Sponsor Licence meaning

This Checklist summarises the immigration issues to be considered on a relevant transfer under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE 2006), SI 2006/246, and sets out the steps required when participating in a transaction. It additionally highlights the relevant Practice Notes and the associated Precedent materials for reference. Immigration requirements during any transaction where TUPE 2006 does not apply fall outside the scope of this Checklist and are not addressed here. For a general outline of TUPE 2006’s effect and requirements, see: TUPE and asset purchases—overview. Initial considerations and due diligence In any scenario that may fall within TUPE 2006, robust, immigration‑specific due diligence is essential, particularly where a transferor employs sponsored migrants within its workforce. Immigration matters should be addressed at the earliest stage so the parties can plan for and comply with necessary deadlines, etc. Initial enquiries about the immigration status of transferring employees should begin at the start of the transaction process, and care should be taken to...

Home Office enforcement and licence revocations In recent years, compliance and enforcement activity has intensified, with more suspensions and revocations. According to the Home Office, last summer it recorded 1,948 sponsor licence revocations between July 2024 and June 2025—over twice the 937 in the prior year, and far above the 261 and 247 recorded in earlier years. This sharp rise is linked to the expansion of digital compliance checks, underpinned by broader data sharing with HMRC on PAYE records, which enables the Home Office to spot more swiftly and accurately when a sponsored worker is not being paid in line with their CoS. This information exchange is expected to scale up further, with revocations likely to climb as a result. Collaboration with other government departments has also enhanced the Home Office’s ability to oversee sponsor obligations remotely, reflected in the shift from traditional in-person compliance audits to predominantly digital reviews for sponsors...

In this issue Key developments UK immigration control: how it works Sponsored work Work sponsorship: sponsors Students EU law rights and EU settlement Challenging immigration decisions and enforcement Preventing illegal working Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content New Q&As Key developments Future developments—Immigration calendar Our Immigration calendar sets out key forthcoming developments for business immigration advisers. UK immigration control: how it works IHS rises to come into force from 6 February 2024 The Immigration (Health Charge) (Amendment) Order 2024, SI 2024/55, was made on 16 January 2024. Under article 1(2) of the Order, it comes into effect 21 days later, on 6 February 2024. The measure increases the Immigration Health Surcharge from £470 to £776 per annum for students, their dependants, Youth Mobility Scheme applicants and children under 18. For all other applications that must pay the Health Charge, the annual IHS rises from £624 to...

In this issue: Key developments UK immigration control: how it works Sponsored work EU law rights and EU Settlement Scheme Challenging immigration decisions and enforcement Preventing illegal working British citizenship and the right of abode Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Future developments—Immigration calendar Our Immigration calendar highlights key forthcoming changes of interest to business immigration advisers... UK immigration control: how it works Fees to be increased again, and new airside transit ETA exemption The Home Office has presented to Parliament the draft Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Order 2025, which will amend the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Order 2016, SI 2016/177. Once approved, it will raise the upper limits for a range of specified immigration and nationality charges. After it takes effect, the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Regulations 2018, SI 2018/330 will then be amended to adjust the actual payable fees. The Explanatory Memorandum to the draft Order explains...

The Skilled Worker route The Skilled Worker route allows UK employers holding a valid sponsor licence to hire, or continue to employ, skilled individuals who are neither British nor Irish nationals. It is the principal route for entry to, and residence in, the UK for employment. The Practice Note: Sponsoring a Skilled Worker reviews the eligibility requirements connected to a sponsor issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), including the necessary skill level and salary. Once a CoS has been issued, and provided the applicant meets all other criteria, they can apply for entry clearance or permission to stay...

The UK’s choice to exit the European Union has made a comprehensive reassessment of the country’s immigration framework necessary. On 18 September 2018, the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) released its final report on European Economic Area (EEA) migration in the UK, designed to provide an evidence base for shaping a new migration system to operate after the end of the implementation period from 1 January 2021. The report sets out multiple conclusions on the effects of EEA migration to the UK, together with a series of proposals which, if taken forward, would have a significant bearing on the way EEA nationals are permitted to participate in the UK labour market once Brexit has taken effect. However, the document does not tackle whether EEA nationals ought to be treated differently within the family migration system, observing only that there could be large effects which should be taken into account. The key findings The report considered a vast body of evidence on the impact of migration from the EEA...

Genuineness and eligible role considerations in sponsored worker routes This Practice Note examines genuineness and eligible role issues across sponsored worker routes. These include, among other aspects, whether vacancies/roles genuinely exist, the financial viability of those roles, applicants’ qualifications/registration, the requirements of the job, and the worker’s intended purpose. The relevant criteria are found in the Immigration Rules for the Skilled Worker, Global Business Mobility and Scale-up routes, and also in the Sponsor Guidance that applies to all sponsored work routes. The original 2008 sponsored employment model under the Points-Based System was, in essence, self-certification—employers had to sign up to and maintain stringent compliance arrangements to gain a sponsor licence, after which they could assign their own Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), subject to periodic compliance visits and other checks to ensure they continued to meet sponsor duties, including accurate CoS assignment. This approach was moderated with the advent of what became known as restricted CoS when interim limits were introduced in Tier 2 (General) in July 2010, bringing...

Dear [ Applicant ], Skilled Worker entry clearance visa We are instructed [ by [ Sponsor ] ] to support you [ and your dependants ] with an application for UK entry clearance (a visa) under the Skilled Worker route. This route permits non‑British or Irish citizens who have a job offer from a UK employer holding a valid sponsor licence to work in the UK. Eligibility I understand you have been offered a post by [ Sponsor ] as a [ role ], with annual pay of £[ salary ] and a working week of [ number of weekly hours ] hours. Your sponsor confirms the role is within Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 2020 code [ SOC 2020 code ], listed in Table [ Table number ] of Appendix Skilled Occupations of the Immigration Rules. For you, the applicable general salary threshold is [ general threshold amount ] and the going rate is [ going rate amount ]...

Monitoring immigration status and preventing illegal employment Proof of right to work check Copy format (paper or electronic) Type of document Which pages have been copied? For a passport or travel document, you should include: the front cover (only where the copy was taken between 29 February 2008 and 15 May 2014); any page(s) showing the photograph, name, date of birth, biometric details, expiry date, nationality, or signature; and if the person is not British or Irish (or was an EEA or Swiss national before 1 July 2021) and their permission is endorsed in their passport, the page bearing the stamp confirming the holder’s current UK immigration status and any conditions of stay. Does that stamped page display a UK date of entry shown by an entry stamp?...

Affidavit in support of sponsor licence application for [ insert full name of the applicant UK organisation ] I, [ insert full name of deponent (who must be a senior executive or senior partner in the applicant UK organisation ) ], of [ insert address at which they work ], do solemnly swear and state the following: I serve as the [ position title ] at [ full name of applicant UK organisation ], whose main place of business...

A Sponsor may submit applications for multiple licence tiers concurrently; however, in the scenario raised in this Q&A it would be unwise, as approval of one would, by necessity, preclude success of the other. For a Skilled Worker licence (a Worker route), one of the criteria is that the company is lawfully operating or trading in the UK. The Home Office has, of late, taken a firm stance in rejecting Sponsor Licence applications under the Skilled Worker route where the business is not yet producing income—often described as ‘pre‑revenue’. Although limited cases exist in which a pre‑revenue enterprise might still obtain a licence, the prevailing position now is that such bids are typically declined. This reflects current Home Office practice today...

Our Practice Note: Applying for a Workers and Temporary Workers sponsor licence: key personnel and representatives Our Practice Note sets out that a sponsor licence application can, and in some instances will, be declined or, where applicable, the licence later revoked, if any of the Authorising Officer, Key Contact, Level 1 user, or any owner, director or other individual involved in the day-to-day running of the organisation: has any unspent convictions relating to immigration offences or a number of listed serious offences in Part 1 of the Sponsor Guidance at Annex L4 (Part 1, para L4.3)—mandatory refusal of the application (Part 1 Annex L1(b)) and/or mandatory revocation of the licence (Part 3, Annex C1(b)) has previously been dishonest in their relationship with […] any other government department) […]—a licence application will normally be refused/existing licence will normally be ...

Refer to the relevant Practice Notes: Applying for a sponsor licence under Workers and Temporary Workers: eligibility and suitability (covering pre-revenue businesses) and Applying for a Workers and Temporary Workers sponsor licence: procedure (concerning licence re-application). Cooling off period and who it applies to If a sponsor licence application is refused, the Home Office will, in most cases, impose a cooling off period. This is typically six months, though in some situations it can be as long as five years. The Home Office may choose not to apply the cooling off period, for example where documents were provided late, or where a representative submitted the application. See Practice Note: Applying for a Workers and Temporary Workers sponsor licence: procedure/cooling-off periods...