Sponsor Licence Management Changes
If your business has a sponsor licence to sponsor overseas workers then you need to be aware of changes to the immigration rules on sponsor licence management.
In this blog, our immigration solicitors run through the key sponsor licence changes.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Solicitors and Sponsorship Licence Lawyers
For advice on sponsor licence applications and management call the immigration lawyers at OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Changes to the sponsor management system
The Home Office has introduced changes to the sponsor management system (SMS) that are designed to speed up SMS requests and make the process easier.
Many businesses who are contemplating applying for their first sponsor licence are wary of the sponsor management system but it is an online system that allows sponsoring employers to report online on sponsor matters in accordance with the immigration rules and make requests. Sponsorship Licence lawyers understand that some firms struggle to get to grips with using the sponsor management system and that’s why OTS Solicitors offer a comprehensive sponsor licence management service for a fixed monthly retainer.
Some business owners may remember the advert tagline for the trains, ‘Let the train take the strain’. With sponsor licence management it is the same but your Sponsorship Licence lawyers are sorting out the admin and red tape for your company.
Making the replacement of the authorising officer, key contact and level 1 user easier
With effect from 23 March 2023 replacing your authorising officer, key contact and level 1 user has been made easier.
Requests submitted using the online sponsor management system to replace the authorising officer or the key contact or to add a new level 1 user will be sorted out straight away provided that your business meets the following criteria:
- The sponsor licence is active – in other words, the sponsor licence has not been suspended and is not the subject of a Home Office action plan
- The sponsor licence is A rated
- The postcode for the new key personnel matches the postcode for the head office or the nominated Sponsorship Licence lawyers
If your business does not meet these criteria then you will have to make an application and wait for the Home Office to make a decision. If overheads are not a major concern you can pay a priority application fee rather than wait up to 18 weeks for a decision. The priority service application fee is £200.
Automatic renewal of sponsoring employers’ annual certificates of sponsorship allocations
The Home Office will automatically renew A-rated sponsor licence holders with annual certificates of sponsorship. The new rules apply if the annual certificate allocation is due to expire within 3 months of 23 March 2023 and the renewal is standard. The new rules apply to certificates of sponsorship in the following sponsored routes:
- Skilled worker visa – for undefined certificates of sponsorship
- Scale-up visa
- Senior or specialist worker visa under the global business mobility visa route
- Graduate trainee visas under the global business mobility visa route
- Service supplier visas under the global business mobility visa route
- Secondment worker visas under the global business mobility visa route
- Minister of Religion
- International sportsperson
- Charity worker
- Creative worker
- Government Authorised Exchange
- International Agreement
- Religious worker
Sponsorship Licence lawyers warn that sponsoring employers will need to apply to renew their certificate of sponsorship allocation if the allocation expires more than 3 months after 23 March 2023 or if the allocation has already expired. The following yearly allocation will be automatically renewed if the sponsor licence holder meets the criteria and the visas are within the list of annual automated allocations.
It is important to note that if a sponsoring employer does not use all of their annual allocation of certificates of sponsorship, then when the automated renewal occurs the sponsor licence holder will only get allocated the number of certificates that they assigned to visa applicants rather than the full previous year’s allocation figure if some certificates went unallocated. However, if a business knows it will need more certificates than the previous year’s assigned number of certificates it can manually apply for a change in the certificate number by using the sponsor management system.
How OTS Solicitors can help with sponsor licence management
Not every sponsor licence holder is great with paperwork or online systems. Even if you are brilliant with record keeping, your business may find that it is too busy to keep on top of sponsor licence reporting and recording duties or that it cannot recruit a new level 1 user or appoint a new level 2 user.
The Sponsorship Licence lawyers at OTS Solicitors offer a sponsor licence management service for a fixed monthly retainer. That makes it easier for sponsor licence holders to manage their licence and report. Some of our satisfied sponsor licence management service users liken the management service to a weight being taken off their shoulders with the added bonus of not worrying about picking up the phone as the service is provided via a set monthly retainer.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Solicitors and Sponsorship Licence Lawyers
For advice on sponsor licence applications and management call the immigration lawyers at OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
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