How to Tell if Your Sponsor Licence Is at Risk

The Home Office takes illegal working very seriously. Since 2023, the maximum civil penalty for employing someone without the right to work has increased to £60,000 per worker.

You must carry out and retain compliant right to work checks on all employees, not just those you sponsor.

Warning signs include:

• Different teams doing checks in different ways
• Incomplete records (e.g. no date of check)
• No internal auditing or spot checks
• Misuse of online right to work systems for manual documents, or vice versa

Risk: Even if your sponsored workers are fully compliant, poor right to work practices elsewhere in your organisation can lead to civil penalties and sponsor licence action.

3. You Haven’t Carried Out a Mock Audit in the Past Year

A Home Office audit can be announced or unannounced, and will usually involve:

• A review of files and systems
• Spot-checking sponsored worker records
• Assessment of your HR processes
• Questions about how you monitor visas, absences, and working hours

If the last time you reviewed your sponsor compliance was more than 12 months ago, or if you've never done a mock audit at all—you’re working in the dark.

Risk: You may not be aware of system issues until it’s too late to fix them.

4. Sponsored Roles No Longer Match the Certificate of Sponsorship

Even when a worker’s visa was valid at the time it was issued, changes over time can make them non-compliant without anyone realising.

Ask yourself:

• Have any sponsored workers changed job duties, locations, or salaries?
• Would their current responsibilities still align with the occupation code listed on their Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS)?
• Have you reported these changes, if required, on the SMS? Or should a new CoS  have been issued and a change of employer visa application submitted?

The Home Office expects sponsors to ensure that workers remain in roles consistent with those originally sponsored. If the worker is effectively doing a different job, a new CoS and visa application may be required, or reporting within 10 working days.

Risk: If a worker no longer meets the requirements for the role listed on their visa, your organisation may be found in breach of sponsorship duties, even if there was no intent to deceive.

5. You’re Relying on One Person to Handle Everything

Many businesses, especially SMEs, place sponsor compliance in the hands of a single HR manager or operations lead. If that person is off sick, on leave, or leaves the company, things quickly fall through the cracks.

Sponsor compliance should be embedded into your wider HR and operational systems, not reliant on one inbox or spreadsheet.

Ask:

• Who’s responsible for monitoring visa expiry dates?
• Is there cross-training for using the SMS?
• Are your sponsor processes documented and reviewed?

Risk: Over-reliance on one person can lead to missed reporting deadlines, expired visas, or overlooked CoS errors—all of which can put your licence at risk.

If any of the red flags above sound familiar, you’re not alone, and you don’t need to panic.

The first step is to get a clear picture of your risks and what needs to change. Whether the issue is minor or more complex, most problems can be fixed if they’re caught in time.

At Immtell, we help employers:

• Assess current sponsor licence compliance
• Identify technical or procedural breaches
• Prioritise what needs fixing now vs. what can be improved over time
• Prepare for audits, renewals, or internal reviews
• Train key personnel and HR teams on sponsor duties

Whether you're looking for a quick review, a comprehensive mock audit, or an external partner to guide you through sponsor compliance, we can help you stay ahead of risk.

Final Thought: Compliance Isn't a Once-a-Year Task

Sponsorship licence compliance isn’t just about submitting correct paperwork or responding to Home Office messages—it’s about actively managing your responsibilities over time.

The good news? With the right processes in place, you don’t need to lose sleep over it. But ignoring warning signs or relying on assumptions is what leads to licence action, penalties, or avoidable reputational damage.

If you're unsure where you stand or would like a second opinion, please reach out. We’re here to help you protect what you’ve built.