Sponsorship Licence Information & Advice

What is a Sponsor Licence?

Any UK employer that wishes to employ foreign workers must hold a Sponsor Licence.

A successful sponsor licence application will enable your organisation to lawfully employ skilled migrant workers.

What are the requirements for a Sponsorship Licence?

When applying for a Sponsorship Licence, there are a number of steps that you need to undertake and a number of requirements that you will need to satisfy. We explain some of these below:

You will need show that you are a genuine and legitimate business, operating lawfully in the UK;
You will need to show that you are capable of carrying out your sponsorship duties;
You will need to show that you have appropriate human resources and recruitment processes in place;
You will need to show that you are offering genuine employment at the appropriate level of skill and appropriate level of pay.
For certain types of cases, you may need to comply with a ‘Resident Labour Market Test’.

What is the process of making a Sponsor Licence application?

When making your sponsoring licence application, you will need to specify which type of licence your organisation needs. If you intend to hire skilled workers on a long term basis, you would apply for the Tier 2 licence, whereas short term skilled roles would be the Tier 5 licence, or you can apply for a licence applicable for the two categories.

You will need to ensure that your paperwork is in order. This means that you need to ensure that you have sufficient documents to show that your business is genuine and is lawfully trading in the UK.

You will also need to nominate key personnel in the organisation that will be responsible for the whole process.

The application can then be made online. Once the application is submitted and paid for, you have 5 working days within which you must send to the Home Office all of your supporting documents. This is an incredibly important part of the process, and often where most applications fails. See below to see how Batley Law can help you with this.

What documents are required for a Sponsor Licence application?

Appendix A of the Immigration Rules sets out all mandatory documentation that sponsor licence applicants are to submit with their application.

The list varies depending on the type of organisation that is applying and the type of licence being applied for. We can check the requirements for your business and advise you of the specific documents you should provide.

How long does a sponsor licence last?

Sponsor licences are granted for a period of four years. They can be renewed by making an application to the Home Office.

However, you should also note that sponsor licences can be downgraded, suspended or revoked if the employers fails to comply with its compliance duties and to manage the licence correctly.

How long with my Sponsorship Licence application take?

The time can vary, but on average, we find that decisions are received within 8-12 weeks.

How can Batley Law help with my Tier 1 Visa Application?

Sponsor licence applications can be complex and require considerable documents and supporting evidence.

At Batley Law, we offer an advice package tailored to your needs.

For every case, we will:

Take detailed instructions from you to ensure we gain a detailed insight into your business;
Understand the key personnel application;
Take details from you in relation to the vacancy you wish to fill;
Advise you of the requirements that apply to your case;
Check all of your documents to ensure they comply with the requirements;
Complete the online application;
Draft a detailed letter of representations to go with your application;
Advise you in relation to a site visit to ensure your compliance with your HR and recruitment duties.

If you would like our assistance with your spouse application, get in touch today.

Get in touch to find out how we can help you

Batley Law Limited is a Company registered in England and Wales. Registered Number: 11443317. VAT Number: 300164172. Batley Law Limited is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. A list of the names and professional qualifications of our Directors is available from our Registered Office: 26 Wellington Street, Batley, West Yorkshire, WF17 5HU.

Website by PS Website Design Ltd