The Immigration Act
The Immigration Act will end the free movement of people into the United Kingdom from 1 January 2021. It is imperative that employers know what steps to take to apply to the Home Office for a sponsorship licence if they wish to recruit employees from outside of the United Kingdom. A new points-based system will apply to workers from outside of the UK. It will impose on the sponsor a duty to be aware of the new immigration rules and procedures. Sponsors will be required to required to maintain records as proof of their obligations under the new system. Applicants will have to demonstrate that they can meet the standards required to be a sponsor. Unsuitable applicants will be declined. The Home Office will have the right to investigate the organisation to grant the licence. If you do not comply with the required conditions your licence can be suspended, demoted and revoked.
Applicants for a sponsor licence will have to meet some strict standards. The first is to substantiate that that you are a genuine organisation operating lawfully in the UK with the necessary knowledge and understanding of your sponsorship licence duties. You must also demonstrate that you have suitable human resources systems and procedures in place. Employee representatives named on the application must be truthful and trustworthy. The nominated applicants will have checks conducted by the Home Office to establish their suitability for the position. The sponsor applicant will have to evidence that they are providing a genuine employment opportunity and that the role will meet the appropriate standard of skill and pay.
Assessment
To apply for your licence, you will need to follow the online procedure on the Gov.UK website and along with your application you must submit the supporting evidence. As part of your application you may to have a compliance assessment visit from the United Kingdom Visa and Immigration. The purpose of the visit will be to ascertain your suitability for the sponsorship licence. The application procedure can take between 8 to 12 weeks. A fast track procure is available for an additional fee and it will take 10 working days to obtain a decision from the Sponsor Licence Application Priority Service.
Home Office
With the granting of the sponsor licence will come compliance duties. A failure to follow the duties can result in the Home Office withdrawing your licence and enforcing penalties against your organisation. The main duties will involve ensuring your employee and your organisations records are accurate and up to date.
The key documents to be kept on file are; a copy of the sponsored employee’s passport and bio-metric residence permit. Employers should diaries the period of leave to remain. All employee absences should be recorded. A copy of the contract of employment, personal contact details and national insurance number will have to be kept on file. A copy of the employee’s qualifications should also be kept.
The employer will have a duty to notify the Home Office of any change of the sponsored employees’ situation. This will have to be done via the Sponsorship Management System. There will be a duty to notify where the organisations own state of affairs alters. Such changes must be notified within 20 days of the event. This will be including reporting any insolvency situation which impacts on the business and any merger which affects the organisations setup and structure. There will be a duty to inform where there is change to important company office holders and if the company changes its business address.
Employers should now assess the need to apply for a sponsor licence and prepare for the application.
Quest can provide you with advice and assistance in ensuring your employment records and HR documents and HR systems are up to date. Please contact the advice line on 01455 852028.
