Receiving a sponsor licence suspension notice can cause serious concern for an organisation and its sponsored workers. However, suspension does not automatically mean that the licence will be revoked.
It allows the Home Office to investigate suspected compliance failures before reaching a final decision. How the organisation responds during this period can significantly affect the outcome.
This article explains the immediate steps a sponsor should take following a suspension.
What does a sponsor licence suspension mean?
UK Home Office may suspend a licence where it believes the organisation has breached its sponsor duties, poses a threat to immigration control or has acted against the public good.
During the suspension:
- The organisation cannot assign any Certificates of Sponsorship.
- The suspension applies to every route covered by the licence.
- The organisation is temporarily removed from the public register of sponsors.
- All sponsor duties continue to apply.
Sponsored workers with valid immigration permission are not automatically affected while the licence is suspended. However, their position may change if the licence is later revoked.
Respond within 20 working days
The Home Office will write to the organisation explaining the grounds for suspension.
The sponsor has 20 working days from the date of the written notification to respond. This is the organisation’s opportunity to request a review of the decision and provide any mitigating arguments.
The response must be submitted in writing. It should identify which grounds the sponsor believes are incorrect, explain why they are incorrect and include relevant supporting evidence.
UK Home Office will not hold an oral hearing. However, it may interview the sponsor where it considers this necessary.
UK Home Office may allow additional time where it is satisfied that exceptional circumstances exist. If no response is received within the permitted period, it will proceed with the action it considers appropriate.
Given the limited response period and the possible consequences of revocation, sponsors may wish to seek legal advice as soon as they receive the suspension notice.
Submit all relevant evidence
The sponsor should submit all representations, mitigating circumstances and supporting evidence on which it wishes to rely within the response period.
The evidence required will depend on the grounds for suspension. Relevant documents may include records that the sponsor is required to retain under Appendix D of the sponsor guidance.
Appendix D covers documents such as:
- Evidence of right to work checks
- Recruitment records
- Employment contracts
- Payslips
- Evidence of salary payments
- Evidence concerning workers’ qualifications or professional registrations
Certificates of Sponsorship and reports submitted through the Sponsorship Management System may also be relevant where they relate to the grounds raised in the suspension notice.
A sponsor licence mock audit may help the organisation assess its records and identify the evidence relevant to the Home Office’s concerns.
Sponsor duties continue during suspension
A suspended sponsor must continue to comply with all its sponsor duties.
These responsibilities include:
- Monitoring sponsored workers
- Maintaining the required records
- Reporting relevant changes concerning sponsored workers
- Reporting specified changes to the organisation
- Complying with immigration law and wider UK law
- Providing requested documents to the Home Office
The organisation must not assign any Certificates of Sponsorship while the licence remains suspended.
What happens to pending applications?
Where a worker applies using a valid Certificate of Sponsorship assigned before the licence was suspended, the Home Office will not normally decide the application until the suspension has been resolved. The application may still be refused if it does not meet another requirement.
The same applies where the sponsor supports a worker’s application for settlement.
A worker who was granted entry clearance before the suspension may still travel to the UK and begin working. However, the sponsor licence must not have been revoked by the date the worker travels.
UK Home Office advises workers to check the public register of sponsors before travelling.
Can the Home Office raise additional grounds?
If the Home Office identifies additional reasons for suspending the licence during the original 20-working-day response period, it will write to the sponsor again.
The sponsor will receive a further 20 working days to respond in writing to those additional reasons.
When considering the sponsor’s response, the Home Office may request information from a compliance officer, law enforcement agency, government department, local authority, the police, a foreign government or another body.
What are the possible outcomes?
After considering the sponsor’s response, the Home Office may:
- Reinstate the licence with an A-rating
- Reinstate the licence with a B-rating and issue an action plan
- Prevent the sponsor from assigning new Certificates of Sponsorship
- Prevent the use of assigned but unused Certificates of Sponsorship
- Revoke the sponsor licence
UK Home Office will inform the sponsor of its final decision within 20 working days of receiving the response.
This period may be longer if the case is exceptionally complex or the Home Office is waiting for information from a third party. In these circumstances, it will inform the sponsor of the delay.
If the licence is reinstated with a B-rating, the sponsor must comply with an action plan. The Home Office may also reduce the sponsor’s Certificate of Sponsorship allocation or set it to zero.
How Morgan Smith Immigration can assist
A sponsor licence suspension requires a prompt and carefully prepared response. Although suspension does not automatically result in revocation, the sponsor must respond within the specified period and provide all representations, mitigating circumstances and supporting evidence on which it wishes to rely. It must also continue complying with its sponsor duties while the Home Office considers the matter.
Follow us for updates on sponsor licence suspensions, changes to sponsor guidance and Home Office compliance duties affecting UK employers.
With over 20 years of experience, Morgan Smith Immigration advises businesses on sponsor licence matters, including responding to suspension notices and preparing written representations. Our Sponsor Licence Compliance Mock Audit can also help identify weaknesses in SMS access controls, reporting procedures and record-keeping before they attract Home Office scrutiny.
To seek assistance with a sponsor licence suspension, arrange a mock audit or discuss a Skilled Worker visa matter, call us on 0203 959 3335 or email [email protected].
