An A-rated licence is issued to UK employers sponsoring workers from foreign countries, including EEA and Swiss nationals. It shows that the sponsoring organisation has the necessary systems and processes in place to meet its obligations. Sponsors will then be able to assign Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) to foreign employees you’ve hired. By having an A-rated licence, employers can confidently sponsor non-EEA and Swiss nationals to work in the UK, knowing that their organisation has met all of the requirements as specified by the Home Office.

How the Sponsorship Licence Rating System Works?

Overview

UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI) issues sponsor licence ratings to assess the compliance of sponsor licence holders and to give them an action plan to get back on track when they fall short of expectations. No matter if a business hires workers on a temporary worker visa or a skilled worker visa, licence ratings still apply.

Employers are required to keep their systems up to date and stay in compliance in order to maintain their A-rating for sponsor licence once they have been issued by the UKVI.

They are required to abide by the following:

• Make sure the foreign worker has the knowledge, expertise, or credentials required for the position for which they are hired, and keep copies of the documents attesting to this. 
• Only when a job qualifies for sponsorship should certificates of sponsorship be given to migrant workers. 
• If the sponsored worker is not abiding by the terms of their visa, let UKVI know.

To keep their A rating, organisations must also follow the following sponsorship requirements:

• Through the Sponsor Management System (SMS), a sponsored employee must promptly notify the home office of any change in circumstances.
• A change in circumstances could occur if an employee misses more than 10 days of work without authorization. 
• Or if there is a change in employment of the sponsored employee e.g Termination of the employment.
• If there’s a change of Authorising officer or Level 1 or Level 2 user.
• Ensure that all sponsored employees have accurate records, including current contact information and proof of their right to work in the UK. 
• Observe UK immigration regulations.
• Any significant change in circumstances, such as a change in name or address, the opening or closing of a branch, the sale of all or a portion of the organisation, or the company ceasing to operate, should be reported to the business.
• Avoid acting or behaving in a way that is not in the interest of the general public.

Home office personnel may visit the premises for a compliance check. These visits can occur at any time, either before granting or renewing a sponsor licence or in response to specific complaints later on, and are authorised by the Home Office to determine whether a sponsor has the proper systems and policies in place to ensure compliance.

Sponsor Rating for UK Expansion Worker

The Home Office also requires organisations to appoint key personnel to operate the Sponsor Management System in order to comply with sponsor licence obligations (SMS). 

This staff includes:

• Authorising officer: This person must be a senior employee within the organisation responsible for hiring foreign workers and ensuring compliance with sponsor duties.
• Key contact: This person is responsible for liaising with the Home Office when necessary.
• Level 1 user: This person is responsible for the day-to-day management of the sponsorship licence through the sponsorship management system and assigning CoS to workers.
• Level 2 user: This person is responsible for performing actions on the SMS but has a limited permission level than the level 1 user.

The roles of authorising officer, key contact, and level 1 user can be performed by the same individual or a combination of individuals. This is especially beneficial for small businesses that cannot afford to dedicate three employees to SMS management. 

It is essential to note that all individuals filling these positions must reside in the United Kingdom and have no criminal convictions.

Downgrade of an A-Rated licence to a B-Rated Licence

The Home Office may downgrade an A rating to a B rating in cases of minor sponsorship system violations. 

Sponsor businesses may be downgraded to a B rating if multiple of the following occur:

• A level 1 or level 2 user shares their SMS password.
• A migrant worker did not follow the conditions of their permission to stay, and the sponsor did not follow the guidelines set by the Home Office or other relevant bodies.
• The sponsor gets issued with a civil penalty that impacts their ability to perform their duties.
• The sponsor gets issued a penalty for failure to pay VAT or duty within the last five years.

The Home Office may downgrade a sponsor licence rating if any of these arises

• The company fails to comply with sponsor duties
• The Home Office is not satisfied that the sponsor is using a process that is necessary to fully comply with their sponsor duties.
• The sponsor fails to cooperate with a compliance check or deliberately delays compliance activity.
• The sponsor provides false information or keeps information from the Home Office.
• The organisation sponsored more than 20 foreign workers on the Intra-Company Graduate Trainee route or the Graduate Trainee sub-category of the Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) route with start dates in the same financial year.

What is the Impact of a B-rating?

Sponsoring companies with a B-rating cannot issue Certificates of Sponsorship to new employees until they improve their sponsor licence rating. Although, they will still be able to issue Certificates of Sponsorship to existing workers who want to extend their permission to stay.

Ratings are typically the same for all tiers a sponsor is registered for, but if they perform poorly in a single tier, the Home Office may assign a B rating to that tier alone.

As the B rating is a transitional rating, it is not expected that affected sponsors will remain there indefinitely. They must adhere to an action plan to restore their A-rating within a specified time frame or risk having it revoked.