Home Office Release Data on UK Sponsor Licences

Today, the UK Home Office published their ‘Sponsorship transparency data: May 2015‘. The data highlights sponsorship activities in the UK during the first quarter of 2015. Sponsorship Licences enables businesses and schools to sponsor non-EEA nationals to work or study in the UK. Please see below a summary of the data and the different type of Sponsorship Licences.

Sponsorship Licences for Employers & Education Providers

The Tier 2 UK Sponsor Licence allows UK businesses to employ non EU migrant workers; a Sponsor Licence is permission granted by the Home Office to directly hire those from non-EEA countries so they can work in the UK in skilled employment. Once a UK employer is registered with the Home Office, they will be able to allocate  a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) to the applicant.

According to the Home Office’s data the number of Tier 2 Sponsors:

  • Registered in the first quarter of 2015 were 27,239;
  • Suspended in the first quarter of 2015 were 108;
  • Revoked in the first quarter of 2015 were 190.

Education providers wishing to enrol overseas students from outside the EEA are required to ‘sponsor’ them under Tier 4 of the Points Based System. Education providers will need to obtain sponsor licences from the Home Office. The concept of sponsorship in relation to Tier 4 is that it provides evidence that the student will study for an approved qualification and places duties on education providers that it must abide by.

According to the Home Office’s data the number of Tier 4 Sponsors:

  • Registered in the first quarter of 2015 were 1,569;
  • Suspended in the first quarter of 2015 were 16;
  • Revoked in the first quarter of 2015 were 18.

The Tier 5 Temporary Worker visa category is made up of a number of sub categories; Tier 5 Creative & Sporting visas, Tier 5 Charity workers and Tier 5 Religious workers. These sub-categories require you to have a licenced sponsor who has issued you with a valid Certificate of Sponsorship before you apply for leave.

According to the Home Office’s data the number of Tier s Sponsors:

  • Registered in the first quarter of 2015 were 3,668;
  • Suspended in the first quarter of 2015 were 8;
  • Revoked in the first quarter of 2015 were 14.

Successful UK Sponsorship Licence Application

Obtaining a UK Sponsorship licence is far from a straightforward process involving referencing not only the immigration rules but also supplementary guidance notes. Together with this issue is ensuring that the bundle of supporting documents meets the Home Office’s stringent requirements and properly evidences the application. For this reason it is usual for a professional employer to instruct expert immigration sponsorship solicitors to manage this process.

Contact us to discuss your eligibility in obtaining a UK Sponsorship Licence and to find out more about your duties once you are a Sponsor.

Call Now Button search previous next tag category expand menu location phone mail time cart zoom edit close