Sponsorship Duties: Your guide to getting it right
Under UK Immigration Rules, any business wishing to hire workers from outside the resident labour market must first gain approval from the Home Office by applying for a sponsor licence. Successfully securing a sponsor licence will enable your organisation to recruit top talent from anywhere in the world, giving your business leverage in an increasingly competitive employment market.
In return for this allowance, the Home Office expects sponsors to adhere to strict requirements known as ‘sponsorship duties’, which must be observed throughout the lifetime of your licence. Non-compliance is not an option. Failure to fulfill your sponsorship duties could result in your sponsor licence being downgraded, suspended or revoked.
To help employers understand their legal obligations as a licensed sponsor, Smith Stone Walters has produced a free guide to sponsorship duties and how to embed a culture of compliance within your business.
Inside this Sponsorship Duties guide, you will find:
- The employer’s duties: Understand the record-keeping, reporting, and compliance duties you must adhere to as a licensed sponsor.
- Sponsor checklist: Everything you need to know about your responsibilities regarding your migrant workers before, during and after their employment has ended.
- The audit: How to prepare for an audit visit by Home Office Compliance Officers from UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI).
Whether you are new to sponsorship or you have held a sponsor licence for some time, following our best practice advice and ensuring your entire HR team is kept informed is the best way to stay compliant.
