How to employ foreign nationals in the UK

You should apply for a license to sponsor if you intend to employ nationals that are not British, Irish or EU nationals that have settle or pre-settled status in the UK. Your license will be valid for 4 years. The 4 years will run from the date your licence is granted. You must apply to renew it before the 4 years has expired if you wish to continue sponsoring workers. The amount you pay depends on the type of licence you are applying for, the size of your organisation, or whether you have charitable status.

If you already held a valid sponsor licence under the Tier 2 and 5 sponsorship arrangements in place before 1 December 2020, you do not need to apply for a new licence, unless your licence is about to expire.

Once you have successfully applied for a worker license you may then issue a Certificate of Sponsorship to the potential overseas employee. A CoS confirms the details of the job for which you will be sponsoring the worker. A skilled worker visa will then be issued to your employee allowing them to live and work in the UK for the duration of their certificate.