How to Sponsor an Employee for a Work Visa

The eligibility requirements are for both the employer and the job.

Employer Eligibility

The eligibility requirements for the employer are that:

• They must be a registered company in the UK and have an authorised signatory. This is confirmed by the Home Office, which will contact the company directly to verify this information.
• They must have designated key personnel responsible for the Sponsorship Management System (SMC). This must be someone with experience in HR and UK immigration.
• They must have policies and procedures in place, which are regularly reviewed and updated. These include keeping records of the sponsored workers, how they ensure compliance with the Immigration Rules, how they monitor their employees, how they prevent criminality and how they report any changes.
• They should have access to the SMC online, which allows them to manage their sponsorships, including their Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) allocations.
• They must also demonstrate how they will comply with their specific sponsorship duties.

At the same time, the employer cannot get a licence:

• If they have been penalised with a civil penalty in the last 12 months.
• If they are considered to be non-compliant.

Job suitability

The job must meet the following criteria:

• It must be appropriate for sponsorship.
• It must include a salary of at least £20,480 per year (unless otherwise specified by the Home Office).
• The job must reflect the minimum skill level of RQF 3 or above.

The following are the workers that can be sponsored:

• Skilled worker
• Health or care worker
• Worker on any type of ‘Global Business Mobility’
• Scale-up worker
• Worker on a government-authorized exchange.
• Seasonal worker
• Worker on an International Sportsperson visa
• Worker on an international agreement
• Creative worker
• Charity worker
• Minister of religion or religious worker

Step 2: Nominating key personnel

Then you must nominate individuals as Key Personnel who will be responsible for the running of their Sponsorship Management System (SMS). These will include HR and compliance roles and the Home Office will use these contacts to check how the employer is meeting their sponsorship duties.

Additionally, you must nominate a key contact and a level 1 user who will be responsible for the day-to-day management of your sponsor licence using the SMS. A level 2 user will also be nominated if the primary level 1 user is unavailable.

Step 3: Deciding on CoS allocation

The UK employer must decide how many Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) they will need and how these will be allocated to individual migrants.

The CoS are permission from the Home Office to work in the UK for a specific employer and role. UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) will only issue CoS if they decide that the employer is suitable and the job meets their criteria.

Step 4: Submitting the application

Once all these steps have been completed, you can submit your online sponsor licence application to UKVI. You will need to provide evidence supporting your application, such as financial statements, payroll information or bank statements.

It is important to remember that all the information you provide must be accurate and up-to-date; otherwise, the application may be refused. If any documents are missing from your application or the information you provide is incorrect, the application may be refused.

How to send the documents

The requirement is that you send the relevant documents via email. You can scan or take pictures of your submission sheet and supporting documents, then upload them to an email or use a file-sharing service such as WeTransfer. The documents should be in the following formats:

• PDF
• JPEG or
• PNG

If you can not send the documents via email, contact UKVI to find out how else you can submit them.

Once UKVI has received all the necessary documents and evidence they need, they will make a decision on your application within 8 weeks.

If you need the licence sooner, you can request an expedited decision, but this will incur an additional fee of £500 to get a decision within 10 working days.

It’s important to make sure that all the information and evidence provided is correct and up-to-date when applying for a sponsor licence, as UKVI are very strict about errors or omissions. If there are any mistakes in your application or the information you provide is incorrect, UKVI may refuse your application.

You can request for a review of the decision, but this must be done within 28 days of receiving the refusal notice. The conditions of the review will depend on why the application was refused.

You will need to submit the following documents and evidence when applying for a sponsor licence:

• A copy of your organisation’s business plan or financial statements.
• Evidence that you meet the eligibility requirements. This could include bank statements, payroll information, proof of how long you have been trading and how you are funded.
• A list of key personnel such as directors and HR representatives.
• Proof that you can fulfil the duties of a sponsor, including how you will conduct right-to-work checks.
• A copy of your job descriptions and how they relate to the relevant codes of practice set out in the Immigration Rules.
• Police clearance certificate (for all key personnel).

Other additional requirements include the following:

• If you are a charity or limited company, you need to provide a copy of your constitution
• If you are a charity, an extract from the Charity Commission website that states how many years the organisation has been in existence
• For companies that have been operating for less than one year, evidence of how long they have been trading
• A copy of the business’s ‘Statement of Legal Entity Status’ from Companies House

Employer sponsors have certain responsibilities when sponsoring an employee for a work visa. These include:

• Providing evidence of how the job was advertised to ensure it is in line with UK employment law.
• Ensuring the worker has the right to work in the UK and providing proof of valid sponsor licence.
• Making sure the sponsored worker is paid a minimum salary for the role.
• Providing proof of identities, such as a passport or other form of ID.
• Making sure the employee has permission to work in the UK and providing necessary documents.
• Notifying UKVI if there are any changes to the employment of the sponsored employee.

If there are any changes in your circumstances that could affect the employee’s ability to work, you must inform UKVI immediately through the sponsorship management system (SMS).

If you are sponsoring under-18s, you are also responsible for making sure they have suitable accommodations and the right education. You should also have a consent letter from their parents or guardians if they are not travelling with them.

If you are sponsoring a scale-up worker, you must abide by the terms of the ‘Scale-up Visa’ and make sure all criteria are met.