Successful Sponsor Licence Application
Efficient and helpful. Amer and his Team are quick to respond to queries, even over the weekends and at night. Sponsor Licence granted after only 4 weeks. Thanks.
Daniel Johnson
UK Self Sponsorship Visa
The UK self-sponsorship visa route may be of interest if you are an entrepreneur wishing to move to and work in the UK. Contact our immigration professionals today about how they can project manage your application for a sponsor licence and visa.
Table Of Contents
If you are an entrepreneur from outside of the UK who would like to come to the UK to live and work, you might have investigated the various potential routes to achieving this, only to discover that none are truly a good match to your needs. If this describes your situation, you might have good reason to consider a self-sponsored visa for the UK.
Relatively few people know what the UK self-sponsorship visa route actually is. However, for many entrepreneurial people with an interest in moving to the UK, this category might have gained in relevance recently.
With the UK Government having lately made moves to close the Investor and Sole Representative visa routes, it might seem to many entrepreneurs that their options to relocate to the UK have now significantly narrowed.
Even when the Sole Representative visa category was active, it was not possible for majority shareholders to apply for it. As for the Innovator visa, applicants for this route are required to have an especially innovative business – in the words of the Home Office, “something that’s different from anything else on the market”.
By contrast, the UK self-sponsorship visa might be a relevant and attractive visa route for those whose needs are not well-served by the above visa options. Call our immigration specialists today, on 0208 215 0053, to learn more about how we could assist your application for this increasingly well-known visa route.
Here at Cranbrook Legal in central London, we are highly experienced and renowned in relation to the various processes entailed in securing a UK self-sponsorship visa. This encompasses the application for a sponsor licence for a UK company, as well as the subsequent application for a Skilled Worker visa for the UK.
We have an excellent track record of helping clients with a wide range of circumstances and requirements to win Home Office approval for both sponsor licences and visas.
The way in which we work is easy to understand; you will reach out to us for a free consultation, and we will then discuss your needs with you, and agree a fixed fee for our services with you from the outset of our relationship. This will make it easier for you to budget for the entire process of applying for and securing a sponsor licence and Skilled Worker visa with our help, with no need to worry about any hidden or additional charges along the way.
We will then scrupulously and efficiently project manage your case, gathering the necessary documentation with your help, and handling any Home Office questions or refusals. At every stage of our relationship, we will maintain open communication with you as part of a collaborative process. So, whatever happens, you can expect to be kept informed of the status and progress of your bid to secure a sponsor licence and self-sponsored visa for the UK.
Technically, there is no such visa as the “UK self-sponsorship visa” – or at least, not by this title. References to a self-sponsorship visa in the UK that you may have encountered elsewhere are in relation to a process whereby an overseas national may be able to come to the UK to work for their own business, without the need to have a separate UK sponsor other than the company itself.
If you are successful in being approved to come to the UK under the self-sponsorship visa route, you might subsequently use it as a platform to secure permanent residency and British citizenship for you and your family.
This method for moving to the UK as an entrepreneur isn’t very often talked about. However, it has attracted greater mention in recent times as a consequence of alternative entrepreneurial visa routes to the UK having closed down or become restricted.
It is a completely legal process. However, it is also important to ensure you fulfil the relevant requirements for both the sponsor licence and the visa itself – including having experience in the field in which you wish to run a UK business, and sufficient money to fund its expansion.
In theory, any UK business would be able to sponsor you under the self-sponsored visa route, provided that it satisfies the requirements in order to be approved for a sponsor licence by the Home Office. It is not an option, for example, that is only open to businesses in certain industries and of certain sizes.
However, in order for your UK company to be approved for a sponsor licence, it will need to convince the Home Office that it has appropriate systems in place for monitoring sponsored employees, as well as the staff to manage the business’s sponsorship responsibilities.
Employers are also unable to obtain a sponsor licence if they have:
When the UK organisation submits an application for a sponsor licence, UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) will scrutinise the application form and the documents provided in support of the application. UKVI may also pay an in-person visit to the business to ensure it is a reputable organisation capable of undertaking its sponsorship duties.
As an applicant for the Skilled Worker visa with an interest in being sponsored for this by your own company, you can expect to need to prove your English language knowledge as part of your application, unless you already did this in a previous successful application for a UK visa.
More specifically, if you wish to obtain a UK self-sponsorship visa, you will need to prove your ability to read, write, speak, and understand English to at least level B1 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale.
Whether you need to take a test, however, will depend on your particular situation. You will not need to take a test if you can prove your English knowledge by the following means:
There are also certain exemptions from the need to prove English language knowledge. If you are a national of one of the below countries, for example, you will not be required to prove your knowledge of English:
If you are unsure where you stand in relation to the English language requirements for the UK self-sponsorship visa category, please do not hesitate to call our team of professionals in immigration law now, on 0208 215 0053. We can provide advice and guidance based on your circumstances.
Why Customers Love Us ?
Successful Sponsor Licence Application
Efficient and helpful. Amer and his Team are quick to respond to queries, even over the weekends and at night. Sponsor Licence granted after only 4 weeks. Thanks.
Daniel Johnson
Care Home Sponsor Licence Application!
We used Cranbrook Legal for the processing of a Sponsor Licence Application. We are a Health Care provider and have faced huge difficulties in recruiting for our Care Homes. Amer and his team were quick to identify the documents needed for our specific case and they were able to prepare a really strong application. I have no doubt that the really good Cover Letter convinced the Home Office to approve our Application. Thanks again, superb work!
Sophie Barton
ILR Application
Thanks to Amer and team for all help given to me my indefinite visa and British citizenship : so many solicitor tell me that British Nationality is impossible for me but Amer looked at my file and took care and fight with Home Office and in the end they give up and give me British Nationality .thank you for Amer and Cranbrook team
Hossan Ali
Yes, we can! We have long helped organisations of all sizes and sectors to get approved by the Home Office for the sponsor licence that they will usually need in order to employ someone from outside of the UK to work for them. In the case of the UK self-sponsorship visa category, that ‘someone’ will, of course, be you, coming to the UK on a Skilled Worker visa.
You can find more information about everything we do to help firms secure a sponsor licence on the relevant page of our website. This will inform you on such aspects as what a sponsor licence is, what is involved in applying for a sponsor licence, and what documents you will need.
Please call our immigration solicitors on 0208 215 0053 today, for further details on how we can assist you in obtaining a sponsor licence for your UK company.
As an applicant for the Skilled Worker visa with an interest in being sponsored for this by your own company, you can expect to need to prove your English language knowledge as part of your application, unless you already did this in a previous successful application for a UK visa.
More specifically, if you wish to obtain a UK self-sponsorship visa, you will need to prove your ability to read, write, speak, and understand English to at least level B1 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale.
Whether you need to take a test, however, will depend on your particular situation. You will not need to take a test if you can prove your English knowledge by the following means:
There are also certain exemptions from the need to prove English language knowledge. If you are a national of one of the below countries, for example, you will not be required to prove your knowledge of English:
If you are unsure where you stand in relation to the English language requirements for the UK self-sponsorship visa category, please do not hesitate to call our team of professionals in immigration law now, on 0208 215 0053. We can provide advice and guidance based on your circumstances.
Why Choose Us For Your UK Self Sponsorship Visa ?
Even before you apply for the visa itself, it will be necessary for your UK company to provide the Home Office with certain documents as part of its application for a sponsor licence.
Most organisations wishing to apply for a sponsor licence in the UK will be expected to supply at least four documents in support of their application. The exact documents that will need to be provided will depend on the status and circumstances of your organisation in the UK. Examples of such documents may include the most recent business bank statement, a certificate of VAT registration, and evidence that your organisation is registered as an employer with HM Revenue & Customs. You will find more information on our dedicated sponsor licence page.
Once your UK company has been approved for a sponsor licence by the Home Office, further documents will be required for your application for the Skilled Worker visa. These will include:
There are other documents beyond the above that you might be required to provide for your UK self-sponsorship visa application. The Home Office may request such documents as the below:
For more information and advice in relation to the documents you might need to gather for your UK company’s application for a sponsor licence or your subsequent application for a Skilled Worker visa, please call our experts in immigration law today, on 0208 215 0053. You are also welcome to book a free consultation with us via our straightforward online contact form.
In the event that you are successful in being approved for a Skilled Worker visa, your permission to remain in the UK on this visa can last for as long as five years before you will need to extend it. You will be required to apply to extend or update your visa when the expiry date arrives, or if you switch to a different job or employer.
You are allowed to apply to extend this visa as many times as you like, provided that you continue meeting the eligibility requirements for this route.
However, after five years on this visa, it may be possible for you to apply to settle permanently in the UK – a status also known as ‘indefinite leave to remain’. Acquiring this status would enable you to continue living, working, and studying in the UK for as long as you wish, as well as to apply for benefits if you meet the eligibility criteria for these.
If you are successful in being approved for a UK self-sponsorship visa, you will be told of this via letter or email.
If you provided your biometric information at a visa application centre, you can expect to receive a sticker – otherwise known as a ‘vignette’ – that will go in your passport. Successful applicants who used the smartphone app to prove their identity will be given access to view their immigration status online, instead of the vignette.
Regardless, the vignette or online immigration status information will show:
For anyone who applies and is approved for a UK visa who receives a vignette and will spend more than six months in the UK on their visa, it will be necessary for them to collect a biometric residence permit (BRP) once they arrive in the UK. You will need to do this prior to the vignette sticker’s expiry, or within 10 days of your arrival in the UK – whichever is later.
In the unfortunate event that the Home Office refuses your application for a self-sponsored visa for the UK, you will receive an email or letter informing you of this, and explaining why your application was unsuccessful. This letter will also set out your options if you wish to challenge the decision.
Although it isn’t possible to appeal a Home Office decision not to grant you a Skilled Worker visa, there might still be options available to you, including applying for an administrative review, applying for a judicial review, or simply preparing and submitting a new application for this visa.
Naturally, different options from the above might suit different circumstances. It is also important to understand the differences in substance between these options.
No given individual’s circumstances are entirely the same as the next, which is why – if you have been turned down for a self-sponsorship visa for the UK – it is crucial to have the benefit of the most tailored and informed advice and guidance.
Our award-winning and seasoned immigration solicitors at Cranbrook Legal can provide that advice and guidance; give us a call now, on 0208 215 0053, to discuss your situation and options.
What Our Customers Say About Us
Excellent service from Cranbrook Legal! They were incredibly patient, thorough, and detailed with my endorsement application. Their support and guidance throughout the entire process were invaluable.
Paing Phyo Thiha
Very good experience, despite never even meeting or seeing the lawyers (phone/zoom/email). They were very meticulous in checking all our documents were complete, and my VISA
Auri
The British spousal visa process is a horrendous ordeal full of incomplete and misleading information, traps and pitfalls designed to make only the smartest (or richest)
Tom Dennehy
Excellent experience with Cranbrook and Bilal - acquired our visa sponsorship license and then sponsored a candidate with their assistance. Whole process was very smooth and
Ben Anderson
Was super impressed with Cranbrook Legal. They were efficient and friendly, and most importantly really explained the process properly and simply. We secured our sponsor licence
Annabel Fox
Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as the “UK self-sponsorship visa category”, in terms of any UK visa officially carrying this name. Moreover, there is not technically such thing as “self-sponsorship” for a UK visa, as in the case of the Skilled Worker visa, it would be your company, rather than you as an individual, technically doing the sponsoring. The term “UK self-sponsorship visa”, then, essentially refers to a method for moving to and living and working in the UK as an entrepreneur through the relevant visa route, which would actually be the Skilled Worker visa.
When you are looking to set up a company in the UK in order to take advantage of this visa route, if you are a non-UK resident, it will be necessary for you to appoint a UK-based director initially.
However, once you have secured the Skilled Worker visa so that you can move to and work in the UK for your UK company, you will be able to serve as director for the company yourself, if you wish.
Yes, you will be entitled to have shares in the business that is set up in the UK – even having 100% of the shares and serving as director, if you wish.
However, if you are a non-UK national seeking to move to the UK on the self-sponsorship visa, the fact that the UK company will need to exist first will mean you will need to appoint a UK-based director at first. You will also ideally need to have someone in the company – who is settled in the UK or a British citizen – who will be able to serve as the Authorising Officer for the company in its capacity as a sponsor licence holder.
If you have any queries about any of the above or would simply like to discuss your own situation in greater depth with us, please do not hesitate to call our team of specialists in immigration law on 0208 215 0053.
There is no minimum required amount of investment for those wishing to obtain a self-sponsored visa for the UK. Nor is there a maximum amount.
You will, however, need to have access to resources of an adequate level for supporting your proposed business in the UK. The exact amount of investment required will therefore depend on your business’s particular needs; it could be as little as £25,000, for example, or it could be far in excess of this.
Yes, it is possible for your partner/spouse and children to join you in the UK as your ‘dependants’ through this visa route, provided that they satisfy the eligibility requirements. They will be required to complete their own applications, and if the Home Office approves their applications, their visas will expire on the same date as yours.
For the purposes of the UK self-sponsorship visa route, a ‘dependant’ partner or child will be defined as one of the following:
Evidence of the relationship will need to accompany the visa application. Your partner and children will also need to have a certain amount of money to support themselves while they are in the UK; this will be £285 for your partner, £315 for one child, and £200 for each additional child.
For a more detailed discussion of everything that will be involved in getting your partner and children to join you on the UK self-sponsorship visa route, including documentation and the timeframe for the application process, please contact us today to arrange your free consultation.
There will be fees associated with the process of obtaining a self-sponsored visa for the UK; not just for the actual visa application, but also for the sponsor licence application before this.
At the time of typing, the following were the Home Office fees for sponsor licence applications:
|
Type of licence |
Fee for small or charitable sponsors |
Fee for medium or large sponsors |
|
Worker |
£536 |
£1,476 |
|
Temporary Worker |
£536 |
£536 |
|
Worker and Temporary Worker |
£536 |
£1,476 |
|
Adding a Worker licence to an existing Temporary Worker licence |
No fee |
£940 |
|
Adding a Temporary Worker licence to an existing Worker licence |
No fee |
No fee |
As for when you come to apply for the Skilled Worker visa as part of the UK self-sponsorship visa route, the standard fee for this ranges from £625 to £1,423, depending on your circumstances. However, it isn’t just the application fee for the visa that you will need to account for financially.
This is because it will also be necessary to pay the healthcare surcharge, which is typically £624 a year, and the Home Office will also expect you to have enough money to support yourself during your time in the UK on this visa. Applicants for this visa are normally required to have a minimum of £1,270 available for these purposes, unless they are exempt.
Presuming you are applying from outside the UK for a Skilled Worker visa, the application fee for the visa itself will be £625 per person if you wish to stay in the UK on this visa for up to three years. If you wish to remain on this visa for more than three years, the fee will be £1,235 per person.
As someone who already has this visa and is applying from inside the UK to extend, switch or update the visa, the standard fee if you intend to remain in the UK for up to an additional three years will be £719 per person. If you intend the visa to be extended for a stay of more than an additional three years, the Home Office will charge you £1,423 per person for this.
There is one other factor that you will need to consider as far as fees for the UK self-sponsorship visa route are concerned; those for a solicitor’s services. As we explained further up this page, the process of obtaining a sponsor licence and then the Skilled Worker visa is one for which you will benefit from having skilled, knowledgeable, and experienced specialists in immigration law by your side.
Here at Cranbrook Legal in central London, we can provide these services on a fixed-fee basis to help you budget for this crucial process. If you have any other questions about the fees and costs associated with the process of obtaining a self-sponsorship visa for the UK, please reach out to us and book a free consultation with our UK self-sponsorship team. You can email us via info@cranbrooklegal.com, or call the team on 0208 215 0053.
No. It is difficult to open a bank account whilst abroad which is why the shareholder must be British.
Shareholding can go to the applicant, but this must be declared before submitting the application.
If the candidate isn’t taking a senior or a director role, they can become a shareholder.
If the candidate takes the role of a director, then they can be both, but the salary would be very high.
This is not mandatory however it is beneficial to have evidence of banking to prove footprints.
The self-sponsorship route is under the Skilled Worker Category.
Yes, multiple applicants can be sponsored using the same company licence.
This will be a separate Skilled worker application.
We have a 100 percent Success rate across all our matters.
Yes, there are no restrictions on your country of origins regardless of the state of the country.
Yes, you can indeed sponsor yourself with your own company.
Your family members can act as AO however, they cannot act as the Level 1 user to assign your own COS.
This depends on the job role however if you are unsure, we would advise you to just obtain it.
Roles:
Roles with children
NHS staff
Health and care
Yes, this route leads directly to settlement. After spending a total of 5 years on the skilled worker visa, you will become eligible for Indefinite Leave to Remain.
We can offer a bespoke package depending upon your circumstances and the level of assistance required.
No minimum investment required, but you are required to have the necessary funds for the launch and the ongoing business operations.
No, however, you must have the necessary funds to ensure that the business is viable.
Any type of business can be eligible for this route; however, some businesses are easier to set up then others. We can advise further upon getting a better understanding of your circumstances.
There is no requirement for a physical office, but we recommend that there is at least a dedicated place of work.
You can take additional employment whilst you are a holder of a Skilled Worker Visa but this will be dependent on the role you hold. There is also a limit to the number of hours you can work in a secondary job.
The maximum length you can apply for is 5 years and the minimum term is one year.
Your Visa will be largely dependent on the salary that you receive. If you are unable to pay your monthly salary, you will not be eligible for Indefinite Leave to Remain.
Yes, you will need to pay yourself a salary for the duration of the Visa. This salary should be in accordance with the amount stated in the Certificate of Sponsorship.
To ensure continuity of the Sponsor Licence that your organisation holds and to demonstrate compliance with the Immigration Rules, if your AO leaves their role, they will need to be replaced immediately. We would advise that there should be a transition process between the two AO’s.
We would advise that you provide an up-to-date CV and a comprehensive Business Plan in order to demonstrate to the Home Office that you have the skills to be able to establish and maintain your business for the length of your Visa.
Yes, the Applicant will need to demonstrate that they can speak English to the required level in all 4 skill components (Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening.
No, you can choose any type of business in any industry. What you need to be careful about is choosing which role you wish to be sponsored for your employment.
This is not a mandatory requirement. The Business Plan is submitted to the Home Office to give them confidence that the business idea is well thought-out, feasible and most importantly, intends to keep the job role that you intend to apply under.
Companies House (the Department which registers Companies in the UK) does not discriminate which country you are from. This means you can establish a Company in the usual way through the .gov website
Yes, you can switch from a UK Visa into the Skilled Worker Visa under the Self Sponsorship programme. There are however some exceptions, they include:
The biggest challenge that you can encounter is ensuring that your Company can pay you the appropriate salary through the length of your Visa.
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