Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence Guide

What is the Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence?

A Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence is given by the Home Office to allow businesses and organisations to sponsor workers who are eligible for a visa via the GBM pathway. 

If you do not have the correct licence then you are not permitted to sponsor workers from overseas, and you could face significant financial and reputational consequences. 

The Sponsorship Licence allows an employer to issue Certificates of Sponsorship, which is a key requirement for those looking to work in the UK with a Global Business Mobility visa. 

For help on how to apply for a licence and the obligations of being a licence holder, you may want to consult with an immigration lawyer to ensure full compliance with UK immigration law. 

What Type of Workers Can Be Sponsored with a Global Business Mobility Licence?

Being a Global Business Mobility Licence holder permits the sponsorship of certain types of workers via the GBM visa routes. These categories of workers are: 

• Graduate trainee – this is for overseas workers who are undertaking temporary work assignments in the UK, where the worker is on a graduate training programme leading to a senior management or specialist position and is required to do a work placement in the UK
• Senior or specialist worker – this applies to workers who are based overseas but have been sent to a UK branch or affiliated office to carry out set business-related tasks 
• UK expansion worker –  a specialist or senior employee overseas worker who has been transferred to the UK for the purposes of business expansion
• Service supplier – this covers foreign workers who have been sent to a UK client to provide a service in line with a UK trade commitment. 
• Secondment worker – for staff seconded to the UK as part of an investment or contract 

Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence: General Requirements

If you wish to sponsor a worker on any of the Global Business Mobility (GBM) routes, you must hold a valid sponsor licence for the relevant route, or routes

There are a number of eligibility criteria that must be met in order to be successful when applying for the licence. These include: 

• A qualifying business which can demonstrate a link with an overseas operation either by the same ownership or via a joint venture agreement. 
• Paying sponsored GBM workers the correct salary, either the going rate, the minimum salary level or the national minimum wage rate depending on which GBM route is applicable.
• Providing genuine employment opportunities that fit the required skill level if applicable for the specific GBM route
• If sponsoring a secondment worker it must be linked to an investment or eligible contract worth at least £10 million per annum or £50 million in total 
• When sponsoring an overseas service supplier there must be a contract in place for the supply of a service by a relevant UK trade commitment
• For an expansion worker route the sponsor must be able to show that it plans to establish a new UK-based branch or a subsidiary within two years. In addition, it must also have had an established and successful trading operation for at least three years. 

As well as the specific requirements for being a Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence holder, there are general criteria for being a sponsor, such as:

• A genuine organisation that is currently operating in the UK (unless sponsoring the expansion worker route)
• Demonstrate a history of being a reliable and responsible employer who has not broken immigration or employment laws in the past. 
• Capable of complying with all laws surrounding sponsorship compliance, HR practices and recruitment processes. 

As part of applying for a Sponsor Licence, the Home Office may opt to conduct pre-approval compliance to double-check that an employer is in a position to be an honest and suitable licence holder. 

If you fail to meet these requirements, then it is likely your application for a Global Mobility Sponsor Licence will be rejected. Once refused, you may have to wait to reapply for at least six months. This is to give you time to ensure you will be fully compliant in time for your next application.

You may wish to seek advice from an immigration specialist in order to ensure you have the right processes in place and complete your Sponsor Licence application correctly to reduce the risk of being rejected. 

Appointing Key Personnel Duties

When holding a Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence it is important to ensure that staff members are assigned to specific roles as part of the day-to-day managing and processing of workers from overseas. 

UK immigration requires companies to give information about who will be responsible for these roles when applying for the licence. 

All employers must choose a permanent member of staff, partner or director to be responsible for the role. It is possible for each role to be carried out by the same person, or alternatively, a number of people can take on the duty. 

• An Authorising Office –  a competent senior part of the business who is responsible for anyone else accessing the Sponsorship Management System (SMS) 
• A Key Contact -responsible for communicating with the UK immigration services. 
• Level 1 User will oversee the day-to-day access of SMS. This person can also appoint Level 2 users if it is deemed necessary. This is usually required by larger firms that issue large numbers of CoSs. 

Global Business Mobility Sponsorship Licence Duties

It is important for licence holders to comply with the obligations required to ensure they obey UK immigration law. If you do not follow the obligations it could mean your licence could be suspended or cancelled, and you would not be able to employ workers from overseas. You could also face financial penalties and other legal action. 

It is expected all employers of migrant workers will keep accurate records of all employees to demonstrate they have followed the correct procedures to prevent illegal working practices. Such records can be reviewed by UKVI at any point, so it is crucial to keep them accurate and updated in case of an official audit or visit. 

As part of the Right to Work Checks required, you should ensure you have copies of the following for all staff – settled and from overseas:

• Passport 
• Current employment contract, which includes all terms and conditions of employment as well as the rate of pay. This must be identical to the details given on any assigned Certificates Of Sponsorship (if applicable)
• National Insurance number (if applicable) 
• Staff contact details, such as address and telephone. 
• Biometric Resident Permit (if applicable) 

All licence holders are required to notify the Home Office of all changes in circumstances that may affect an employee’s right to work in the UK. Therefore, it is vital to have effective processes in place to make sure all records are up-to-date. 

Employees must also report any unexpected absences of sponsored workers to the Home Office. For example, not turning up to work or termination of their contract. 

Sponsors must notify the Home Office of significant changes that may affect their ability to fulfill sponsorship duties, including changes in key personnel or cessation of operations.

All changes can be reported via the SMS which must be done as soon as possible to avoid any potential lack of compliance. Reach out to IAS for advice in ensuring you are aware of all the required duties of sponsoring workers via the GBM Visa route.

How to Apply for a Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence

For employers who already hold a Sponsor Licence for other UK Visa routes but not the GBM pathway, then it is possible to make an application to add this permission to the existing licence. 

The application for a Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence must be done online and includes submitting a range of supporting documentation as well as paying the application fee. All accompanying paperwork must be submitted within five days of making the application. 

As part of the process, you will need to provide the following documents: 

• Audited financial accounts 
• Details of the company ownership and structure
• Recent bank statements
• Copy of current employer and business insurance
• VAT registration certificate 
• Evidence of HMRC registration and compliance, including tax records, NI and PAYE records

Cost of Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence

The exact fee for a Sponsor Licence needed depends on the size and type of organisation applying, as well as the GBM route that you will be sponsoring. 

For companies sponsoring those workers via the senior or specialist route,  a small business or charity will need to pay a fee of £611. To qualify under this lower rate, an employer must meet at least two of the following conditions: 

• Have an annual turnover of equal or under £10.2 million
• Employ 50 or less workers
• A balance sheet not totalling more than £5.1 million, 

The cost for a large company is £1,682 when sponsoring workers via the senior or specialist route. 

However, if you plan to only sponsor workers via the other GBM routes, then the cost is a straight £611 even if classed as a large organisation. 

There are also other applicable costs for Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence that are payable for each worker sponsored, including: 

• Immigration Skills Charge of £1000 per worker or £364 if a small company or registered charity for the first 12 months.
• Associated fees for the sponsored worker’s GBM visa application 
• £525 per Certificate of Sponsor issued to a senior or specialist worker and £55 for other workers being sponsored for other GMB routes. 

What Is The Processing Time For a GBM Sponsor Licence?

The time taken to process a Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence takes up to 8 weeks from the time of application within the UK and three weeks from outside the UK.

It is possible to pay an additional fee to speed up the processing of an application. Using the Priority Processing Service, at a cost of £500, reduces the time to ten working days. However, this does not include any time needed to request additional documents or carry out in-person visits. 

How IAS Can Help

At IAS we can help you apply for a Global Business Mobility Sponsor Licence. We can help your business complete your application and double-check your supporting documents to put you in the best position to get your licence approved. 

We also have an in-house team that offers mock compliance visits to ensure you are ready for a pre-approval check from the Home Office if necessary. The practice audit highlights any potential issues with your current compliance procedures. 

At IAS our experienced lawyers can also help with the processing of applying for GBM visas for your overseas staff. Contact us today at +44 (0)333 414 9244 or reach out to us online. We are here to assist you with all immigration enquiries.