Sponsor licences, for employers

What Is a Sponsor Licence?

A sponsor licence is a permission from the Home Office that allows a UK-based employer to sponsor workers from outside the UK on certain immigration routes. The most common use is to sponsor workers on the Skilled Worker visa.

Without a sponsor licence, you cannot issue a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), and your prospective employees cannot apply for a Skilled Worker visa to work for you.

A sponsor licence is not a one-off permission. It creates an ongoing relationship between your organisation and the Home Office. You take on legal responsibilities for the workers you sponsor, and the Home Office can visit your premises to check compliance at any time.

Types of Sponsor Licence

There are two main categories of sponsor licence:

• Worker licence: For employers who want to sponsor workers on long-term work routes (Skilled Worker, Senior or Specialist Worker, Minister of Religion, and International Sportsperson).
• Temporary Worker licence: For employers sponsoring workers on temporary routes (Charity Worker, Creative Worker, Government Authorised Exchange, International Agreement, Religious Worker, and Seasonal Worker).

Most employers who want to hire international skilled workers need the Worker licence. You can hold both types of licence at the same time if needed.

Sponsor Licence Costs in 2026

For a full cost breakdown, see our sponsor licence cost guide.

Licence Application Fee

• Small or charitable sponsor: £611 for a Worker licence
• Medium or large sponsor: £1,682 for a Worker licence
• Temporary Worker licence: £611 for all organisations

A small sponsor is defined as an organisation that meets at least two of the following criteria: annual turnover of £15 million or less, total assets of £7.5 million or less, or 50 employees or fewer. Charities pay the small sponsor fee whatever their size.

The fee is paid once. Since 6 April 2024 a sponsor licence has no expiry date and there is no renewal fee — see sponsor licence renewal.

Per-Worker Costs

On top of the licence fee, there are costs each time you sponsor a worker:

• Certificate of Sponsorship: £525 per worker on a Worker licence, £55 on a Temporary Worker licence
• Immigration Skills Charge: for small and charitable sponsors, £480 for the first 12 months then £240 for each further 6 months; for medium and large sponsors, £1,320 then £660. This is paid upfront in one payment for the full visa duration.

For example, a medium-sized employer sponsoring one Skilled Worker for 3 years would pay: £1,682 (licence) + £525 (certificate) + £3,960 (skills charge: £1,320 for the first 12 months plus £660 for each of the four further 6-month blocks) = £6,167 before the employee even applies for their visa.

Sponsor Licence Requirements

For detailed eligibility criteria, see our sponsor licence requirements guide.

Your Organisation Must Be Genuine and Operating

The Home Office must be satisfied that your organisation is a real, trading entity operating lawfully in the UK. You need to provide evidence such as:

• HMRC registration (employer PAYE reference)
• Companies House registration
• VAT registration (if applicable)
• Business bank statements
• Evidence of trading (contracts, invoices, audited accounts)

You Must Have Appropriate HR Systems

You must demonstrate that you have systems in place to monitor your sponsored workers and meet your reporting duties. This includes tracking attendance, keeping copies of documents, and having a process for reporting changes to the Home Office.

You Must Not Have a History of Non-Compliance

If your organisation (or its key personnel) has a history of immigration non-compliance, employing illegal workers, or failing to meet previous sponsorship duties, your application may be refused.

Key Personnel

You must nominate key personnel to manage your sponsor licence:

• Authorising Officer: The most senior person responsible for the licence. Must be a director, partner, or equivalent.
• Key Contact: The main point of contact with the Home Office.
• Level 1 User: The person who uses the Sponsorship Management System (SMS) day-to-day to assign CoS and report changes.

How to Apply for a Sponsor Licence

For step-by-step application instructions, see our sponsor licence application guide.

1. Gather your supporting documents. The specific documents required depend on your organisation type (limited company, sole trader, partnership, etc.). The Home Office publishes a list of required documents on GOV.UK.
2. Complete the online application. You apply through the Sponsorship Management System (SMS) on GOV.UK. You will need details about your organisation, your key personnel, and the type of workers you want to sponsor.
3. Pay the licence fee. Payment is taken online at the time of application.
4. Submit your supporting documents. You have 5 working days after submitting your online application to upload your documents.
5. Wait for a decision. You may receive a compliance visit during the processing period.

Sponsor Licence Processing Times

For current processing times, see our processing time guide.

• Standard processing: GOV.UK says most applications are dealt with in less than 8 weeks
• Priority processing: a decision within 10 working days, for an extra £750 where the service is available

Processing times are not guaranteed and can vary. Applications that are incomplete, require additional information, or trigger a compliance visit may take longer. Plan ahead and apply well before you need to sponsor a worker.

Your Ongoing Compliance Duties

Getting a sponsor licence is just the beginning. Your organisation takes on significant ongoing responsibilities. For a detailed guide, see our compliance duties guide.

Record-Keeping

You must keep records for each sponsored worker, including copies of their passport, visa, right to work evidence, contact details, and employment records. These must be available for inspection at all times.

Reporting Duties

You must report certain events to the Home Office through the SMS within specific timeframes. Events you must report include:

• A sponsored worker not turning up for their first day of work
• A sponsored worker being absent from work for more than 10 consecutive working days without permission
• A significant change in the worker's role, salary, or working hours
• The worker's employment ending (for any reason)
• Changes to your organisation (address, ownership, key personnel)

Right to Work Checks

You must conduct right to work checks on all employees before they start work, including sponsored workers. You must also conduct follow-up checks when a worker's permission to work is due to expire.

Compliance Visits

The Home Office can visit your premises at any time to check that you are meeting your duties. Visits can be announced or unannounced. During a visit, officers will check your records, interview staff, and assess your HR systems.

Consequences of Non-Compliance

If the Home Office finds that you are not meeting your duties, the consequences can be severe. See our licence revocation guide for details.

• Action plan: For minor issues, the Home Office may give you an action plan with a deadline to fix the problems.
• Licence downgrade (B-rating): Your licence is downgraded from an A-rating to a B-rating. You must complete an action plan to regain your A-rating. While on a B-rating, you may face restrictions on assigning new CoS.
• Licence suspension: Your licence is temporarily suspended while the Home Office investigates. You cannot assign new CoS during suspension.
• Licence revocation: Your licence is permanently revoked. All sponsored workers will have their visas curtailed (typically giving them 60 days to find a new sponsor or leave the UK).

Sponsor Licences for Small Businesses

Small businesses can apply for a sponsor licence. For the detail, see our small business guide.

Key points for small businesses:

• You pay the reduced licence fee of £611 (instead of £1,682).
• You pay the reduced Immigration Skills Charge: £480 for the first 12 months and £240 for each further 6 months, instead of £1,320 and £660.
• You still need to meet the same compliance duties as larger organisations.
• The Home Office may scrutinise small businesses more closely to ensure the role and the business are genuine.
• You need to show that your business is genuine and that you have the HR systems to meet your duties. This does not mean you need a large HR department, but you need clear processes.

How Long a Sponsor Licence Lasts

A sponsor licence used to run for 4 years and had to be renewed. The renewal requirement was removed on 6 April 2024. Once granted, a licence now stays valid for an indefinite period, unless the organisation surrenders it or the Home Office revokes it. There is no expiry date, no renewal application and no renewal fee. See our renewal guide for what replaced it.

One exception remains. A licence to sponsor Scale-up Workers or UK Expansion Workers is valid for a maximum of 4 years, and an organisation cannot apply for another licence to sponsor those types of worker afterwards.

Because there is no longer a renewal review, the compliance record is what the Home Office looks at, and it can look at any time. A licence can still be downgraded to a B-rating with a time-limited action plan, suspended, or revoked. If it is revoked, sponsored workers' permission to stay can be cut short.

Assigning Certificates of Sponsorship

Once you have your licence, you assign Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) to the workers you want to sponsor. A CoS is not a physical certificate. It is an electronic record in the SMS that confirms the job details and that you are sponsoring the worker.

There are two types of CoS:

• Defined CoS: For workers applying from outside the UK. You must request these from the Home Office and receive an allocation before you can assign one.
• Undefined CoS: For workers applying from inside the UK (switching routes or extending). You can assign these immediately without requesting an allocation.

Each CoS costs £525. The worker must use the CoS to apply for their visa within 3 months of it being assigned.

Common Sponsor Licence Mistakes

• Not applying early enough. With 8-week processing times, you need to plan months ahead of when you want to hire an international worker.
• Incomplete supporting documents. Missing even one required document can delay your application significantly.
• Not keeping records up to date. Compliance visits can happen at any time. If your records are not in order, you risk a downgrade or worse.
• Failing to report changes promptly. Most changes must be reported within 10 to 20 working days. Late reporting is a compliance failure.
• Not conducting right to work checks. This is a legal requirement for all employees, not just sponsored workers. See our right to work check guide.
• Treating the licence as something that looks after itself. Licences no longer expire, so there is no renewal date to prompt a tidy-up of your records. The compliance duties are what keep the licence, and a check can be unannounced.

Next Steps for Employers

If you are ready to sponsor international workers, here is your action plan:

1. Check the published requirements. Make sure your organisation meets the basic requirements and that you can provide the necessary documents.
2. Budget for the costs. Factor in the licence fee, CoS fees, and the Immigration Skills Charge for each worker you plan to sponsor.
3. Set up your HR systems. Put record-keeping and reporting processes in place before you apply.
4. Apply for the licence. Complete the online application and submit your documents.
5. Prepare for a possible compliance visit. Make sure your premises and records are ready for inspection.
6. Once approved, assign a CoS. Create the CoS for your worker so they can apply for their Skilled Worker visa.

For more information, check the official GOV.UK sponsor licence guidance.

Questions and answers