If a UK’s company wants to hire overseas employee they need to apply for a sponsor licence first. Overseas citizens include citizens of the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland who arrived in the UK after 31 December 2020.
A sponsor licence gives a UK company the right to issue a certificate of sponsorship to foreign workers applying to work in that company. Any size or type of organization can apply for a sponsor licence. The company must meet certain eligibility and suitability requirements to be eligible to apply for a sponsor licence.
An organization applying for a sponsor licence must meet the following suitability requirements:
The job you are offering to overseas workers must be genuine, the role must exist, and it must not be manufactured. The job must also meet the relevant visa criteria. The job must meet the specific skill, UK minimum wage (that varies depending on the role), and working time regulations set by the Home Office. For the Skilled Worker visa, typically, roles must be classified at Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) level 3 or above.
a. Minimum wages for workers
The minimum wage is an important job suitability requirement. If you are sponsoring a Skilled Worker, Senior or Specialist Worker, Graduate Trainee, UK Expansion Worker, Scale-up Worker or Seasonal Worker, the worker’s salary must be equal to or more than the relevant salary thresholds for those routes, as set out in the Immigration Rules and Appendix Skilled Occupations and route-specific guidance. If you fail to meet the minimum wage requirement the Home Office may reject your sponsor licence application.
b. Working time regulations
You cannot sponsor a part time employment and the minimum hours should be at least 30 hours these can be according to the nature of the job. If an applicant is sponsored for more than 48 hours then the salary can only be considered for the first 48 hours a week. The going rate of pay provided on Appendix Skilled Occupations is 37.5 hours. A skilled worker can work 20 hours with another employer; however, this has to be in the same job title as they are sponsored under, for example - if you are sponsored as carer you cannot work as a waiting staff in a hotel, you can only work as a carer with another employer.
As an organization applying for a sponsor licence, there must be HR and recruitment system systems and people in place to comply with the sponsor’s duties and responsibilities as an
employer before and after you hire an overseas worker. The Home Office can conduct a site visit announced or unannounced before and after issuing a sponsor licence to ensure the sponsor’s compliance is being met with its duties and responsibilities.
Every organization must meet the compliance duties as specified by the Home Office duties and compliance guidance
The organization, its owners, its directors, and appointed key personnel must be clean of any unspent criminal conviction.
Your organization must not pose a threat to immigration control.
Depending on your business type if your organization requires, it must have appropriate planning
permission or Local Planning Authority consent.
Our experienced immigration lawyers can help you prepare a successful sponsor licence application. Whether you are a start-up, large company, or small company our immigration team can help you at each stage of sponsor licence application.
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