Sponsor Guidance and Duties

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  - –Sponsor Guidance and Duties
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Sponsor Duties

Any organisation that holds a sponsor licence must comply with its sponsor duties and responsibilities. These duties are set out in the Sponsor Guidance. Some apply to all sponsors and some apply only to specific sponsors licensed on certain routes.

The Sponsor Guidance states:

“Sponsorship is a privilege not a right. The sponsorship scheme reflects that those who benefit directly from migration (employers, education providers or other organisations who bring in overseas nationals) should play their part in ensuring the immigration system is not abused. Significant trust is placed in sponsors and they must ensure they comply with immigration law and wider UK law, and not behave in a manner that is not conducive to the wider public good.”

Duties include:

Reporting.
Record-keeping.
Complying with immigration laws.
Complying with wider UK law.
Not engaging in behaviour or actions that are not conducive to the public good.

The objectives of the duties are:

Preventing abuse of immigration laws and the sponsorship scheme.
Capturing any patterns of behaviour that may cause concern.
Addressing possible weaknesses in processes which can cause those patterns.
Monitoring compliance with the Immigration Rules, all parts of the Worker and Temporary Worker sponsor guidance, and wider UK law (such as employment law).
Ensuring sponsors do not behave in a way that is detrimental to the wider public good.

Failure to meet sponsor duties can lead to compliance action, including reduction in Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) allocation, suspension or revocation of the licence.

Further information relating to the duties can be found in the Sponsor Guidance.

Key Personnel

Every sponsor licence must have key personnel responsible for managing the licence and ensuring compliance. These roles include:

Authorising Officer – the senior person responsible for the licence.
Key Contact – the main point of contact with the Home Office.
Level 1 User – responsible for day-to-day management of the licence via the Sponsorship Management System (SMS).

Sponsors must ensure that key personnel remain suitable, available and up to date. Any changes must be reported through the SMS.

Compliance Checks

The Home Office can conduct compliance checks at any time, particularly if they have concerns that a sponsor is not complying with its sponsor duties.

Sponsors must be able to demonstrate full compliance with all duties.

How Our Immigration Partners Can Help

We advise organisations on all aspects of sponsor compliance, including record-keeping, reporting obligations, key personnel requirements and preparation for Home Office compliance visits and checks. We also assist with reviewing existing systems and identifying areas of risk.

If your organisation requires legal assistance or would like to discuss your circumstances, please contact us or complete our enquiry form below.