Sponsor Licence (Tier 2)

Overview

If you are a UK-based business/employer looking to hire migrant skilled workers, you are required to have a valid Skilled Worker Sponsor Licence. Your business needs to be eligible to apply for Skilled Worker Sponsor Licence. Your business is required skilled workers above NVQ Level 3 to meet the job suitability requirements.

Am I eligible to apply for a sponsor licence?

It is crucial to know before applying for a sponsorship licence, your company/business must be lawfully trading in the UK vacancy with an effective HR system, record keeping and maintaining them to be compliant to apply for Sponsor Licence.

Moreover, you are only eligible to apply if:

• Your sponsorship licence was not revoked in the past 12 months.
• You were not involved in criminal/immigration offences, not limited to fraud and money laundering.

Businesses are also required to comply with the right to work of the employees to prevent illegal work to be compliant with the Home Office.

It can take up to 8 weeks to process the Sponsor Licence application. It may take longer if the Home Office request a pre-compliance visit.

Home Office has introduced a priority service for the Sponsor Licence for £500. If your request to consider the application for priority is accepted, the application can be processed within 10 working days.

Supporting documents required to apply for a Sponsor Licence

The list of documents varies depending on the nature of the business as well as the types of licences.

Appendix A provides an extensive list of documents required by organisations that want to apply for a sponsor licence under the Worker, Temporary Worker or Student routes.

You are required to provide a minimum of four mandatory documents from Appendix A. Businesses can provide more documents depending on the nature of the business and how long the business has been trading in order to prove the genuineness of the business to the Home Office.

With the correct supporting documents checklist, our team will put together comprehensive and sound evidence to make sure you succeed in submitting a valid sponsorship licence application.

It might be possible, in some cases, to apply for multiple subcategory worker licences.

Our legal experts can offer you credible sponsor licence guidance. To discover more about our sponsorship licence services, call us at 0333 016 5270 or approach us anytime via an email to contact@axis.lawyer.

How much does it cost to apply for Sponsor Licence?

The cost of applying for the sponsor licence depends on the company’s size (classified as small, medium and large organisations).

Here is a breakdown of the sponsor licence costs:

• If you are classified as a “medium” or “large” business, you will need to pay £1,476 before applying for a Sponsorship licence in the UK.
• For small businesses, including registered charities in the UK (having an annual turnover of £10.2 million or less), you will be required to pay £536.
• If you add a temporary worker subcategory to an existing ‘worker’ sponsor licence, no Home Office fee will apply if you are a small or charitable sponsor.
• However, for ‘medium or large sponsors’, a fee of £940 is required to be paid first, even if you are applying for additional worker subcategory licences with an existing licence.

There are additional costs associated with Sponsor Licence including CoS assigning fee, Immigration skills charge.

What are the sponsor licence holder’s obligations?

The sponsor licence holders have the following obligations:

• Record keeping – maintaining a complete and accurate record of all employees they sponsor;
• Reporting – you must report certain information or events to the Home Office using the SMS within specific time limits;
• Compliance with immigration laws – sponsor licence holders must comply with UK immigration laws and all parts of the Worker and Temporary Worker sponsor guidance;
• Complying with wider UK law – sponsor licence holders have a duty to comply with wider UK law (other than immigration law);
• Good behavior – as a sponsor licence holder you must not engage in behaviour or actions that are not conducive to the public good.

How to apply for a skilled worker sponsor licence?

If your business meets the eligibility criteria for applying for a sponsor licence,  an application to apply can be made online. The necessary eligibility checks will be carried out against your application by the Home Office.

Given the complexity of the requirements, including documentation and compliance, it is highly recommended to engage a legal expert to handle the application on your behalf.

Our lawyers frequently help clients acquire sponsor licence for their business. Do you too need to hire a skilled worker from overseas? We can help.

What is the suitable skill level required for Sponsored Worker?

The qualify for a skilled worker visa, the minimum job skill requirement in most cases will be RQF 3, which is equivalent to A-levels.

Previously, one of the requirements was that a job had to meet the RQF 6 requirement which was equivalent to Bachelor’s level.

What are the salary requirements to apply for a Sponsor Licence?

Different minimum salary levels apply to different types of occupations. The applicable threshold depends on the job role and whether the worker is classed as a new entrant or an experienced worker.

The employer must pay whichever is the higher of the ‘going rate’ or the relevant general minimum salary threshold. New salary requirements from 1st January are between £20,480-£25,600. This has been reduced from £30,000.