Location Location Location – and its importance for Sponsored Workers

One of the mandatory fields to complete on the CoS is the main work address from where the sponsored worker will be performing duties of their job. Any additional addresses can be added on the CoS as ‘other regular work address’.

When applying for a sponsor licence, organisations are required to provide details of their main work address, as well as any additional work addresses or branches where their sponsor migrant workers may be performing their duties from. 

The place where sponsored workers will undertake their role should be noted on their CoS, and that sometimes may require the addition of a branch to the sponsor licence. If an address provided on the CoS is not connected to the sponsor licence, this can cause the Home Office to have concerns about the genuineness of the worker’s role.

Changes to worker’s location

Sponsors have a duty to report changes to their sponsored workers’ work location through their Sponsor Management System (SMS) within 10 working days of the change occurring in the following instances:

• When a worker’s normal work location changes to a new or different site, branch, or client’s premises that was not previously declared on the licence.
• The sponsored worker switches to permanent, full-time remote working from home, with little or no requirement to attend a workplace.

The Home Office recognises that many organisations nowadays operate with hybrid working models.  The Home Office guidance Part 3: Sponsor duties and compliance defines hybrid working as ‘where their workers work remotely (from either their home or another remote site, such as a work hub space) on a regular basis, as well as regularly attending a ‘traditional’ work location (such as one or more of your offices or branches, or a client site).’

Sponsors do not need to tell the Home Office if a sponsored worker is moving to a hybrid working pattern or report day-to-day changes in their work location - for instance, if a worker occasionally split their time between remote work and regular attendance at an office or client site. However, any change to the workers’ regular working patterns, or change to their main work location, or any new client sites, must be reported. It is important to note that Sponsors must also maintain suitable records of the sponsored workers’ working patterns.

Important Considerations – Remote Working

If a sponsored worker moves from being office-based to being a full-time permanent remote home worker, the Home Office may question is there a genuine need for sponsorship – i.e. why the worker must be sponsored in the UK, or if they could do the work from their home country. It is therefore critical that sponsors clearly explain why remote worker is required, in case the Home Office questions genuineness of the role. 

If a sponsored worker will spend most of their employment working for the sponsor from outside the UK, it is advisable to report this change to the Home Office via SMS and provide a justification, explaining why the worker needs UK sponsorship despite their remote working arrangement.

Working for a different branch or related organisation 

A sponsored worker can work for any part of the sponsor’s organisation, such as a branch office, subsidiary, parent company or sister company, registered as a ‘branch’ on the sponsor licence. 

The sponsored worker’s main work location must align with their employer's approved locations, which are listed on the sponsor licence. These will normally be office locations and branches included when the organisation was applying for sponsor licence. If the organisation subsequently acquires new premises or branch, or they change their main premises during the time of their licence, they will need to report that change through the SMS.

If a sponsored worker moves to a different registered branch or work location to the one recorded on their CoS, the sponsor must report that through their SMS within 10 working days of the change occurring. Equally, if there a sponsor changes their main office location, once the change of the main address is reported through the SMS and reflected on their sponsor licence, the sponsor will also need to update the main work location for each of their sponsored workers based at the changed work address. 

Adding a branch

If the sponsor wishes to move a sponsored worker to work for a branch that is not yet registered on their licence, they must make a request to add a new branch to the licence. 

Processing of the requests to add a new branch can take up to 18 weeks before new branch is added to the licence and the Home Office informs the sponsor of their decision. 

The Home Office guidance Part 2: sponsor a worker states that the worker can start working for the new branch before it has been added to the licence, provided all of the following conditions are met: 

• the relationship between sponsor and the branch meets the definition of ‘common ownership or control’ in section GBM2 of Sponsor a Global Business Mobility worker
• sponsor has, and will continue to have, full responsibility for the worker’s duties, functions and outcomes or outputs
• sponsor has notified the Home Office of the worker’s change of work location within 10 working days of the change
• sponsor has made a request to add the relevant branch to their licence within 20 working days of the date the worker started working for that branch 

Sponsors should also be aware that if the request to add the branch to their licence is rejected, they must not continue to sponsor the worker to work at that branch, however the worker can continue to work for them at any other branch currently registered on the licence. If the worker continues to work for the unregistered branch, they will be in breach of their conditions and may have their permission cancelled, in addition to which the Home Office may take compliance action against the sponsor. 

Conclusion

Understanding and adhering to the Home Office’s guidance is essential for ensuring compliance with sponsor licence duties. Whether managing work location changes or addressing remote work arrangements, employers must remain diligent in their reporting and record-keeping practices.

If you have any concerns over your work locations, or queries related to sponsor licence duties, compliance and updating the sponsor licence details, feel free to contact us or visit our website here.