By Grace Storrie – Authorized Affiliate
In This Article
- Introduction
- Pre-Grant Responsibilities: Appointing Key Personnel
- Post-Grant Responsibilities: Certificate of Sponsorship Allocation
- Post-Grant Responsibilities: Additional Responsibilities for Overseas Authorising Officers
- UK Expansion Worker Sponsor Licence Validity and Transition
- UK Expansion Worker Sponsor Duties and Compliance
- Contact Our Immigration Barristers
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Glossary
- Useful Resources
1. Introduction
The Global Business Mobility (“GBM”): UK Expansion Worker route for abroad companies that want to set up a department or subsidiary within the UK. With a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence, an organization is ready to sponsor senior managers or specialist staff who’re being assigned to the UK for a short lived interval to undertake work associated to the enterprise’s growth to the UK.
The aim of this weblog publish is to help newly-granted UK Growth Employee sponsor licence holders perceive the extra obligations that include holding a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence, and the steps you will want to take after you’re granted a sponsor licence on this route.
For steerage on making use of for a UK Growth Employee licence, see our comprehensive guide to making use of for a UK Growth Employee Sponsor Licence and our earlier publish on evidence in UK Expansion Worker Sponsor Licence applications.
2. Pre-Grant Tasks: Appointing Key Personnel Earlier than the Sponsor Licence is Granted
All kinds of sponsor licence require that sure ‘Key Personnel’ roles are crammed by people within the organisation. In our earlier publish, Key Personnel in Sponsor Licence Applications, we defined the necessities for every of those roles.
In frequent with different licensed work routes, it’s mandatory for a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence for a corporation to have an Authorising Officer, Key Contact, and no less than one Degree 1 Person in place on the time that the corporate applies for a sponsor licence.
Who Can Be your Authorising Officer?
Not like different routes, nevertheless, the UK Growth Employee route doesn’t require that the corporate’s nominated Authorising Officer is already primarily based within the UK. On this route, the Authorising Officer can both be:
- a employee who’s already primarily based within the UK and shall be overseeing your growth to the UK
- if there no appropriate individual primarily based within the UK who can take this position, a senior worker of the abroad enterprise who shall be assigned to the UK to supervise the growth
Whichever choice the corporate chooses, the Authorising Officer should be probably the most senior individual within the firm accountable for the recruitment of migrant staff and accountable for guaranteeing that the corporate meets its sponsor duties.
Because the UK Growth Employee route can solely be used the place an abroad enterprise has not begun buying and selling within the UK, it’s unlikely that the corporate can have an appropriate particular person who’s already primarily based within the UK. Subsequently, it’s extra frequent for corporations on this path to nominate the migrant who shall be senior individual accountable for overseeing the enterprise’s growth to the UK, because the Authorising Officer for the licence (choice 2 above).
Who Can Be your Degree 1 Person?
In case your Authorising Officer is abroad (not already primarily based within the UK), it’s a requirement that should additionally act because the Degree 1 Person for the licence. As soon as the licence is permitted, that individual should assign a Certificates of Sponsorship to themselves, utilizing the Sponsor Administration System, to be able to make their visa utility
If an organization’s Authorising Officer relies within the UK, they have to appoint a Degree 1 Person (and Key Contact) who can also be primarily based within the UK. As with different routes, the Degree 1 Person should be a settled employee and there should all the time be one Degree 1 Person who’s an worker, accomplice, or director of the organisation. The principles on appointing Key Personnel may be discovered here.
Certificates of Sponsorship Allocation
Within the UK Growth Employee route, the utmost Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) allocation is 5. An organization on this route is barely permitted to sponsor as many staff because it ‘genuinely needs’ to ascertain its enterprise within the UK as much as a most of 5 workers as UK Growth Employee migrants.
Whereas the corporate is permitted an allocation of 5 CoS within the UK Growth Employee route, whether or not these CoS can be found instantly to the corporate will rely on the place the Authorising Officer is situated when the licence is utilized for.
If the Firm’s Authorising Officer is Primarily based within the UK:
If the corporate’s Authorising Officer relies within the UK when the UK Growth Employee sponsor licence is granted, the corporate’s licence shall be given an ‘A-rating’ and its full CoS allocation (as much as a most of 5, as said above).
Which means the Firm is ready to sponsor as much as 5 staff instantly, upon the grant of the licence.
If the Firm’s Authorising Officer is Primarily based Outdoors of the UK:
If, as is extra frequent, the corporate’s Authorising Officer relies abroad, the corporate shall be given a ‘Provisional’ licence ranking and an preliminary allocation of just one Certificates of Sponsorship.
The Authorising Officer should assign that 1 CoS to themselves to be able to make their visa utility. As soon as the licence ranking is upgraded to an ‘A-rating’ (as is defined under), the Authorising Officer can request for the CoS allocation to be elevated, as much as a most of 4.
4. Submit-Grant Tasks: Further Tasks for an Abroad Authorising Officer Following a Grant of Permission
Replace your Particulars on the Sponsorship Administration System:
As soon as the Authorising Officer has been granted entry clearance, the primary motion they have to take is to replace their particulars on the Sponsorship Administration System (SMS). This needs to be accomplished as quickly as doable, as soon as entry clearance is granted. The small print that should be up to date are as follows:
- the kind of permission they’ve (this shall be ‘UK Expansion Worker’)
- the expiry date of their permission
- their Residence Workplace reference quantity (this may be their Visa Software Kind quantity, their biometric residence allow quantity, or some other reference quantity offered by the Residence Workplace to the applicant)
- their UK handle (after they know this)
Request to Improve your Sponsor Licence Score:
The second motion the Authorising Officer should take is to request for the corporate’s UK Growth Employee sponsor licence ranking to be upgraded from ‘Provisional’ to an ‘A-rating’. It isn’t doable to sponsor any extra staff till the corporate’s sponsor licence is A-rated. This request is made by the Authorising Officer by the Sponsorship Administration System.
It needs to be famous that the Authorising Officer is ready to report these particulars and make the request to improve the sponsor licence ranking as quickly as they’re granted permission to come back to the UK. They aren’t required to attend till they’ve arrived within the UK.
The place an organization has an abroad Authorising Officer, it’s vitally vital that the Authorising Officer completes the steps described above. The sponsor licence system locations vital belief in licenced sponsors to fulfil sure duties. Particular reporting duties, resembling these described above, should be complied with and failure to take action might end in your organization’s sponsor licence being suspended or revoked. The steerage on sponsor duties and compliance may be discovered here.
Altering your Key Personnel
As soon as your Authorising Officer is legally resident within the UK and the corporate’s licence is A-rated, they’ll appoint totally different individuals to the Key Personnel roles. Any appointments or modifications should be made in keeping with the general requirements for Key Personnel.
Not like the Expert Employee sponsor licence (which no longer expires), a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence can solely be legitimate for a most of 4 years. It isn’t doable to carry a UK Growth Employee for longer than 4 years.
The aim of the UK Growth Employee route is to permit abroad corporations to increase to the UK. For that purpose, there may be an expectation that corporations utilizing this route will set up a full buying and selling presence within the UK inside two years of the date that the licence is granted.
By the top of the 2 12 months interval, ranging from the date the UK Growth Employee sponsor licence is granted, the Residence Workplace will scale back an organization’s CoS allocation to zero. At this level, it is going to now not be doable for the corporate to sponsor any new staff on this route, or to increase functions for current sponsored UK Growth Employee migrants.
Having established a buying and selling presence within the UK, the corporate is ready to apply for a special sponsor licence that may allow it to proceed to sponsor staff within the UK (for instance, Expert Employee or Senior or Specialist Employee). For steerage on acquiring a Expert Employee sponsor licence, please see this blog post.
After 4 years, a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence will routinely expire and the corporate is not going to be given an choice to renew it. If the UK Growth Employee licence is now not wanted previous to the top of the 4 12 months interval, the corporate can select to make the licence ‘dormant’ at any stage.
As a last level, you will need to bear in mind that, as with all sponsor licence, the Residence Workplace is ready to conduct compliance checks at any time.
For a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence, the Residence Workplace will contemplate (along with the sponsor duties and compliance necessities that apply to all licenced sponsors) whether or not there’s a ‘realistic prospect that you will be able to establish a UK trading presence’. If the Residence Workplace just isn’t happy that your organization will be capable of set up a UK buying and selling presence, it will possibly resolve to revoke your licence.
Understanding your duties as a UK Growth Employee licensed sponsor may be tough. For recommendation on tips on how to navigate your duties as a licenced sponsor, contact our immigration barristers in London on 0203 617 9173 or full our enquiry kind under.
For skilled recommendation and help in relation to your UK Growth Employee sponsor licence utility, contact our immigration barristers on 0203 617 9173 or through the enquiry kind under.
8. Ceaselessly Requested Questions (FAQs)
What’s the UK Growth Employee route?
The UK Growth Employee route permits abroad companies to sponsor senior managers or specialist staff to ascertain a department or subsidiary within the UK.
What are the preliminary steps an organization should take earlier than making use of for a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence?
An organization should appoint key personnel, together with an Authorising Officer, Key Contact, and no less than one Degree 1 Person.
Who may be appointed because the Authorising Officer for a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence?
The Authorising Officer generally is a employee already primarily based within the UK or a senior worker of the abroad enterprise assigned to the UK.
Can the Authorising Officer be primarily based outdoors of the UK?
Sure, within the UK Growth Employee route, the Authorising Officer may be primarily based outdoors of the UK and oversee the growth.
What’s the position of the Degree 1 Person within the UK Growth Employee sponsor licence?
The Degree 1 Person manages the Sponsor Administration System and might assign Certificates of Sponsorship.
What occurs after the UK Growth Employee sponsor licence is granted?
The corporate should handle Certificates of Sponsorship allocation, with particular actions relying on whether or not the Authorising Officer relies within the UK or abroad.
What number of Certificates of Sponsorship can an organization initially obtain?
An organization can initially obtain as much as 5 Certificates of Sponsorship, but when the Authorising Officer is abroad, the preliminary allocation is normally 1.
What actions should an abroad Authorising Officer take after being granted permission to enter the UK?
They have to replace their particulars on the Sponsorship Administration System and request an improve of the sponsor licence ranking from Provisional to A-rating.
Can the important thing personnel roles be modified after the sponsor licence is granted?
Sure, as soon as the Authorising Officer is legally resident within the UK and the licence is A-rated, totally different individuals may be appointed to the important thing personnel roles.
How lengthy is the UK Growth Employee sponsor licence legitimate?
The licence is legitimate for a most of 4 years and can’t be renewed.
What occurs if an organization doesn’t set up a buying and selling presence within the UK inside two years?
The Residence Workplace will scale back the corporate’s Certificates of Sponsorship allocation to zero, stopping sponsorship of latest staff or extension of current sponsorships.
What are the compliance necessities for a UK Growth Employee sponsor licence?
Firms should fulfil their sponsor duties and adjust to Residence Workplace rules, together with demonstrating a practical prospect of building a UK buying and selling presence.
What are the results of not complying with sponsor duties?
Failure to conform can lead to suspension or revocation of the sponsor licence.
9. Glossary
Authorising Officer: The senior individual within the firm accountable for the recruitment of migrant staff and guaranteeing the corporate meets its sponsor duties. For the UK Growth Employee route, this individual may be primarily based both within the UK or abroad.
Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS): An digital doc assigned by a sponsor to a migrant employee to allow them to use for a visa beneath a selected immigration route. Within the UK Growth Employee route, an organization can initially obtain as much as 5 CoS.
Key Contact: A person throughout the firm who acts as the primary level of contact with the Residence Workplace concerning the sponsor licence.
Key Personnel: Important roles required for a sponsor licence, together with the Authorising Officer, Key Contact, and Degree 1 Person. These roles are essential for managing the sponsor licence and guaranteeing compliance with Residence Workplace rules.
Degree 1 Person: A person accountable for managing the Sponsor Administration System (SMS) and finishing up day-to-day sponsorship actions, resembling assigning Certificates of Sponsorship. This individual should be a settled employee and an worker, accomplice, or director of the organisation.
Provisional Licence Score: A brief ranking given to a sponsor licence when the Authorising Officer relies abroad, limiting the corporate to an preliminary allocation of 1 Certificates of Sponsorship. The ranking may be upgraded to an A-rating after particular situations are met.
Sponsorship Administration System (SMS): The net system utilized by sponsors to handle their sponsor licence, together with assigning Certificates of Sponsorship and updating key personnel particulars.
UK Growth Employee Route: An immigration route that enables abroad companies to sponsor senior managers or specialist staff to ascertain a department or subsidiary within the UK quickly.
UK Growth Employee Sponsor Licence: A licence that enables an abroad firm to sponsor staff for the aim of increasing their enterprise to the UK. The licence is legitimate for a most of 4 years and comes with particular duties and compliance necessities.
A-Score: The ranking given to a sponsor licence that meets all Residence Workplace necessities, permitting the corporate to sponsor the utmost variety of staff permitted beneath their licence. For the UK Growth Employee route, this may be as much as 5 Certificates of Sponsorship.
10. Helpful Sources
UK Growth Employee Sponsor Licence Software Information
Sponsor Administration System (SMS) Person Guide:
UK Immigration Guidelines and Steerage:
Sponsor Duties and Compliance Necessities:
Data on Certificates of Sponsorship:
Contact Data for UK Visas and Immigration:
- Contact particulars for UK Visas and Immigration, together with telephone numbers and e-mail addresses for numerous enquiries.
- Contact UKVI
Compliance Visits by the Residence Workplace:
Enterprise Immigration Barristers:
