The Home Office can visit your office for the HR system audit
Once an application for a Sponsorship Licence has been submitted, the Home Office may want to ensure that your company is adhering to the relevant rules and could visit your premises to:
- check that the information you provided on your sponsor licence application is correct;
- check that you are complying with all your sponsor duties, or will be able to comply if they visit before your licence application has been decided;
- speak to any of your employees/migrant workers or any of your colleagues whom are involved in the recruitment of migrant workers. They may also inspect records and/or systems to ensure you are following your sponsor obligations and adhering to the rules;
- conduct checks on other migrant workers to ensure you are complying with your obligation to prevent illegal working.
If the Home Office’s compliance officer visits your premises after they have already approved your application, they will write to you to let you know the outcome of their check. Depending on the outcome of the audit, they can either refuse, revoke or grant your company’s Sponsorship Licence.
What are the penalties for employing illegal workers
- The Home Office may revoke your sponsor licence and you will then be subject to a cooling off period of 12 months before you can reapply for a licence;
- They may issue you with a civil penalty of up to £20,000 for each illegal worker.
- If they need to take action to enforce payment of a civil penalty, this could adversely affect your ability to obtain credit;
- r having in your possession or under your control an identity document (or a copy of it) that is false or improperly obtained. You may go to prison for up to 2 years and receive an unlimited fine;
- You may be prosecuted for knowingly employing an illegal migrant worker for which you can go to prison for up to 2 years and/or receive an unlimited fine;
- You may be disqualified from acting as a company director.;
- You may be prosecuted for facilitation or trafficking and if convicted, you may go to prison for up to 14 years and/or receive an unlimited fine;
- If you are subject to UK immigration control, and liable for employing illegal workers, this will be recorded on Home Office systems and may be used in consideration of any future immigration applications.
How we can help
- Advise you of the necessary HR systems that your company should have in place after employing a migrant worker in order to avoid falling foul of the relevant rules;
- Our team of experts will come to your offices to help prepare you for an audit from the Home Office.
For more details in relation to any potential Home Office Audit, please do not hesitate to contact us.
