Sponsor licence

Work

A UK business needs a sponsor licence before it can assign the Certificate of Sponsorship a Skilled Worker application requires.

This page is general information about UK immigration routes. It is not advice on your case. Rules and fees change. Confirm the current position before you pay a Home Office fee.

Who this is for

• You are a UK business hiring someone who needs sponsorship.
• You already hold a licence and have had a compliance visit, a downgrade, or a suspension.

What this route is

The licence is permission to sponsor workers. Without it there is no Certificate of Sponsorship. Licences are rated A or B. An A-rating is full status. A B-rating is a downgrade with an action plan.

A compliance visit tests records: reports on the sponsor management system, address updates, whether the job is genuine, and whether the CoS matches the role. A late report or a CoS for the wrong job can put the sponsored staff at risk.

Requirements we check

• A genuine trading business with a genuine vacancy.
• Key personnel who can pass the suitability checks.
• HR systems that can track right-to-work, absences, and reporting duties.

Evidence that usually matters

• Companies House and tax documents.
• Contracts, job descriptions, and a hierarchy chart.
• Evidence the business can pay the salary.

How we work

1. Read the position. We check the business can hold a licence and who the key people are.
2. List the gaps. We build the HR files the visit will ask for.
3. Prepare the application. We prepare the online application.
4. Check before filing. If the licence is later challenged, we draft the representations.

Where applications go wrong

• A job description written to fit a code the worker does not actually do.
• No system for reporting a leaver or an unpaid absence.
• Key personnel with immigration or criminal issues that were not disclosed.