How to get a UK Sponsor Licence

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Looking to hire talent from overseas? Under UK immigration rules, your business may need a sponsor licence. Get started with Fragomen.

In a world increasingly shaped by war, pandemic, political turmoil and climate change, countless individuals seek safety in the United States. As these crises impact U.S. employer workforces, the demand for comprehensive immigration support has never been more critical for these valuable employees. For decades, Fragomen has helped individual and corporate clients grapple with the effects of humanitarian crises. From large-scale, crisis-specific programs that help employees and their extended families to actionable advice about a single imperiled worker—we’ve developed a flexible, cost-conscious approach that responds effectively to the complexities that arise in humanitarian crises.

How Fragomen can help

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

How Fragomen can help

Get started with Fragomen

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence? To become a sponsor, a business must: ► Have a genuine UK trading presence► Provide the required corporate documents and information► Demonstrate strong compliance system and processes to maintain the UK sponsor licence► Appoint key personnel who will be responsible for the sponsor licence The most common visa types that businesses apply to be licenced to sponsor are: ► Skilled Worker► Global Business Mobility - Senior or Specialist Worker There are also several other routes available, including the Global Business Mobility – Expansion Worker visa type for overseas businesses who are considering expanding to the UK.

What is a sponsor licence? All UK employers that want to sponsor skilled migrants from overseas to work in the UK will need a sponsor licence. This grants your organisation permission to issue certificates of sponsorship (CoS), which are required for migrant workers applying for a sponsored work visa. To obtain and manage your sponsor licence, you will need to successfully complete the Home Office’s sponsor licence application process.

When to apply for a sponsor licence? A sponsor licence must be in place in order to issue the CoS and for the employee to apply for immigration permission. So if you think that your business may need to sponsor employees in the future, you may want to consider making that application now. Having a sponsor licence in place will help to prevent delays in the employee on-boarding process.

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application? Navigating the Home Office’s sponsor licence requirements can be difficult—but it doesn’t have to be. Staffed by UK qualified solicitors, immigration professionals and paralegals across Fragomen’s London and Sheffield offices, our friendly team is highly exerienced in UK immigration law. We have helped over a thousand employers, from the smallest start-ups to the largest corporations, apply for and successfully maintain their sponsor licences across a variety of industries, including construction, education, finance, healthcare, hospitality and many others. We have the knowledge and experience to help you navigate the complex legal requirements to ensure you remain compliant—so that you can continue to focus on doing what you do best and growing your business.

What are the sponsor's responsibilities? There are certain obligations of being a sponsor. Your business will be required to implement an HR system and processes that demonstrate how you are going to comply with these obligations as part of the sponsor licence application. These requirements are ongoing and may be reviewed by the Home Office before issuing a sponsor licence, or at any time after the licence has been granted.

How long does it take to get a sponsor licence? On average, it takes around six weeks for most businesses to gather the information and documentation required to prepare a sponsor licence application. Once the application is filed, the Home Office processing standard is eight weeks, although a limited number of paid priority slots are available which reduce the processing to 10 working days.

How long does it take to get one?

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

Tailored advice on the structure of your sponsor licenceEnd-to-end support through the application processComprehensive application guidesTraining on the UK immigration system and compliance requirements for UK sponsors

About Fragomen

Fragomen is the leading single-focus provider of immigration services and support in the UK and around the world. We have strong and long-established relationships with the Home Office and other government authorities allowing us to provide tailored compliance advice and best practices. Fragomen has over 6,000 immigration-focused professionals and staff spanning more than 60 offices worldwide.

How Fragomen can help We offer a variety of sponsor licence services to cater to businesses of all needs and sizes: ► ► ► ► We can assess your business’ requirements and existing processes and advise you on process improvements to ensure compliance, or design a totally bespoke offering from the ground up. Once the licence is in place, you will likely want to start sponsoring employees or potential hires. We provide flexible support to match your business needs at any stage of the visa application process.

How long does it take to get one?

EXPLORE

What is a sponsor licence?

Looking to apply for British citizenship?

Get started with Fragomen

Fragomen’s Humanitarian Pathways Practice Group offers experience, practical insight and sophisticated tools to support your response to other large-scale disruptions.

Contact Fragomen for a consultation, even if potential problems are not a primary concern for you or seem remote. In short order, we can help you prepare a thoughtful, decisive response to unexpected humanitarian challenges.

Get started with Fragomen

What is a sponsor licence?

All UK employers that want to sponsor skilled migrants from overseas to work in the UK will need a sponsor licence. This grants your organisation permission to issue certificates of sponsorship (CoS), which are required for migrant workers applying for a sponsored work visa. To obtain and manage your sponsor licence, you will need to successfully complete the Home Office’s sponsor licence application process.

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

How long does it take to get one?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

Get started with Fragomen

EXPLORE

Looking to apply for British citizenship?

In a world increasingly shaped by war, pandemic, political turmoil and climate change, countless individuals seek safety in the United States. As these crises impact U.S. employer workforces, the demand for comprehensive immigration support has never been more critical for these valuable employees. For decades, Fragomen has helped individual and corporate clients grapple with the effects of humanitarian crises. From large-scale, crisis-specific programs that help employees and their extended families to actionable advice about a single imperiled worker—we’ve developed a flexible, cost-conscious approach that responds effectively to the complexities that arise in humanitarian crises.

Fragomen’s Humanitarian Pathways Practice Group offers experience, practical insight and sophisticated tools to support your response to other large-scale disruptions.

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

Get started with Fragomen

Seek HELP to Prepare for Possible DACA Crisis

As you are no doubt aware, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy has been challenged in the courts and may not survive additional judicial review. If you employ DACA recipients—or even if you only suspect you might—now is the time to prepare. Fragomen’s Humanitarian and Evolving Legal Pathways (HELP) Practice Group will get you up to speed on the possible cancellation of DACA and the emergence of other large-scale immigration crises. We’ll help you identify the "Dreamers" in your workforce and plan alternative pathways for their work authorization. We’ll develop a flexible, cost-conscious approach that matches the needs of your jeopardized employees and creates the best results possible—for them and for you. The HELP Practice Group can specifically offer the following support to DACA recipients:

DACA recipients confront a fragile, uncertain future because the policy they’ve relied on to work in the United States faces likely cancellation. We assist you in identifying employment-based solutions like H-1B or alternative humanitarian pathways like asylum that best serve your workforce.

Support for "Dreamers"

Deep Training in Critical Disciplines

Support for Dreamers

Humanitarian immigration law is a challenging discipline that requires experience, sensitivity, and dedicated resources. In addition to DACA policy and response, our attorneys and experts are steeped in every facet of humanitarian immigration law, including asylum law, parole, and TPS protections.

Deep Training in Critical Disciplines

For decades, we’ve helped clients grapple with the immigration effects of political turmoil, war, climate change and health disasters.

Fragomen’s HELP Practice Group offers bespoke crisis-related immigration counsel—from large-scale, crisis-specific programs that help employees and their extended families, to actionable advice about individual imperiled workers. Key standouts of our services include:

In today’s political climate, humanitarian programs face a fragile, uncertain future. Our longstanding support for business immigration can help you and your employees determine how humanitarian pathways interact with employment-based programs—and whether an employer-sponsored work visa is an appropriate and attainable solution that can place your employees on more solid immigration footing.

Intersection of Humanitarian & Employment Based Immigration

We’re proud of our firm’s unstinting dedication to pro bono work and the relationships we’ve forged with partner organizations. But multiple crises worldwide have overwhelmed an already fragile pro bono infrastructure, reducing effectiveness and response time. Our experts will work within your budget to close the gaps in your crisis response.

Solutions for When Pro Bono Isn’t Enough

Humanitarian immigration law is a challenging discipline that requires experience, sensitivity, and dedicated resources. Our attorneys and experts are steeped in all its facets, including asylum law, parole, DACA policy and TPS protections.

Deep Training in Critical Disciplines

No other humanitarian immigration practice offers you the breadth, experience, or capacity that Fragomen provides. Our reach into nearly every country and territory on Earth means that you can interface, as needed, with our global business immigration specialists—professionals who can offer you services that might otherwise remain unavailable.

A Unique Service

We can help devise a customized, flexible program to safely identify impacted workers so that endangered workers—who are often justifiably cautious when seeking immigration assistance—feel empowered to approach you for expert help. To help employers, we build anti-discrimination, I-9, and other related protections into our systems, so you’ll be protected as well.

Employee (and Employer) Peace of Mind

Employers are often caught unaware by how many of their employees require assistance with humanitarian immigration pathways. To mitigate any risk, we empower employees to ask for assistance, so you’re able to help them—while minimizing unexpected disruptions to your workforce.

Workforce Insight

To become a sponsor, a business must: ► Have a genuine UK trading presence► Provide the required corporate documents and information► Demonstrate strong compliance system and processes to maintain the UK sponsor licence► Appoint key personnel who will be responsible for the sponsor licence The most common visa types that businesses apply to be licenced to sponsor are: ► Skilled Worker► Global Business Mobility - Senior or Specialist Worker There are also several other routes available, including the Global Business Mobility – Expansion Worker visa type for overseas businesses who are considering expanding to the UK.

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

How long does it take to get one?

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

How long does it take to get a sponsor licence?

Get started with Fragomen

EXPLORE

Looking to apply for British citizenship?

In a world increasingly shaped by war, pandemic, political turmoil and climate change, countless individuals seek safety in the United States. As these crises impact U.S. employer workforces, the demand for comprehensive immigration support has never been more critical for these valuable employees. For decades, Fragomen has helped individual and corporate clients grapple with the effects of humanitarian crises. From large-scale, crisis-specific programs that help employees and their extended families to actionable advice about a single imperiled worker—we’ve developed a flexible, cost-conscious approach that responds effectively to the complexities that arise in humanitarian crises.

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

How long does it take to get one?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

When should our business apply for a sponsor licence?

Get started with Fragomen

EXPLORE

Looking to apply for British citizenship?

In a world increasingly shaped by war, pandemic, political turmoil and climate change, countless individuals seek safety in the United States. As these crises impact U.S. employer workforces, the demand for comprehensive immigration support has never been more critical for these valuable employees. For decades, Fragomen has helped individual and corporate clients grapple with the effects of humanitarian crises. From large-scale, crisis-specific programs that help employees and their extended families to actionable advice about a single imperiled worker—we’ve developed a flexible, cost-conscious approach that responds effectively to the complexities that arise in humanitarian crises.

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

How long does it take to get one?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

Get started with Fragomen

EXPLORE

Looking to apply for British citizenship?

In a world increasingly shaped by war, pandemic, political turmoil and climate change, countless individuals seek safety in the United States. As these crises impact U.S. employer workforces, the demand for comprehensive immigration support has never been more critical for these valuable employees. For decades, Fragomen has helped individual and corporate clients grapple with the effects of humanitarian crises. From large-scale, crisis-specific programs that help employees and their extended families to actionable advice about a single imperiled worker—we’ve developed a flexible, cost-conscious approach that responds effectively to the complexities that arise in humanitarian crises.

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

How long does it take to get one?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

Why you should choose Fragomen

Get started with Fragomen

EXPLORE

Looking to apply for British citizenship?

Fragomen is the leading single-focus provider of immigration services and support in the UK and around the world. We have strong and long-established relationships with the Home Office and other government authorities allowing us to provide tailored compliance advice and best practices. Fragomen has over 6,000 immigration-focused professionals and staff spanning more than 60 offices worldwide.

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

How long does it take to get one?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

How Fragomen can help

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

How Fragomen can help your business

Get started with Fragomen

EXPLORE

Looking to apply for British citizenship?

What are the sponsor's responsibilities?

When to apply for a sponsor licence?

How long does it take to get one?

Can any business apply for a sponsor licence?

What is a sponsor licence?

Why choose Fragomen for your sponsor licence application?

Tailored advice on the structure of your sponsor licenceEnd-to-end support through the application processComprehensive application guidesTraining on the UK immigration system and compliance requirements for UK sponsors

How Fragomen can help We offer a variety of sponsor licence services to cater to businesses of all needs and sizes: ► ► ► ► We can assess your business’ requirements and existing processes and advise you on process improvements to ensure compliance, or design a totally bespoke offering from the ground up. Once the licence is in place, you will likely want to start sponsoring employees or potential hires. We provide flexible support to match your business needs at any stage of the visa application process.