The Home Office’s Sponsor Management System (SMS) now requires that an individual’s National Insurance number be included for certain applications and reported changes.
Since 19 June 2023, those wishing to be appointed as a Level 1 user on a pending or active sponsor licence must provide their National Insurance number before being added as key personnel.
Those who do not have a National Insurance number will be asked to give evidence that they have applied for one, or to provide an explanation as to why they are exempt from having one. The Home Office have warned that failure to provide a National Insurance number may delay or prejudice a sponsor licence application or a request to add the Level 1 user, as applicable.
Although not yet confirmed, it is expected that the same requirement will be put in place for other key personnel on the sponsor licence, including Authorising Officers and Key Contacts. Level 1 users may therefore want to log onto the Sponsor Management System and input the National Insurance numbers for these key personnel now, so that the absence of this information does not cause any problems later down the line.
If you have any questions about these developments, please get in touch with our immigration team at [email protected].
