worker (Global Business Mobility)
- Seasonal Worker
When we are nominated as Level 1 User on a sponsor licence, we issue Certificates of Sponsorship on behalf of employers for individuals who have been offered a job, and we also provide full assistance with obtaining entry clearance or permission to remain once a Certificate of Sponsorship has been issued.
You should get professional advice at an early stage to ensure that your systems are in place, and your application is properly prepared and lodged correctly with the Home Office. This will give you the best chance of success in the fastest possible timeframe.
If you'd like to learn more about applying for a sponsor licence and how we can help with the process, download our Guide to Employing Overseas Workers brochure.
An Employer’s Obligations
In applying for a licence and subsequently issuing a certificate of sponsorship (CoS) to migrant workers, your organisation accepts the need for compliance with a number of requirements, including:
- Having effective HR systems
- Adequate record-keeping
- Ensuring compliance with reporting requirements
- Regulatory compliance and co-operation with all Home Office requests
FAQs
- How long does a sponsor licence last?
Sponsor licences usually remain valid for as long as you continue to meet the sponsorship eligibility requirements.
If you have a Scale-up Worker or Expansion Worker sponsor licence, the sponsor licence will be valid for 4 years. Your sponsor licence could be suspended or revoked if you do not meet your responsibilities as a sponsor licence holder.
- What Key Personnel do we need to nominate?
When applying for a sponsor licence, we need to appoint ‘Key Personnel’. Some of the personnel will be able to access the Sponsorship Management System (SMS) once it has been granted. There are three roles to appoint at the sponsor licence application stage:
- Authorising Officer – the most senior person in your organisation, responsible for the recruitment of all migrant workers and must ensure that your organisation complies with sponsor duties.
- Key Contact – acts as the main contact between the Home Office and your organisation.
- Level 1 User – responsible for carrying out day-to-day sponsorship activities on the SMS. They will assign CoS and report changes to your organisation or sponsored workers. JMW can become Level 1 Users on your sponsor licence to assist with management of your sponsor licence.
Level 2 Users can also be appointed once the sponsor licence has been issued; they can also access the SMS, but won’t have as many permissions as a Level 1 User.
- How long will it take to receive a decision on a sponsor licence application?
Most applications are dealt with in less than 8 weeks. The Home Office (or UKVI) could undertake a pre-licence compliance visit to ensure you will be able to comply with your sponsorship duties, so this could delay processing.
There is a priority service available for an additional fee of £500; this should result in a decision being issued within 10 working days.
- How much does it cost to secure a sponsor licence?
The fee payable depends on the type of licence being secured, and the type of organisation applying for a licence.
If applying for a Worker sponsor licence, small or charitable sponsors will need to pay a sponsor licence application fee of £536, and medium or large sponsors will need to pay £1,476. If applying for a Temporary Worker sponsor licence, the sponsor licence application fee will be £536 regardless of the type of organisation applying for the sponsor licence.
- What happens if a sponsor licence application is refused?
If a sponsor licence is incorrectly refused and a Home Office caseworker has made a mistake or has not considered supporting documents, you may be able to request a review of the application. This is done via the error correction request process. A completed error correction request form must be provided to the Home Office within 14 days of the sponsor licence refusal.
Alternatively, a fresh sponsor licence application could be submitted. Note that, depending on the reasons for refusal, a cooling-off period may apply to a fresh application.
- What happens if our sponsor licence is suspended and/or revoked?
If the Home Office considers that you are breaching your sponsorship duties, they may suspend your sponsor licence. This will enable the Home Office to undertake further enquiries. Sponsors will have 20 working days from the date of being notified of suspension to respond to the Home Office’s allegations. The Home Office will then consider whether to re-instate or revoke the sponsor licence.
A licence will be revoked if you have undertaken a serious breach to sponsor guidance. The Home Office will then likely take steps to cancel your sponsored workers’ permission to remain in the UK.
Talk to Us
If you are looking for legal assistance with the sponsor licence application process, get in touch with JMW today. Simply call us on 0345 872 6666, or fill in our online enquiry form and we will get back to you.
