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SEO LP: Fulfilling sponsorship duties with the help of the Sponsorship Management System

Comply with Home Office requirements using SMS

Learn how to use the Sponsorship Management System (SMS) to meet your duties and responsibilities as a sponsor.


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Fulfil your sponsorship duties via the Sponsorship Management System

Find out how you can fulfil your sponsorship responsibilities with the Home Office Sponsorship Management System (SMS).


Schedule a consultation

Becoming a sponsor and hiring international talent for your organisation is a great way to overcome skill shortages, improve diversity in your teams, and bring new perspectives to your business approach.

It can also help you stay ahead of your competition.

But before you apply for your licence and hire international talent, it can be beneficial to know about your sponsorship duties and how you can fulfil those responsibilities.

What are your responsibilities as a sponsor?

Employment is one of the primary motivations for undocumented immigration into the UK. Thus, the Home Office places a lot of trust in sponsors to perform due diligence in their sponsorship duties and to ensure that the integrity of the UK immigration system is maintained.

To achieve this, the Home Office has outlined several responsibilities that sponsors need to fulfil while they hold a valid sponsorship licence, including:

  • Ensuring preferred sponsorship candidates possess the requisite skills, experience, or professional qualifications to perform the job they’re selected for
  • Collecting and retaining evidence of the sponsored employees’ eligibility to work in the UK, their skill level, and qualifications
  • Assigning Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) to candidates only if they meet the requirements for sponsorship
  • Monitoring the immigration status and other activities and reporting the breach of conditions of their visa to the Home Office
  • Acting in a way that’s consistent with the core values of the UK and refraining from activities that harm the public good

How can you fulfil sponsorship responsibilities?

While you can fulfil certain sponsorship duties such as not causing harm to the wider society through good conduct, some duties can only be fulfilled through tools offered by the SMS.

For instance, the Home Office has outlined specific guidelines on how one can fulfil reporting duties through the SMS.

You’re required to report certain changes related to your sponsorship duties within a pre-described time frame depending on the nature of the changes.

The following changes must be reported within 10 working days of the change occurring:

  • If your sponsored employee doesn’t start the role they’ve been selected for on the specified date—you must include the reason for their non-attendance in your report
  • If your international employee is absent from work for more than 10 days consecutively without formal permission
  • If your employee’s contract of employment is terminated or ends earlier than specified in the Certificate of Sponsorship
  • If you decide to stop sponsoring an employee due to refusal of entry, due to the employee moving to an immigration route that doesn’t require a sponsor, or due to the employee taking unpaid leave for more than 4 weeks that’s not covered by any exceptions
  • If your sponsored employee’s employment is affected by the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) or a similar protection programme
  • Any significant changes to the nature of employment, including promotions, changes in the job title, changes in core duties, reduction in salary, and changes in employed location
  • Changes to the size or the charitable status of your business.

Please note that when you submit your report detailing the changes, you must also include the latest residential addresses, telephone numbers, and personal email addresses of your sponsored employees.

Any significant changes to your business should be reported within 20 working days. These may include:

  • A change of name of your business or any of your branches
  • A full or partial sale of your business
  • A merger or takeover
  • A halt in trading procedures or following through on insolvency procedures
  • Any substantial change to the nature of your business
  • Any convictions for relevant offences

How can Nation.better help you meet your sponsorship responsibilities?

At Nation.better, our team of immigration and sponsorship experts are dedicated to helping employers across the UK with their international recruitment needs.

Our team will help you understand your sponsorship duties and provide step-by-step guidance on how to meet your responsibilities via tools such as the Sponsorship Management System.

But that’s not it. Our support extends beyond compliance management.

We provide end-to-end support for all your sponsorship needs, including obtaining the sponsor licence, choosing the right candidates, and supporting them with their Skilled Worker visa application.

Enlist the support of immigration experts to streamline your sponsorship process


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FAQs

Who can operate the Sponsorship Management System?

The SMS can only be accessed by Level 1 and Level 2 users. You’re required to appoint a Level 1 user when applying for the sponsor licence. Once you obtain the licence, the Level 1 user can appoint more Level 1 and Level 2 users.

It should be noted that only Level 1 users have full access to the SMS portal.

How can you access the SMS?

The SMS can be accessed via the online portal offered by the Home Office.

What are the capabilities of the SMS?

In addition to helping you report changes, the SMS allows you to:

  • Create and assign new CoS/Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS)
  • Manage your sponsor licence
  • Renew your sponsor licence

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Get in touch with us

If you’d like to learn more about your sponsorship responsibilities or discuss your sponsorship needs with experts, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.


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