Why you need a sponsorship licence to travel with your family
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Moving to another country to further your career is often a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Doing this helps give you the chance to broaden your skillset, expand your horizons, and explore plenty of possibilities that can be the best for you.
While this is true, travelling alone can be a challenging and lonely experience, considering that you’re treading in a new and unfamiliar environment. For this reason, you may have thought of bringing your family with you when moving.
Such cases are not uncommon, particularly since many individuals have approached their employers to know whether their company can sponsor a certain family member through a sponsorship licence. But is this possible?
The short answer to this question is: yes, it is. In this case, you may be under a Skilled Worker sponsor licence, formerly referred to as a Tier 2 sponsorship licence. Even so, there’s still a need to make a few necessary adjustments throughout the process. Besides this, you may also expect scrutiny and monitoring by the Home Office.
Nonetheless, a sponsorship licence can be an important key to obtaining permanent residence in the country. For this, you can opt to apply for indefinite to remain if you decide to stay in your new home for good, allowing you to transition easily into full British citizenship.
For this reason, it’s essential that you have a sponsorship licence if you’re planning to take your family with you on your travels. This article will list some of the reasons why this is needed, its benefits, as well as some important information you need to consider along the way.
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What is a Sponsorship Licence?
It’s important to know that not all migrant employees require sponsorship to be able to work in the United Kingdom. One of the reasons is that they may be within the country legally on other categories of immigration that permits them to work. These can include an ancestry visa or a spouse of a British citizen visa.
However, for the majority of migrant workers who choose to come to the UK for career purposes, being sponsored is necessary – especially in the absence of other permits. This basically means that they should first have a job offer from a certain company or firm that possesses a sponsor licence.
Previously known as Tier 2 Sponsor Licence, the Sponsorship licence enables companies based in the UK to employ skilled foreign workers or those residing within the country. Here, applicants can transfer from the Skilled Worker visa from several visa types, such as Tier 2 and Tier 4 Student visas. Once this is approved, the sponsor licence will be valid for a four-year period, where you have the choice for renewal.
Benefits of a Sponsor Licence
Having a sponsorship licence provides plenty of perks both to you and the organization you will be working for. Here are some of them.
1. Enables you to reside with family members
As mentioned earlier, a sponsorship licence is a must if you’re planning to bring family members with you on your move. This is because sponsored licences – depending on the visa type granted to you – permit employees to bring family members to the country you’re travelling to. This helps migrant workers avoid the feeling of isolation and loneliness brought by the absence of family or loved ones in an unfamiliar country.
2. Peace of Mind and Security
Apart from being able to bring your family members, having a sponsored licence also allows you to experience a sense of security and calmness. Employers guarantee that the foreign workers that they hire are evaluated and verified thoroughly, easing your worries about staying in a new place. Moreover, you can also feel secure and confident that the organization you’re under has an efficient working relationship with the country’s home office to employ foreign workers.
3. Extended Period of Stay
With a sponsored licence, you can stay in the country for as long as you think. You get to stay in the UK for at least up to five years. After your initial year grant expires, you can then opt to take it a step further and apply for indefinite leave to remain. This helps you secure your chances of becoming a full British citizen, allowing you to reside permanently in the country.
Employees with a sponsorship licence can legally stay up to two weeks before the starting date on their sponsorship certificate. This enables you to settle into your new home before you immediately begin working.
4. Study and Work Opportunities
There are also instances where sponsored workers are permitted to study at the same time. Despite this, their course should still not interfere with their primary sponsored role in the first place. Because of this, employees are able to study for advanced courses that can further the growth of their respective careers.
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