Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) UK

A Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) is required by a foreign worker who has accepted a formal job offer from a UK-based company. The company that issues this certificate must be in compliance with UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) policies and hold a Sponsor Licence.

The CoS can be created through the Sponsor Management System (SMS) which a company may access when their sponsorship licence is granted.

This certificate can be issued only by an approved person within the company who has access to the SMS at the appropriate level.

A CoS is valid for 90 days from the date of issue. The migrant worker or skilled worker must apply for their visa within 90 days to ensure that the certificate does not expire.

However, foreign workers who should not apply for visas three months in advance of the job start date.

In the previous system, there were unrestricted and restricted eligibility criteria for Certificates of Sponsorship. This was to keep the number of applications to a certain level at an annual cap.

However, changes to the immigration rules in December 2020 meant that a number of new changes were introduced.

The two defined certificate types are ‘defined’ Certificates of Sponsorship and ‘undefined’ Certificates of Sponsorship. For defined certificates, the employer should apply through the SMS. When these certificates have been approved by UKVI, the documents will be available to access on the SMS.

Undefined certificates are used to employ people already living in the UK who want to move to a Skilled Worker visa. When an employer applies for a first skilled worker visa applicants the CoS, they should submit an estimate of the number of undefined certificates needed for the first year.

Applications for Certificates of Sponsorship are usually approved within one working day, but may take longer if further information is deemed necessary.

Certificates of Sponsorship are required for a number of visa types. Visas that require a CoS include:

• Charity Worker
• Creative Worker
• Government-Authorised Exchange Participant
• Global Business Mobility Visa Holders:
  • Graduate Trainee
  • Secondment Worker
  • Service Supplier
  • Senior or Specialist Worker
  • UK Expansion Worker
• Health or Care Worker
• International Sportsperson
• Minister of Religion or Religious Worker
• Scale-Up Worker
• Skilled Worker
• Seasonal Worker
• Worker Under International Agreement

The eligibility requirements are different for employers who want to become a licence sponsor, and for employees requiring a CoS.

Employer Eligibility 

To be eligible for a licence as an employer, your business must adhere to strict immigration laws. This includes conducting proper Right to Work checks and maintaining accurate records of sponsored workers while reporting significant changes to UKVI. Employers must also demonstrate financial stability to cover the worker’s salary and associated costs.

Additionally, a clean compliance and criminal record is essential; any history of immigration breaches or having a sponsor licence revoked can disqualify employers from obtaining or retaining a sponsor licence.

Employee Eligibility 

The Certificate of Sponsorship  is intended for non-UK nationals who do not possess the right to work in the UK through other means, such as having indefinite leave to remain, obtaining a visa through a British national family member or spouse, or EU settled status.

To be eligible for a Certificate of Sponsorship, employees must ensure that the job offered aligns with the UK government’s requirements, typically requiring a skill level of RQF level 3 or above and meeting the minimum salary threshold, which varies by visa category.

Employees must meet all the requirements of the visa they are applying for, including language proficiency, financial conditions, and health checks, as well as having a clear criminal record and no prior immigration violations, such as having previously overstayed a visa past the expiry date.

UK companies who hire overseas skilled workers must secure a sponsor licence from the Home Office. Companies are required to provide evidence of four specific documents to evidence the company’s status as a legal trading entity in the UK. A supporting letter should also be submitted to provide the UKVI caseworker with background information on the applicant.

Setting Up Your Business to Become a Sponsor

First, employers must sign up to the Sponsor Management System (SMS). This is where you should manage all sponsorship activities and immigration compliance. You will need to request a Certificate of Sponsorship allocation, and clarify how many you need.

You will need to appoint at least one UK based individual within your business to manage sponsorship processes for you. If you are applying for a UK Expansion Worker visa, this person can be based abroad if required.

The roles that either the individual or team need to fulfil are as follows:

• A senior and competent person as an Authorising Officer
• A key point of contact for UKVI
• A level 1 user to manage the SMS on a day to day.

Types of Certificates of Sponsorship 

You must decide which licence you are required to obtain based on the eligibility criteria of your business and the employees you intend to hire:

• Defined CoS: commonly used for recruiting employees from outside the UK under the Skilled Worker visa
• Undefined CoS: commonly used for Skilled worker visa from within the UK and other visa applications.

Employers are required to estimate the number of employees they will be hiring in the first year under the type of Certificate of Sponsorship they are applying for. Evidence must be provided to back up this estimate, including information about the roles and potential employees in question.

Defined Certificates of Sponsorship

Defined CoS are limited in the number you can apply for. Within the UKVI online SMS portal, you can submit your request that should including the job details and salary information. This request will then be reviewed by the UKVI to ensure your request meets immigration standards.

In general, you can expect to hear back from UKVI within 8-12 weeks and once approved, you will be added to the official register of licensed sponsors.

Undefined Certificates of Sponsorship

There are no restrictions on the number of Undefined Certificates of Sponsorship available. They also do not need to go through an approval method, and therefore you can assign a CoS to the employee through the SMS portal by generating a unique reference number for them to include in their visa application form.

How to Apply 

You can apply to become a sponsor online or through us. After completing the online application, you need to submit the submission sheet provided at the end of the application and all supporting documents requested.

To upload documents, you can scan or take photos of your submission sheet and supporting documents and send them to the email address on the submission sheet. Ensure your files:

• Are in PDF, JPEG, or PNG format
• Have descriptive titles with 25 or fewer characters
• Are clear enough to read

If your documents are not in English or Welsh, include a certified translation, as detailed in the guidance for sponsors.

The documents required to apply for your CoS will be clarified after you complete your online application. A submission sheet will be automatically generated based on the details you provide, which will summarise the list of documents required for you to include in your application.

Most employers need to submit at least four documents (or four combinations of documents) with their application. This includes:

• Certificate of Sponsorship application form
• Copy of National Insurance Number of employee
• Copies of the worker’s essential qualifications
• Copy of the worker’s CV
• Details of the route on which the migrant worker is being sponsored
• Proof of salary offered to the migrant worker
• Information about the role the migrant worker will hold in the UK
• Overview of tasks the international worker will carry out
• Information about how many hours the migrant employee will work per week
• Confirmation of start and end dates of employment
• Receipt confirming the sponsor paid a fee for assigning the Certificate of Sponsorship
• Contact details of the employer.

It’s important that your Authorising Officer signs and dates the declaration on the submission sheet. You must send all pages of the submission sheet along with your supporting documents to the provided email address within 5 working days of your online application submission.

Any affidavits or statutory declarations you submit must be signed by a qualified, independent witness, such as a adviser, Notary Public, Justice of the Peace, Commissioner for Oaths, or a Councillor (only in Scotland)

You need to determine the appropriate license to obtain based on your business’s eligibility criteria and the employees you plan to hire.

When applying for a certificate of sponsorship, employers must estimate the number of employees they will hire in the first year, depending on the type of CoS they are seeking. Defined CoS have a limit on the number you can apply for. Within the UKVI online SMS portal, you can submit your request to assign a certificate. This request will be evaluated by UKVI to ensure it meets immigration standards.

In contrast, there are no limitations on the number of undefined CoS’s available. These do not require an approval process, allowing you to assign a CoS directly to an employee through the SMS portal by generating a unique reference number for their visa application.

The SMS is an important tool used by your business to manage the licences of temporary workers, sourced from outside the UK.

The approved personnel in your company whose role is to manage the system should be sure to update the system when necessary. The SMS should be used to record periods of unauthorised absence from work or any changes to the employee’s immigration status.

Obtaining a CoS is completed through the SMS by submitting an application for overseas, sponsored visa application for foreign workers. This can then be provided to the employee directly.

If you are issuing a CoS for a Skilled Worker, the cost of the certificate is £525. For a Temporary Worker, the cost of the certificate is £55.

In some cases, a priority service may be available to receive a quicker decision, at an additional cost of £500.

Processing time for CoS

In most cases, there will be a standard processing time for Certificates of Sponsorship of one working day. If the Home Office requires further information or your application is incomplete, your waiting time may be longer.

It may be the case that the Home Office performs a compliance visit to ensure that your organisation is remaining compliant.

Only minor errors can be changed once you have submitted a CoS assignment. Minor errors that can be amended include misspelling names or incorrect dates of birth, and you can amend this by adding a ‘sponsor note’ in the Sponsor Management System.

However, for significant mistakes, including changes to the occupation code or sponsorship route, the assigned CoS must be cancelled, and a new application must be made.

If an employee changes roles within your organisation, you may need to submit a ‘change employment application.’ To do this, you must issue a new CoS for the new role and perform the necessary UK right to work checks again. The employee can continue working in their current role with you while waiting for the visa decision.

To cancel a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), you must do so within five days of being notified if an employee leaves, changes jobs outside the current SOC code, or moves to a new employer.

It’s important to note that an employee can only hold one active CoS at a time, so the original certificate must be cancelled before a new one can be issued. Failing to cancel promptly may lead to compliance issues with UKVI.