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When can a Sponsor Licence be suspended or revoked?

Licenced Sponsors are required to comply with certain obligations to ensure the immigration system is not subject to abuse. Part of this obligation means complying with specific duties and taking responsibility for any migrant workers sponsored to work for them. The Home Office has the power to revoke or suspend a Sponsor Licence where they believe the organisation is in breach of these obligations and poses a threat to the immigration system.

Your Sponsor Licence may be temporarily suspended or revoked in the following circumstances:

• Your application was prepared by a business whose authorisation to do so was subsequently removed;
• You have failed to pay migrant workers the appropriate salary required by law;
• You have failed to provide documentation to the Home Office to evidence that you are complying with your Sponsor Licence duties;
• You have been paying a sponsored worker in cash;
• You have failed to co-operate with any UKVI compliance visits;
• You have been found to sponsor a migrant worker who has not complied with the conditions of their permission to stay in the UK, and under these circumstances did not follow the appropriate practice set out by the Home Office.

Under these circumstances, the Home Office may allow you to make representations against the decision.

Below are some reasons as to why your Sponsor Licence may be immediately revoked or suspended:

• You have provided false information to support your Sponsor Licence application;
• Your organisation has run into financial difficulties such as insolvency or where you have had a bankruptcy order made against you;
• Your business has been sold, or you have ceased to operate in the UK
• You have been issued with the maximum civil penalty for an illegal worker

In these circumstances, you will not be granted an appeal. Your only option may be to review the decision of the Home Office judicially. Where your Sponsor Licence has been immediately revoked, migrant workers in your business will generally have their leave reduced to 60 days, so you must consult an immigration lawyer as soon as possible to discuss your options.