What type of sponsorship licence do I Need?

1. Tier 2 - skilled workers with long-term job offers; and/or
2. Tier 5 - skilled temporary workers.

The company can apply for a licence covering either both.

Tier 2 sponsorship licence is applicable where the company is willing to employ non-EU nationals on a permanent basis in the following categories:

• Intra-Company Transfer- for multi-national companies which need to transfer an employee to the UK;
• Minister of Religion- for people coming to work for a religious organisation (for up to 3 years);
• Sportsperson- for elite sportspeople and coached who will be based in the UK;
• General- the job they are going to do has a suitable rate of pay and skill level (NQF level 6 or above) and corresponds to the standard occupational classification codes (SOC codes).

If the company is willing to employ a non-EU national on a temporary basis and the applicant's duties fall under the description of the following sub-categories:

• Tier 5 (Religious Workers) - for those doing the preaching, pastoral and non-pastoral work (2 years)
• Tier 5 (Government authorised exchange) - work experience (1 year), research projects or training, eg practical medical or scientific training (2 years) to enable a short-term exchange of knowledge;
• Tier 5 (Charity worker)- for unpaid workers (up to 1 year);
• Tier 5 (Creative and sporting)- to work as a sportsperson (up to 1 year), entertainer or artist (up to 2 years)
• Tier 5 (International Agreement) -where the worker is coming to do a job which is covered by international law, eg employees of overseas governments

Reiss Edwards can assist your company with the following aspects of Tier 5 and Tier 2 category:

• Sponsor Licence
• Sponsor Licence Extensions
• Compliance
• Mock Audits
• Sponsorship Management System (SMS) advice
• Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) application
• Visa Application for your potential employee

Sponsorship management system (SMS). Restricted and unrestricted COS and fee.

During the process of online application, the company must nominate authorising officer and once the application is approved the authorising officer will receive SMS login details via email/post and will have an option to nominate a level 1 user, a level 2 user and a 'key contact' to operate the sponsorship management system.

A sponsor licence will be given an A or B rating by the UKVI. If the company's HR systems and compliance are in place, the company will be given a sponsor licence with an A-rating. Only an A-rated sponsor can certify maintenance for the potential non-EU employees. The licence is valid for 4 years and thereafter the company has an option to renew the licence.

The authorising officer will be responsible for the Sponsorship Management System (SMS) and. SMS is used to request/assign certificates of sponsorship (COS). COS is an online document with a unique number issued by registered sponsors if all relevant requirements are complied with. The migrant needs to provide this reference number regardless of whether he/she is making an application inside or outside the UK.

Tier 2 Sponsor Licence Help

Reiss Edwards is a firm of UK immigration experts, based in the City of London, Holborn. With over 10 years of practical experience, our team of Tier 5 and Tier 2 specialists assist with the preparation for and submission of your Tier 5 and Tier 2 sponsor licence, maintaining and renewing the licence. Reiss Edwards can act as the Key Contact/ Level 1 User/ Level 2 User for your company.

We pride ourselves as a leading business immigration law firm in London. Our specialist Tier 2 Sponsor licence team are able to provide you with professional and honest legal advice on your Tier 2 Sponsor licence application. Our high success rate to application submitted ratio gives us even more confidence in handling any type of Sponsor license visa application. Be sure to take advantage of our free initial assessment over the phone to determine whether you meet the requirements to qualify or not.

Please call our offices on 02037442797 or e-mail us at info@reissedwards.com should you wish to discuss your case further.