General guidance on sponsoring overseas nationals

As an employer, the University has a responsibility to prevent illegal working in the UK. It is a criminal offence to knowingly employ a person who requires but lacks immigration permission. There is a maximum prison sentence of 2 years and an unlimited fine for employers caught in breach. Employers must carry out document checks to confirm if a person has right to work in the UK. Copies of original, acceptable documents are taken and retained, or an online right to work check is conducted. The Employers guide to right to work checks sets out what is required.

The University has a licence to sponsor foreign workers, granted by the Home Office (UK Visas and Immigration - UKVI), and must always meet the terms of this licence. The University is regularly audited by UKVI and any licence breaches could result in the licence being suspended, downgraded, or withdrawn and no longer being able to sponsor both staff and students from overseas.

Our responsibilities as a licenced sponsor include:

• checking that foreign workers have the necessary skills, qualifications, or professional accreditations to do their jobs, and keeping copies of documents showing this
• only assigning certificates of sponsorship to workers when the job is suitable for sponsorship
• telling UKVI if sponsored workers are not complying with the conditions of their visa
• monitoring employees’ immigration status
• keeping copies of relevant documents including right to work information
• tracking and recording attendance
• keeping employee contact details up to date
• reporting to UKVI if there is a problem

Full guidance on the documents which must be retained are available.

Overseas nationals can apply to come to the UK utilising the points-based immigration system. Most frequently they will fall into the Skilled Worker visa route. This involves the individual meeting specific criteria for the University to make an application for a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) which is issued to the individual, who then makes a subsequent visa application.

There is a list of eligible occupations. The Staff Immigration Team can provide guidance on eligible occupations and job descriptions at recruiting stage. As a recruiting manager it is advisable to also refer to this list at the start of any recruitment process.

In order to successfully obtain a visa, the individual will need to meet a set of non-tradeable and tradeable points which is detailed in the Home Office guidance. The Staff Immigration Team will provide advice on the options available under the non-tradeable and tradeable points.

Where a job applicant has confirmed on their application that they would require permission to work in the UK, and the Employee Services Onboarding Team are informed an offer has been made, the Staff Immigration Team will work closely with the recruiting department to co-ordinate the process of obtaining the required permission to work.

The visa type description list is a helpful tool along with the Visa Quick Reference Guide (PDF, 525kB) 

Last updated: 15/4/2024