Guide to Sponsor Licence

Understand what you need to apply

Before applying, you’ll need to make sure your organisation is ready and has the required documents, systems and people in place.

Collect required documents

Collect documents to show you are a genuine employer and work and trade in the UK. For example:

• Proof of business registration with HMRC
• Filed accounts and bank statements
• Evidence of your HR systems

Choose key staff

Choose someone to manage the Sponsor Management System. This person needs to be British or settled and an employee, director, or partner in your organisation.

Plan your application timeline

Decisions from UKVI can take eight weeks or more. A priority service is available for certain routes, which reduces the decision time to 10 working days.

If eligible, you’ll need to pay a £750 fee for the priority service.

Apply online

Fill in the sponsor licence application form on the UK Home Office website.

Pay the application fee

Pay the application fee as part of your application. The fee depends on the size of your organisation.

• Check the application fees for a sponsor licence (gov.uk).

Send supporting documents

After applying, you’ll have five working days to email the supporting documents you collected earlier, such as proof of business registration, bank statements, and evidence of HR systems.