The pandemic has affected many businesses in different ways, including those who hold a sponsor licence.
Sponsor priority service resumed
Prior to the pandemic, sponsors were able to take advantage of the priority service which would expedite sponsor change of circumstance requests. Such requests include changing details of key personnel and asking for an increase in allocation of Certificate of Sponsorship. This service as with many other during the pandemic was suspended.
As of 05 October 2020, the priority service has resumed. Any change of circumstance requests can now be dealt within 5 days, whereas a standard request can take up to 18 weeks. However, the Home Office is only accepting 10 requests per day. This is a significant difference compared to the 60 requests being considered prior to the pandemic.
Any sponsor wishing to utilise the service must submit the request in the sponsor management system (SMS) and email Tier2and5PriorityRequests@homeoffice.gov.uk, with a completed Tier 2 and 5 priority request form attached.
A decision on the request is usually be given within 5 working days and any sponsors will be notified to make a payment of £200 per successful request.
Licence renewals
An influx of sponsor licence applications is expected particularly from employers wishing to hire EEA nationals under the new immigration system relating to sponsoring skilled workers.
A sponsor whose licence is expiring between 27 November 2020 and 21 March 2021, will be able to apply early to renew it if a sponsor wishes to do so. This can be done when the renewal window opens on the SMS Licence summary.
We have a team of experts ready to help any sponsor seeking to renew his licence.
