By Dr. Catherine Taroni – Immigration Barrister
In This Article
1. Expert Staff within the UK: Understanding the Prices of Sponsoring
2. Sponsor Licence Charges
3. Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) Charges
4. Immigration Abilities Cost
5. Precedence Charges
6. Visa Software Charges
7. Immigration Well being Surcharge (IHS)
8. The Finish of the Resident Labour Market Check (RLMT) for Expert Employee Sponsorship
9. Authorized and Compliance Prices
10. Contact Our Immigration Barristers
11. Continuously Requested Questions
12. Glossary
In an more and more globalised world, companies typically search to draw expertise from throughout the globe to stay aggressive and modern. For firms working within the UK, sponsoring migrants as Expert Staff is an more and more frequent and vital follow. With EEA residents who should not eligible beneath the EU Settlement Scheme now not having the fitting to maneuver to and work within the UK, the UK job market has needed to react, and sponsoring migrants as Expert Staff is now not one thing that’s uncommon.
We very often help start-up firms and small companies to acquire sponsor licences, and it’s potential for any sort of enterprise to contemplate an utility, as long as the enterprise want is there, and they’re reasonable in regards to the prices concerned and may afford these.
The prices related to immigration sponsorship can characterize important monetary dedication, and the necessities on the preliminary utility and ongoing prices should be factored in.
This text will set out the charges with regards to the charges as relevant from 09 April 2025 in relation to when an organization sponsors migrants to work within the UK as Skilled Staff or as Well being and Care Staff.
Step one in sponsoring Expert Staff within the UK is making use of for a Sponsor Licence from the House Workplace. Such a licence is necessary for any firm trying to rent abroad expertise and is legitimate indefinitely.
The charges for a Sponsorship Licence are as follows:
- Small companies and charities: £574
- Medium or massive companies: £1,597
Small companies usually have at the least two of the next:
- Annual turnover of £10.2m or much less;
- Whole property with £5.1m or much less;
- 50 staff or fewer.
Charitable sponsors are registered as charities in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Eire or an excepted/exempt charity or an ecclesiastical company established for charitable functions.
3. Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) Charges
As soon as an organization has obtained a Sponsor Licence, to sponsor a Expert Employee, they should difficulty a Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) to every particular person employee to be sponsored. The CoS price for Expert Employee, T2 MOR, and GBM Senior or Specialist staff has risen from £239 per CoS to £525 per CoS. This is identical price whether or not the CoS is a Outlined Certificates of Sponsorship, meant to sponsor a Expert Employee making use of for entry clearance to return to the UK, or an Undefined Certificates of Sponsorship, to sponsor a Expert Employee making use of for depart to stay inside the UK.
It is vitally vital that the proper sort of CoS is assigned – that is dictated by the route beneath which the migrant is being sponsored, in addition to the place the appliance is to be made (from inside the UK / for entry clearance).
Assigning an incorrect sort of CoS not solely wastes the price for that CoS, however can result in the visa utility being refused if an accurate sort of CoS shouldn’t be assigned promptly, and the House Workplace might contemplate that Sponsor duties should not being complied with and the sponsor licence itself can be liable to suspension and revocation.
It might be {that a} migrant requires an extra CoS to proceed working for a similar firm – that is mandatory if the Expert Employee’s job code adjustments. A Certificates of Sponsorship permits a employee to work beneath the required job code, for the sponsoring firm. If a Expert Employee’s duties or position change such that the Authorising Officer identifies that they fall inside a brand new job code, they should be re-sponsored.
4. Immigration Abilities Cost
The Immigration Abilities Cost (ISC) is an expense {that a} sponsoring UK firm should bear.
The ISC is presently set at:
- £364 per 12 months for small or charitable organisations
- £1,000 per 12 months for medium or massive companies
This cost applies to every particular person sponsored migrant although there are some exceptions – for instance college students switching / Expert Staff being sponsored in sure job codes might not incur this price.
Since 31 December 2024, the House Workplace has required that firms pay the Stage One and Stage Two charges. Because of this the Expert Employee sponsor licence price (together with the price for including that path to an current licence) and any related administrative prices (together with premium companies) can’t be recouped from a sponsored employee. Equally, the Certificates of Sponsorship price for a Expert Employee, the place that Certificates was assigned on or after 31 December 2024 can’t be paid or recouped from the Expert Employee, and the Immigration Abilities Cost for a Expert Employee or a Senior or Specialist Employee, should even be paid by the corporate. Please see our article Expert Employee Sponsor Licence: New Guidelines on Pay and Charges for additional info.
Within the occasion {that a} sponsored migrant fails to work for the complete period of their CoS (e.g. sponsored for five years however works for two years) it’s potential to get a partial refund for the years not labored. ISC funds are additionally refunded within the occasion {that a} visa utility is refused or withdrawn, or the migrant doesn’t come to work for the sponsoring firm.
5. Precedence Charges
Corporations might want to avail themselves of precedence processing charges for the sponsor licence utility itself, or for requesting new in-year CoS allocations inside the UK.
The pre-licence precedence sponsor licence service can scale back processing instances for a sponsor licence utility from round 8 weeks as customary, to inside 10 working days. The price for this precedence service is £500 per request.
6. Visa Software Charges
These differ relying on the size of the CoS – whether or not that is as much as / longer than 3 years, and whether or not or not the job is on the scarcity occupation listing.
Present utility charges per individual are:
| In-country | CoS legitimate as much as 3 years | CoS legitimate 3+ years |
| Expert Employee
(and any dependants) |
£885 | £1751 |
| Expert Employee with Scarcity Occupation CoS (and any dependants) | £590 | £1160 |
| Well being and Care visa
(and any dependants) |
£304 | £590 |
| Well being and Care visa Scarcity Occupation CoS
(and any dependants) |
£304 | £590 |
| Entry clearance | CoS legitimate as much as 3 years | CoS legitimate 3+ years |
| Expert Employee
(and any dependants) |
£769 | £1519 |
| Expert Employee with Scarcity Occupation CoS (and any dependants) | £590 | £1160 |
| Well being and Care visa
(and any dependants) |
£304 | £590 |
| Well being and Care visa Scarcity Occupation CoS
(and any dependants) |
£304 | £590 |
The Expert Employee might select to depend on customary processing of their immigration utility, or might want to buy precedence processing companies at extra price. The related charges rely the place an utility is being submitted and the extent of precedence processing.
7. Immigration Well being Surcharge (IHS)
The Immigration Well being Surcharge (IHS) is a price that migrants incur when making use of for a visa in extra of 6 months.
The IHS is about at:
- £1035 per 12 months for many grownup migrants;
- £776 per 12 months for college students and people on the Youth Mobility Scheme;
- £776 per 12 months for kids beneath the age of 18.
8. The Finish of the Resident Labour Market Check (RLMT) for Expert Employee Sponsorship
Fortunately, whereas folks have typically heard in regards to the Resident Labour Market Check (RLMT) and count on it to be related, because the Expert Employee route changed Tier 2 Normal, the RLMT now not exists. Because of this pointless prices of promoting and recruitment should not incurred as a result of immigration necessities alone, although after all firms might incur such charges throughout their seek for acceptable expertise.
Nonetheless, for Well being and Care Staff, this has been re-introduced to a restricted extent as coated by SW6.1C, requiring the Sponsor to have tried to recruit “from the pool of Expert Staff” who:
(i) are within the UK;
(ii) had been final sponsored in an occupation code in SW 6.1B; and
(iii) are in want of latest sponsorship as a result of their sponsor has misplaced its licence or has not supplied adequate work , or have been recognized by the related regional or sub-regional partnership (arrange for the aim of delivering exercise which prevents and responds to exploitative employment practices with worldwide recruitment of care employees, within the space by which the sponsor is situated or recruiting) as a employee requiring help in acquiring new sponsorship;
and to offer proof of their makes an attempt.
9. Authorized and Compliance Prices
Navigating the complexities of immigration regulation and making certain compliance with all Guidelines and Steerage might be difficult. Many firms choose to hunt authorized recommendation and interact help to handle the sponsor licence utility and sponsoring course of effectively. Prices can differ, relying on the complexity of your case and the variety of Expert Staff to be sponsored.
For professional recommendation and help with any enterprise immigration matter, contact our enterprise immigration barristers on 0203 617 9173 or full our enquiry kind under.
