If you are a business which has been licenced by the UK Home Office to sponsor migrant workers, you will be aware of the Sponsorship Management System (SMS).
The SMS is an online tool that the sponsoring business uses to manage its licence, inform the Home Office of certain changes to the business and issue visas to prospective employees who require sponsorship to come to the UK.
When the Home Office issues the sponsor licence, it does so on the assumption that the business fully understands its duties and responsibilities as a licence holder. It is, therefore, imperative that the person in the business responsible for the licence (the ‘Authorising Officer’) understands which events need to be reported to the authorities during the life cycle of the licence. There are a number of changes to the business itself which need to be reported, as well as changes to the circumstances of sponsored migrants. Most changes must be reported within 10 working days, some – within 20 working days.
It is advisable for the Authorising Officer to log in to the SMS at least once a month to check that all data is still up-to-date and correct.
If you do not update your SMS within the correct timeframes, it could be considered a violation of your sponsorship obligations. If the Home Office feels that the business is non-compliant, it can suspend the sponsor licence, downgrade it or revoke it altogether. All of these actions will have a negative effect on the ability of the business to sponsor, and keep sponsoring, workers.
The SMS is an essential part of the sponsorship process and should be treated with care. You must keep it up-to-date to make sure that you are carrying out your sponsorship obligations at all times.
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The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Gherson accepts no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please do not hesitate to contact Gherson. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Gherson.
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