Sponsor Licence Duties in 2026: eVisas, Right to Work and the Latest Guidance Changes

Sponsor licence holders work to a set of guidance documents that change several times a year. Two documents matter most for day-to-day compliance: Part 3 of the sponsor guidance (sponsor duties and compliance), and the employer's guide to right to work checks. Both were updated in 2026.

Sponsor guidance Part 3, version 08/26

Version 08/26 of Part 3 has applied since 28 August 2026. Its changes include:

• Level 2 Users are being phased out. New Level 2 Users could only be added before 9 September 2026. If your organisation relied on Level 2 access for day-to-day reporting, make sure enough Level 1 Users are in place, and keep at least one Level 1 User at all times.
• Multi-factor authentication became mandatory for Sponsor Management System (SMS) users from 3 September 2026.
• Inactive sponsor licences: a retitled section invites sponsors whose licence is no longer used to surrender it.
• Right to work: new text reflects the extension of the Right to Work Scheme to other working arrangements for employment starting on or after 1 October 2026.

The practical message: review who holds SMS access, retire shared or inactive accounts, and make sure every user has working multi-factor authentication. Sponsor guidance Part 1 also explains that a sponsor may lose its licence if SMS user details are not kept current.

The right to work guide, 1 October 2026

The employer's guide to right to work checks was reissued and came into force on 1 October 2026. The biggest change is scope. Alongside employees, the Right to Work Scheme now covers people engaged under a worker's contract, individual sub-contractors, and people whose services are offered through online matching services, for work that started on or after 1 October 2026.

Other points sponsors should have in place:

• eVisas, not BRPs. Biometric Residence Permits stopped being issued on 31 October 2024. A manual check of an original, expired BRP is not acceptable proof of right to work. For eVisa holders, use the Home Office online check with a share code.
• Employer Checking Service. Where someone has an outstanding application or appeal, a Positive Verification Notice gives a statutory excuse for six months from the date in the notice. Diary the follow-up.
• Keep the evidence. Retain a clear copy of the check for the duration of employment and for two years afterwards, then destroy it securely.
• Penalties. Employing someone illegally without having done the prescribed checks can mean a civil penalty of up to £60,000 per illegal worker, and in serious cases criminal prosecution.

For a sponsor, a right to work failure is also a sponsor-duty failure, so these rules sit at the heart of licence compliance.

Duties that have not changed

The core reporting duties are the same: most changes about a sponsored worker must be reported within 10 working days, and most changes about the business within 20 working days. We explain them in detail in sponsor licence reportable events.

Part 3 also reminds sponsors that complying with UK employment law includes the National Minimum Wage, the Working Time Regulations, pension enrolment where required, and making sure workers are aware of their employment rights.

What to do now

1. Audit your SMS users: remove leavers, retire shared accounts and confirm multi-factor authentication works for everyone.
2. Plan for the end of Level 2 access, with enough Level 1 Users to cover reporting.
3. Check that every right to work record for a sponsored worker is an online check or ECS result, not an expired BRP.
4. Diary follow-up checks before time-limited permission ends, and six-month PVN follow-ups.
5. Review whether any contractors or gig-style workers now fall inside the Right to Work Scheme.

Who should own what

2026's changes touch IT, HR and operations at once, so agree who owns each part:

• Authorising Officer: overall accountability, and sign-off that the SMS user list is correct.
• Level 1 Users: day-to-day reporting, now without Level 2 support, so make sure there are enough of them.
• HR: right to work checks, follow-up dates, contact details and the reporting log.
• Operations and rota managers: telling HR straight away when a sponsored worker changes site, role or hours, or stops turning up.
• Payroll: flagging any pay reduction for a sponsored worker before it is processed.

How ProRota helps

Available in ProRota today: right to work records with follow-up dates, visa expiry monitoring, attendance and absence records, and an address and contact history with periodic verification. For security companies specifically, see sponsor licence compliance for security companies.

Sponsor Licence Readiness adds a compliance file for every sponsored worker, reportable-event countdowns in working days, and a mock audit report.