The Home Office have confirmed the limited rollout of the Sponsor UK system, which, it is hoped, will ultimately replace the current Sponsor Management System entirely.
Currently, businesses with sponsor licences manage their licence – including applying for and assigning certificates of sponsorship, reporting changes of circumstances to the business and to individual employees, etc. – using an online portal called the Sponsorship Management System (SMS).
The SMS has been in place since 2008 and is, by now, generally seen as rather antiquated and lacking the functionality that would ordinarily be expected in 2024. Common complaints about the SMS include that it is difficult to navigate, that it is not always clear whether an application has been made or a report has been submitted, and that there is often no record of data entered (meaning that copious print-screens are recommended!).
However, the Home Office have now begun the rollout of their long-awaited successor to the SMS – the Sponsor UK system (or “SUKS” for short – an acronym which we hope is simply an unhappy coincidence and does not prove itself prescient in due course…). The Home Office have stated that SUKS intends to “make the process of sponsoring workers and students quicker, easier and more intuitive for users and to ensure compliance with the sponsorship system.”
As the first stage of this rollout, SUKS is already available to be used by certain Government Authorised Exchange sponsors. It is expected that SUKS will be made more widely available to a greater range of sponsors on different routes over the next few years, and that there will be a period during which the SMS and SUKS will be running alongside one another, until SUKS ultimately replaces the SMS entirely.
We will have to see how smoothly this transition will be managed, and whether any complications or confusion arise from having the two systems run concurrently. However, if SUKS can deliver on the Home Office’s promises, then it should hopefully make managing a sponsor licence a little easier – at the very least, it will be a fresh lick of paint.
If you would like any help with managing your sponsor licence or sponsoring a worker, please get in touch at [email protected]
