22/07/2025
Recent Changes to Home Office Sponsorship Licences from 22 July 2025
Key Changes Effective 22 July 2025
1. Increased Skill Threshold
• The minimum skill requirement for sponsoring a Skilled Worker has increased from RQF Level 3 (A-level/equivalent) to RQF Level 6 (graduate level).
o Exceptions: Jobs on the Immigration Salary List or Temporary Shortage List, and some transition cases, are exempt from this new threshold.
• This change significantly reduces the range of roles eligible for sponsorship, particularly affecting lower-skilled positions.
2. End of Overseas Recruitment for Care Workers
• Overseas applications for roles under occupation codes 6135 (care workers and home carers) and 6136 (senior care workers) are now prohibited.
• Only current lawful UK workers in these roles are eligible for sponsorship under strict transitional provisions
3. Salary Thresholds Increased
• General and occupation-specific minimum salary thresholds have risen for all roles eligible for Skilled Worker sponsorship.
o Each Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) assigned on or after 22 July 2025 must meet these new thresholds, except where transitional arrangements apply
4. Stricter Requirements for Dependents
Skilled Workers sponsored for jobs below RQF Level 6 generally cannot bring dependents, except where transitional provisions or specific Immigration Rules apply
5. Documentary and Eligibility Requirements for Care Sector Sponsors
• To sponsor care or senior care workers in England (only those allowed under the rules), your business must:
o Be actively engaged in at least one regulated activity.
o Hold current Care Quality Commission (CQC) registration.
o Submit working locations, details of the regulated activity, and your CQC registration number with applications and all related CoS requests
6. Cooling-Off Periods Extended After Revocations
• If your sponsor licence has been revoked multiple times, or if your Key Personnel have been associated with multiple revoked licences, the “cooling-off period” before you can reapply is now extended to 24 months
7. Additional Guidance and Compliance Emphasis
• Ongoing rollout of eVisas and discontinuation of physical immigration documents.
• Sponsors must not recoup the licence or administrative fees from sponsored workers for any CoS assigned on/after 31 December 2024.
• Revocation, suspension, or downgrading of licences remains a risk for non-compliance, including breaches of national minimum wage regulations or sponsor duties.
Implications for Health and Social Care Providers
• Home care and residential care providers can no longer offer Skilled Worker sponsorship to new overseas care workers or senior care workers from abroad.
• Only those with existing legal work status in the UK may, in some cases, be sponsored (under strict conditions and temporary provisions).
• Providers must follow updated recruitment, salary, and compliance standards.
For full compliance, always refer to the latest official Home Office sponsor guidance and ensure HR and recruitment teams are trained and updated accordingly. Seek professional guidance if you need to.
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