How do I sponsor a migrant worker?
Key personnel
This page explains what roles you need to allocate to key personnel to apply for a licence under the points-based system.
On this page
The main roles
As a potential sponsor, you must allocate some responsibilities to members of your staff. There are 4 roles:
- authorising officer;
- level 1 user;
- level 2 user; and
- key contact.
Who can fill the roles?
These roles can all be filled by the same person, or by a combination of different people. You will be able to appoint additional level 1 and/or level 2 users later on if necessary. All of these people must be based in the UK.
Who has access to the sponsorship management system?
Only the level 1 user and level 2 user will have access to the sponsorship management system.
The authorising officer is responsible for the staff who use the sponsorship management system. For example, the authorising officer is responsible for deciding how many staff will have access to the system and what level of permission they will have. The level 1 user is responsible for setting up accounts for all additional sponsorship management system users.
The authorising officer must decide whether they will need to be the level 1 user or if not, which staff member to appoint to the role.
Checks on criminal records
We make checks on the authorising officer, key contact and level 1 user, and may make checks on the owner(s) or director(s) and any person involved in the day-to-day running of the organisation. These include checks against our own records and the police national computer, or its equivalent in Northern Ireland. We may make these checks while we are considering an application for a sponsor licence, or at any time during the lifetime of the licence. We will repeat the checks if new individuals take up any of these roles during the lifetime of the licence.
If any of these people have any unspent criminal convictions or have been issued with a civil penalty by us in the last 12 months, or if they have come to our adverse notice, we may refuse the application for a sponsor licence or withdraw the sponsor licence if it has already been granted.
See How we can refuse a licence for more information.