To employ most workers from outside the UK an employer needs a sponsor licence from the Home Office. The licence lets the business assign certificates of sponsorship for Skilled Worker, Global Business Mobility, Temporary Work and other routes. Getting the licence is the easier part; keeping it means meeting continuing duties the Home Office checks.

Who can apply

Any genuine UK organisation with a real need to sponsor workers: companies, charities, partnerships, sole traders. You must show the business exists and trades lawfully, has appropriate HR systems to meet the sponsor duties, and that the roles you intend to sponsor meet the rules of the route.

The application

Online application with supporting documents from the Home Office's list, submitted within five working days.
Nominated key personnel: authorising officer, key contact and level 1 user, who must be suitable and usually based in the UK.
Fee £611 for small businesses and charities, £1,682 for medium and large organisations, correct on 13 October 2026.
Decisions usually take around eight weeks; a priority service is available for a fee.

The duties

Record keeping (right to work checks, contact details, attendance), reporting changes within set time limits (a worker's absence, change of role, change of salary, the business's own changes), paying the salary stated and not recouping sponsorship costs from the worker, and cooperating with the Home Office. The sponsor rating can be downgraded, suspended or the licence revoked for breaches; see sponsor licence revocation and suspension.

Audits

The Home Office can visit before or after granting a licence, announced or not. We prepare employers for visits with a compliance review of their files and systems.

What we do

We advise on whether the business and the roles qualify, prepare the application and documents, set up the compliance systems, train the key personnel and act where the licence is at risk. See also Skilled Worker sponsor licence and Charity Worker sponsor licence.