Applying for a UK Sponsor Licence
Finding the right skilled employees in the UK can be a challenge, particularly in certain sectors and post Brexit. That means as a business, you may be seeking to recruit talent from overseas. If you are, there are the inevitable immigration issues to contend with and as part of that, your business will need to be a licensed UK sponsor. It’s a process that can take some time and can also be quite complicated and so, in this article, we take a look at the main aspects of a UK sponsor licence application.
The UK immigration system
The UK’s immigration system uses a points-based approach to determine eligibility for work visas. It applies to both EU and non-EU citizens equally. Points are awarded for specific skills, qualifications, salaries and job offers, and visa applicants must score a minimum number of points to qualify. The UK offers several types of work visa depending on skills, job offer, and circumstances.
There are also a number of different visa categories namely:
- Skilled Worker visa
- Global Business Mobility visa. Designed for businesses transferring employees to the UK. Includes:
- Senior or Specialist Worker visa (replacing Intra-Company Transfer visa)
- Graduate Trainee visa
- UK Expansion Worker visa
- Service Supplier visa
- Secondment Worker visa
- High Potential Individual (HPI) visa: For graduates from top global universities (outside the UK) who want to work or look for work in the UK without a job offer.
- Scale-up visa
- Innovator Founder visa: For entrepreneurs looking to establish an innovative business in the UK. The business idea must be endorsed by an approved body.
- Graduate visa: For international students who completed a UK degree and want to stay and work for up to 2 years (3 years for PhD graduates).
- Youth Mobility Scheme visa: For young people (18-30) from specific countries, allowing them to live and work in the UK for up to 2 years.
There is also a Health and Care Worker visa.
A UK sponsor licence
Most of the above visa routes require a job offer from a licensed UK sponsor. A sponsor licence allows a business to employ non-UK workers, but it also means the business must comply with strict regulation and meet certain responsibilities. Failure to do so can result in serious penalties and / or loss of your licence.
Only organisations, not individuals, can be a licensed sponsor. Any UK organisation that wants to employ non-UK workers who do not have settled status in the UK, appropriate immigration status or permission to work in the UK will need to obtain a sponsor licence. This includes businesses of all sizes as well as charities and not for profit organisations.
Becoming a licensed UK sponsor
There are two types of sponsor licence, depending on the type of work the prospective employee will be doing, the temporary worker licence and the worker licence. The most common type is the worker sponsor licence.
The temporary worker licence covers the following:
- Scale-up workers
- Creative workers
- Charity workers
- Religious workers
- Government authorised exchange
- International agreement Visa
- Global business mobility workers (except senior or specialist workers)
- Seasonal workers
The workers licence covers:
- Skilled workers
- Senior or specialist workers
- Minister of religion
- International sportsperson
Applying for a sponsor licence
The application is made to the Home Office with supporting documentation. There is considerable material to read, and the supporting documents required may include audited accounts, insurance certificates, bank accounts, PAYE numbers, etc. Applicants will also need to supply a variety of other information such as information about the business and sector and why they are applying for a licence. It is important to get things right at this stage or the application is likely to be delayed or even refused. There is a fee to pay with the application. For 2025, the fee in respect of a worker for a small business or charitable organisation is £536 and for a large business is £1,476.
If the business is a UK wide network, they will need to consider whether to apply for a licence that covers all branches, or whether to apply for a licence per branch. There are pros and cons of the different approaches, and which is most suitable will depend on the business.
You can read more about this here: https://rswlaw.co.uk/sponsor-licence-holders-and-related-organisations/
In order to be successful, the applicant will have to show:
- The business is eligible, genuine and operating legally with a presence in the UK.
- The job offered is genuine and meets the relevant visa criteria in terms of skill and salary thresholds set by the Home Office.
- That they have sufficient systems in place in respect of their HR and recruitment to meet their sponsor responsibilities. They will need to nominate a level 1 user, key contact and authorising officer who are all honest, dependable and reliable. They also need to nominate a level 1 user to manage the Sponsor Management System (SMS) who is a settled national/British, residing in UK and an employee, director or partner.
Processing the application and visits
The Home Office should review the application within eight weeks. They may carry out checks or request additional information. In some cases, they may visit the business to check the various systems, and this can delay the processing of the application. The visits can be announced or unannounced. If they do visit, they are likely to want to check the HR system, whether the number of workers you want to sponsor is appropriate for your business, whether you can pay the appropriate level of salary and whether you pose any threat to immigration control. To that end, it is important to be prepared in advance just in case your business is subject to a visit.
For a fee, there is also an expedited service by way of which a business can get a decision on their application within ten working days.
The outcome
If successful, the business is granted a sponsor licence and added to the Register of Licensed Sponsors. That permits a business to issue Certificates of Sponsorship to prospective employees. The employee can then apply for the appropriate work visa.
However, there are a number of reasons why an application may fail. If the application is rejected, it means there is some sort of mistake or gap in the application or information supplied. Correct this, and the business can apply again.
If the application is refused it will be because the applicant has failed to meet the criteria. The business will have to wait six months before applying again.
You can find more information about visa processing times and processing times here:
Because of the complexity of the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) visa application process, the above is only a summary of the procedure. The process is strict and highly scrutinized and so it’s essential to get things right. If any of the above affects you, or you would like to discuss what you need to do to apply, please call 020 3988 0170 or email us at nighat@rswlaw.co.uk.
The legal content provided by RSW Law Limited is for information purposes only and should not be relied on in any specific case without legal or other professional advice.
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