Apply for a COS
As a company operating in the UK, there are various steps you will need to take if you want to employ migrant workers or bring foreign employees over to the country. Once you have made a job offer to an individual that has migrated to the UK or is about to migrate, you will need to apply for a legal document called a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS).
What is a Certificate of Sponsorship?
A Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) is an electronic record that must be assigned to each foreign worker employed by a company operating in the UK. Once this is issued, you and your employee will receive a unique number, which the employee can use to apply for a Skilled Worker Visa or Temporary Worker visa.
Upon successful application for a CoS, you will receive details of the electronic record and certificate of Sponsorship number. You must then give it to your new employee. From the date the CoS is issued, the employee then has three months in which to apply for their Skilled Worker Visa or Temporary Worker visa.
There are two different types of CoS; the Defined Certificate of Sponsorship and the Undefined Certificate of Sponsorship. The Defined CoS is mainly issued to people classified as Skilled Workers, coming from outside of the UK. The other type is the Undefined CoS, which applies to skilled workers that are already within the UK who may be transferring visas.
Why do you need a Certificate of Sponsorship?
The purpose of the CoS is to ensure that both you and your prospective employee will be meeting the conditions of his or her visa. To confirm this is the case, you’ll need to give detailed information to the government about the nature of the employee’s new roles and what kinds of responsibilities they will have.
Everyone must have a CoS if they are coming to work in the UK from abroad. It helps the government keep a record of who is working in the country and within which kinds of roles.
What happens if I don’t apply for a Certificate of Sponsorship?
It is illegal to employ workers from abroad without the relevant legal documentation. Applying for the CoS is an essential part of your duty to check that employee’s right to work in the UK. As part of your recruitment process, you must also check the right to work online.
How do I know if a job applicant has the right to work in this country?
As mentioned above, make sure you ask the applicant for his or her share code. You can then easily use this to look up the applicant’s status online through the government’s website. You should also always ask to see each applicant’s original documents during the interview process. You’ll be responsible for checking the validity of these documents and you’ll want to make copies of these to keep for yourself. Check that all documents given to you are genuine, original and in-date. Be careful to scrutinise the candidate’s ID, and ensure that all photos of the applicant look the same across documents. Some types of job require special permission to carry out, so make sure the applicant will be able to fulfil the type of position you’re looking to fill.
How much does it cost to apply for a Certificate of Sponsorship?
The cost of the CoS is paid for by the employer and how much you pay will depend on where your prospective employee is coming from.
For citizens of the following countries, the application is free:
Finland, Norway, Poland, France, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Cyprus, Spain, Portugal, Slovakia, Sweden, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, North Macedonia and Turkey.
For citizens coming from other countries not listed above, you’ll need to pay £239 per permanent worker and £25 per temporary employee.
How do I apply for a Certificate of Sponsorship and how long does it take?
The application process can be completed online and, once you’ve submitted all the details, you will usually get a decision from the authorities within one working day.
At GSN Immigration, we help employers to complete successful Certificate of Sponsorship applications. When submitting each application on behalf of your prospective employee, it’s crucial that you get all the details right. There are many details to consider when filling out the form and you’ll need to adhere to strict timelines and conditions when applying for and issuing each CoS. Any errors at this stage can have grave consequences for your employee, potentially resulting in refused visas, enforcement action and even revocation of the CoS itself.
What shall I do if I am unsure about the CoS process, or about the legal process surrounding employing foreign workers?
You may naturally have a broad range of applicants applying for your vacant roles and may find that many suitable candidates are in fact from countries other than the UK. It’s important not to discriminate against people because of where they are from, and because employing them will require extra paperwork. If you are confused about the legal requirements for employing people who have migrated to the UK, the best thing to do is to seek professional advice.
At GSN Immigration, we provide assistance to UK businesses with their CoS applications. Our expert team has many years of experience in helping both companies and individuals with all legal matters relating to Sponsorship Licence, migrant work, study and business visas. We can help you to make sense of the process and give you the peace of mind that you’ve ticked all the boxes before employing a foreign worker.
In conclusion
To summarise, the CoS is an important document that is essential if you want to employ foreign workers. You must take the time and care to complete a CoS application if you’d like to employ someone from abroad, but, upon doing so, you will be contributing to a diverse and highly skilled workforce. Get in touch with us today to find out how we can help.
Contact us to apply for CoS
Why not give us a call and discover that we are the best Immigration Lawyers in London for you. We can look after your CoS application. Our clients come from all over the world. So if you are not in London do not worry, we can assist you wherever you are. GSN Immigration has helped clients to obtain UK Visas from all over the world.
The country list includes:
- Russia
- Saudi Arabia
- UAE
- India
- Pakistan
- Bangladesh
- Ghana
- Tanzania
- Morocco
- Iran
- Egypt
- USA
- Canada
- Italy
- Nigeria
- Brazil
- Columbia
- Sri Lanka
- Iraq
- Vietnam
- China to name a few.
We have assisted many clients to apply for the correct CoS. We can assist you with it too.
Please contact us at info@gsnimmigration.co.uk or call us. You will discover that we are the right firm for your immigration matter.
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