Recruitment of employees is an important aspect of any organisation. It is very important to hire the right staff for a successful business. It has been said by many famous people that if you take care of your employees, they will take care of your customers.
But what will you do if you cannot find appropriate skills in your employees? What if the talent pool in your own country in this case in the UK is not enough? Yes, you can definitely recruit workers from overseas in that scenario.
However, to recruit non-UK employees you will need to apply for a sponsor licence. The importance of a sponsor licence has increased now more than ever. You must be thinking why is it now even more important? The answer to that question lies in the new immigration policies that will make the new British policies post-Brexit.
Earlier to hire people from any country that was a part of the European Union, the businesses did not need a sponsor licence. However, now as with Brexit, free movement has come to an end, all UK based businesses require a sponsor licence to hire anyone from out of the UK.
So, in conclusion, yes, you can recruit overseas workers but only if you have a sponsor licence.
The other question that is often raised is how do businesses realise that if they need a sponsor licence?
Well, the answer lies in multiple layers. The need is determined on the basis of what it will cost you to hire a non-UK employee. Is hiring someone from outside worth it? This especially is important for small businesses like the meat industries, small restaurants, etc. They need to realise before applying that if the cost of the licence and yearly costs of hiring a permanent employee is going to put a big dent in their profits.
Another thing is to decide what kind of employee they would like to hire. The need to divide everything into multiple categories is deeply integrated into our DNA. Similarly, the sponsor licence is divided into two major categories that are tier 2 and tier 5.
Tier 2 basically is about hiring permanent employees in specific areas whereas tier 5 is about hiring temporary employees. This is another thing all businesses need to ensure what exactly their hiring procedures are going to look like during this time. Also, both these categories are further divided into multiple sub-categories. A business can apply for one or all of these categories at an additional cost.
Like everything else in the world, even the sponsor licence comes to an end. The sponsor licence once allotted is valid for 4 years. This licence has a lot of strings attached to it. You need to maintain a lot of paperwork even after acquiring the licence. Anyone from the Home Office can pay your business a surprise visit to check if you are following all the guidelines under the sponsor licence agreement.
You should always consult an immigration lawyer to make sure you have all your documentation and other required things in place. An immigration lawyer can help you prepare well and reduce the chances of your application being rejected.
Especially if you are applying for the first time for a sponsor licence you should definitely take some legal guidance from an immigration solicitor. Currently, all immigration solicitors and even the government has been asking the businesses who feel they would need a sponsor licence to apply for one before 31st December 2020, so that they can get the licence approved as soon as possible and before the new immigration policies are announced.