Free tool for licensed sponsors · About 3 minutes
Fourteen questions on the duties the Home Office checks most often. Get a score, and a list of what to fix, before a compliance visit finds it.
Answer all 14 questions to see your score, a score for each area and a list of what to fix, most serious first.
In short
A licensed sponsor must keep its key personnel up to date on the Sponsor Management System, do a right to work check before anyone starts, keep records for each sponsored worker, report changes on time, and make sure each worker does the job and gets the pay on their certificate.
Most worker events must be reported within 10 working days, and most changes to your business within 20 working days. Breaching a duty can lead to a downgrade to a B rating, suspension or revocation of the licence.
Figures checked against GOV.UK on .
How it works
Your score gives you a general indication of how well you’re meeting your sponsor licence responsibilities and highlights areas that may need attention.
It’s a starting point, not a formal compliance assessment. To understand your specific obligations and address any gaps, refer to the latest Home Office guidance or seek professional advice.
Home Office compliance officers check your records, interview key personnel and sometimes sponsored workers, and compare what they find with what you reported. Visits can be announced or unannounced, before a licence is granted or at any time after.
Depending on how serious it is, the Home Office can downgrade the licence to a B rating with an action plan you must complete, suspend it while it investigates, or revoke it. If a licence is revoked, sponsored workers’ permission is usually cut short, and you can’t sponsor anyone new.
How you correct a breach matters. If this check finds a serious gap, fix it, make any late report now, and speak to an adviser if you’re unsure.
Our sponsor licence compliance service reviews your records and processes against these duties, and helps you fix what it finds.
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Common questions
The Authorising Officer, who is responsible for the licence, the Key Contact, who is the Home Office’s main point of contact, and at least one Level 1 User, who runs the licence day to day on the Sponsor Management System. They must normally be based in the UK.
Most events about a sponsored worker, such as not starting, leaving or being absent without permission for more than 10 working days in a row, must be reported within 10 working days. Most changes to your business, such as a new address or a change of ownership, must be reported within 20 working days.
Yes. UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) can carry out compliance visits with or without notice. Treat every day as a possible inspection day. Regular internal reviews or a mock audit can help you find problems first.
UKVI officers may interview key personnel and sponsored workers, review your HR records and assess your HR processes. They check that each role is genuine and paid as stated. The aim is to establish whether your business understands and meets its sponsorship duties.
Yes. Depending on how serious the breach is, the Home Office can downgrade your licence to a B-rating, suspend it or revoke it. A B-rating stops you assigning certificates to new workers until you complete a paid action plan. Finding and fixing problems early is the best protection.
Your business can no longer sponsor workers. Your sponsored workers’ permission may be shortened to 60 days or less, to find a new sponsor or leave the UK. You’ll normally be unable to apply for a new sponsor licence for at least 12 months.
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