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Tips - Preparing for Sponsorship

Introduction

Applying for a sponsorship licence it s matter of good systems and processes. This can be said for everything we do in business, government and personal life. At first the process may seem arduous, time consuming and quite frankly a bit of a pain, but once you have the systems and process in place you tend to realise that what you have implemented is actually very useful and often adds real value.

Preparing for sponsorship is this pain. For many organisations they will already have sophisticated systems in place that comply with 95% of the requirements made by the UK Border Agency, but no one will have had 100% of the compliance requirements in place prior to the release of the requirements by the UK Border Agency; this includes the UK Border Agency.

Baby Steps

Taking small steps now will prove invaluable to the implementation of the systems and processes required to bring your HR systems in line with UK Border Agency requirements. Below you will find ten simple tips designed to help you with the process. If you decide you would like to benefit from using the services of Warner Pride you will still find the tips useful to understand the route to compliance and a sponsorship licence:

Tip 1 – Sponsorship Eligibility

Most organisations/employers who are UK based organisations will be eligible to apply, but if you have any doubts you should contact Warner Pride who will quickly provide you with the answer

Tip 2 – Licence Types

There is more than one type of licence and therefore you need to understand the licence type you will be making an application for.

If you have a number of different offices, locations or campuses you can register in a number of ways. You need to decide whether:

• you are applying for a single licence that includes the head office and all branches in the United Kingdom

• each branch is applying for a separate licence; or

• you are grouping a number of branches in a single licence.

If you are registering as 'group of branches', you must list all the branches that you wish to include in this registration and give their addresses. Where necessary, use a separate sheet and send this in with your submission sheet.

The decision may seem simple where you have a ‘group of branches’, but the decision to group them as a whole needs careful consideration. If you register as a group you need to ensure that the group of branches are fully aware of their compliance obligations and of the ramifications for the branch and the group if the branch does not observe their responsibilities.

Registering as a Group

If you register as a group and any of the branches (or group companies) should be proved not to be compliant the licence for the whole group could be withdrawn or the group of companies/ branches could be downgraded to a B-rating. A central HR function is often the most robust choice in these situations.

Registering as individual Branches/companies

Individual branches/companies have their individual compliance responsibilities. If the individual branch/company should be proved to be non-compliant they could have their licence revoked or be downgraded to a B-rating. However, this failure to comply will not have an effect of the licence of other members of the group.

Tip 3 – Allocating Responsibilities

All potential sponsors/sponsors must allocate responsibilities to members of their staff or to other responsible non-staff. There are four roles that can be allocated responsibilities, although only three must be allocated:

• Authorising officer

• Key contact

• Level 1 user

• Level 2 user

The position of Authorisation Officer should be a senior manager within you organisation, who will have ultimate responsibility for the proper management of the licence and associated responsibilities. The Authorisation Officer can be the Key Contact and the Level 1 and Level 2 user too.

All other positions can be allocated to an out of company representative, such as Warner Pride. We can act at any level with the exception of the Authorisation Officer.
 
Tip 4 – Know who is working for you already

When you make your online sponsor licence application you will be asked how many migrant workers you are currently employing, this should include employees who are holders of an Indefinite Leave to Remain visa.

Note:
The UK Border Agency provide tips for making an application and under their Tip 4 guidance they state the following:

“…this does not need to be an exact figure, just an estimate.”

This is a direct quote and completely flies against the UKBA’s own compliance, because, as an employer, you must know who works for you or you will be in violation of several laws which could land the employer in court, with an unlimited fine, a criminal record, and potentially severe public relation consequences.

Note:
We recommend you undertake a complete Personnel File Audit, ensuring you have all of the contact details up to date for each employee and that you have all of the required proof you need for EVERY employee who works for you regardless of if you believe they are UK or EEA nationals. You have a legal requirement to hold certain documents on file for every employee.

Tip 5 – Decide on how many people you are likely to require

We appreciate that this can be a piece of string question, but the online application form will ask you this question. Think about the current economic climate and your expansion plans over the next 12 months.

You may be in a sector that has a high turnover of staff, but find it difficult to recruit from the resident workforce. Also take into account any existing work permit holders who may need to have an extension application made.

Tip 6 – Human Resource Systems Audit

Your HR systems must be robust and meet all of the UK Border Agency’s legal requirements. These requirements are based on pre-employment check and during employment checks and your ability to ensure that you have in place a method of undertaking your compliance responsibilities.

We recommend you undertake an audit either yourself or using Warner Pride’s sponsor project team before you make your sponsor licence application, because if the systems do not fully meet the UK Border Agencies compliance requirement your licence will not be granted and you will lose your application fee. The UKBA will visit you normally before they grant a licence, which means if your systems are not in place you will not get your licence.

If you ask Warner Pride to undertake an audit for you we will write a detailed report that you can use when making your sponsorship licence application, and we guarantee this report will result in your organisation being awarded an A-rating.
 
Tip 7 – Document Preparation

When you make your online application you will be asked to confirm your organisation type, and then what documents you will provide to support your application – you will be given a list to choose from. At the end of the online application you will be required to print a form that will confirm the list of documents you state you will provide as evidence. If you have already gathered these documents it should make the this process a lot easier for you.

Tip 8 – Correct Payment

It may seem obvious, but many applications have been made where the wrong fee has been included with the application.

You have two basic choices for Tier 2 sponsorship applications, which is based on employee numbers you currently employ. The fees are either £300 or £1,000. The cut-off is 50 employees; therefore, all organisations with less than 50 employers pay £300 and more than 50 is £1,000. If you will be registering for other Tiers 2 and 5 there are other fees.

You can either pay online using a credit card or you can send a cheque of with your supporting evidence.

Note:
If you are not too sure, because your employees fluctuate around the 50, then pay the £300. If you pay £1,000, because you tried to air on the side of caution, the UKBA will not refund you the £700.

The immigration System is not a standalone function, it is an integral part of your overall HR System

Staff Convictions and Civil Penalties

Below you will find information that explains how the UK Border Agency take into account the convictions and civil penalties of your staff when deciding your rating as a sponsor under the points-based system.

How the UKBA Treat Convictions at the Application Stage

They UKBA will refuse an application if you, or another relevant person:

• have in the previous six months been issued with a civil penalty under Section 15 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 for employing one or more illegal workers, and the fine for at least one of those workers was set at the maximum amount (currently £10,000). The UKBA will not refuse the application if they withdrew or reduced the fine or it was cancelled or reduced on appeal

• have been issued with a civil penalty for one of the offences in Appendix C of the full policy guidance of the policy guidance and have not paid it (unless we withdrew the penalty or it was cancelled on appeal)

• any offence under the Immigration Act 1971; the Immigration Act 1988; the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993, the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999; the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002; the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006; or the UK Borders Act 2007:
  • trafficking for sexual exploitation
  • any other offence which, in our opinion, indicates that you pose a risk to immigration control, for example, offences involving dishonesty or deception, including any of the offences listed in Appendix B of the full policy guidance of the policy guidance. Any other unspent convictions could also lead to an application being refused; or
  • are legally prohibited from becoming a company director (unless this is because you are an undischarged bankrupt).

A B-rating may be awarded if you, or another relevant person, have a conviction for offences (other than one listed above) in connection with the conduct of your business which calls into question your suitability as a sponsor (such as a conviction under the National Minimum Wage legislation or for benefit fraud). Spent convictions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 will not be taken into account.

We hope you have found these tips of some use. Please feel free to contact one of our PBS and Compliance Managers if you have any questions.