What is licence revocation?
A sponsor licence can be revoked by the Home Office where a sponsor is found to have failed to meet its compliance obligations. This may result from a Home Office audit, unreported changes, or non-payment of the Immigration Skills Charge.
Impact on sponsored workers
When a licence is revoked, sponsored workers are directly affected:
The Home Office will issue curtailment letters to workers, informing them that their leave is being shortened, typically to 60 days from the date of the letter
During this 60-day period, workers retain the right to work and may look for a new sponsor
Once the curtailment letter is received, workers should act immediately to secure new sponsorship
The 60-day window: when it starts and when it doesn't
The 60-day curtailment period only applies where sponsorship has been actively curtailed or terminated. This includes situations where the sponsor licence has been revoked, the employer has ended the sponsorship, or the worker has been dismissed. It does not apply when a CoS expiry date has simply been reached. As long as the worker's visa itself is still valid, they retain the right to work up to the visa expiry date.
The 60 days run from the date the worker receives the curtailment letter from the Home Office, not from the date sponsorship ended. The Home Office takes a variable amount of time to issue this letter, sometimes a week, sometimes several months.
If a new application is submitted before the curtailment period expires, the worker is protected and can continue to work while the new application is pending.
Supplementary employment after revocation
Once a licence is revoked, workers may not undertake supplementary employment, even if their visa expiry date has not yet been reached. The right to supplementary employment depends on active sponsorship by a valid primary sponsor.
Can a new employer recruit a worker whose previous sponsor was revoked?
Yes, but timing matters. A new licensed sponsor can take on a worker provided one of the following applies: the worker has not yet received a curtailment letter from the Home Office; or the worker has received a letter and is still inside the 60-day period. If 60 days have passed since the curtailment letter was issued, the worker is treated as an overstayer and cannot be sponsored without leaving the UK first.
There is no requirement for the worker to have worked for the new employer for three months before being sponsored, since this is a change of sponsor rather than a switch of immigration category.
Right to work checks during the curtailment period
Employers should use the Employer Checking Service (ECS) during the curtailment period rather than relying on the standard share code check, as the right to work system may not immediately reflect the curtailment.
What about workers whose employer closes down?
If a sponsor's licence is revoked or the sponsoring employer ceases trading, curtailment rules apply in the same way as for any other revocation. The worker will receive a curtailment letter giving them 60 days to find a new sponsor and submit a fresh visa application. Critically, the expiry date shown on the worker's BRP or eVisa is not the operative date in this situation. The worker cannot legally work during the curtailment period, even if their biometric document shows a future expiry date. Any prospective new employer must complete an Employer Checking Service check to confirm the worker's right to work status before allowing them to start.