Work permit sponsorship

Work permit sponsorship is the formal process by which a licensed employer petitions an immigration authority for work authorisation for a foreign national.

For global hiring teams, work permit sponsorship is the legal mechanism that turns an offer to a foreign national into a permission to work. The sponsoring entity (typically the local legal employer) accepts compliance, reporting, and salary-floor obligations for the duration of the sponsored employment.

Sponsorship is country-specific. The UK Skilled Worker route requires a sponsor licence, an assigned Certificate of Sponsorship, and a £25,000-plus going-rate floor. The US H-1B route runs through a 65,000 annual cap (plus 20,000 master's cap) and frequently a parallel PERM labour certification for permanent residence. Germany operates the Blue Card route under the Skilled Immigration Act with €45,300 standard and €41,041 shortage-occupation thresholds for 2026.

The sponsorship-vs-EOR mechanic is the most common buyer confusion. Sponsorship sits with the legal employer in the destination country, so a partner-entity EOR (which is not the legal employer at the buyer level) usually cannot sponsor; only an owned-entity EOR or the buyer's own local entity can hold the sponsor licence.

What does work permit sponsorship cover in practice?

The function covers four operational tracks that recur in every country with a sponsorship regime, with the specific rules and salary thresholds changing per jurisdiction.

Sponsor licence and authorised petitioner status

Sponsorship requires the employer to hold an authorisation from the immigration authority: a sponsor licence in the UK, a registered H-1B petitioner in the US, a qualifying employer under the German Skilled Immigration Act, or equivalent registrations elsewhere. The licence carries obligations: reporting changes in circumstances, maintaining HR records, and accepting audit visits.

Salary floor and going-rate compliance

Most sponsorship regimes set a salary floor below which sponsorship cannot proceed. UK Skilled Worker general threshold is £38,700 (with shortage occupation and new-entrant discounts available); EU Blue Card requires 1.5x the national average gross salary; Germany sets €45,300 standard and €41,041 for shortage occupations in 2026; US H-1B requires the prevailing wage as determined by the Department of Labor.

See the global mobility entry for the broader cross-border workforce framework.

Petition and labour-market test

Most regimes require a petition to the immigration authority detailing the role, the candidate, the salary, and the employer's compliance with sponsorship rules. Some routes also require a labour-market test demonstrating that no domestic candidate is available; the US PERM process is the most documented example, requiring recruitment advertising and detailed candidate review documentation.

Ongoing reporting and compliance

Sponsorship is not a one-off event. The sponsor reports changes in role, salary, location, and employment status to the immigration authority. UK sponsors report through the Sponsor Management System; US H-1B employers maintain public access files and notify USCIS of material changes; German sponsors update the Bundesagentur für Arbeit on changes.

How do the major sponsorship regimes compare?

The sponsorship-route choice depends on country, candidate profile, and timeline. Three regimes anchor most global mobility decisions.

UK Immigration Skills Charge runs £1,000 per year per sponsored worker for medium and large sponsors (£364 for small). Immigration Health Surcharge runs £1,035 per year per main applicant. US H-1B base fees include I-129 plus anti-fraud fee plus ACWIA training fee plus premium processing where used.

Processing-time variation drives hiring-pipeline planning. A UK Skilled Worker hire can be at-desk in 4-6 weeks; a US H-1B candidate hired outside the cap exempt categories has to wait for the next H-1B fiscal year and can take 12+ months.

What does intra-company transfer look like as a sponsorship route?

Intra-company transfer (ICT) routes apply when the worker is already employed by the buyer's group in one country and is being transferred to another. ICT routes typically run faster than new-hire sponsorship and have different qualifying criteria.

UK Senior or Specialist Worker route

The UK Senior or Specialist Worker visa (replacing the legacy ICT route) requires the candidate to have worked for the group for at least 12 months outside the UK and to be paid £48,500 or the going rate. The visa cannot lead directly to settlement and the worker cannot switch into Skilled Worker without leaving and re-applying.

US L-1A and L-1B routes

The US L-1A (executive/manager) and L-1B (specialised knowledge) visas require the candidate to have worked for the group abroad for 12 of the preceding 36 months in a qualifying role. L-1 visas are not subject to the H-1B cap and process through individual petition. L-1A holders may pursue EB-1C green cards which avoid the PERM bottleneck.

EU ICT Directive

The EU ICT Directive (2014/66/EU) provides a coordinated framework for managers, specialists, and trainee employees transferring from a non-EU group entity to an EU-based group entity, with intra-EU mobility provisions for short-term assignments to other member states. National transposition varies.

Why does sponsorship sit with the legal employer, and what does that mean for EOR routing?

The sponsor must be the legal employer of the sponsored worker. This makes sponsorship the one piece of cross-border workforce management that does not map cleanly onto the standard EOR mechanic.

Owned-entity EOR routing

An owned-entity EOR (where the EOR's local entity is the legal employer for in-country workers) can hold a sponsor licence in the country where the entity sits. The EOR's entity acts as sponsor; the buyer's commercial relationship runs through the EOR contract. See the owned-entity EOR entry for the full mechanic.

Partner-entity EOR routing

A partner-entity EOR routes employment through a third-party local partner. Whether sponsorship is available depends on the specific partner's status: some partners hold sponsor licences, some do not. The buyer cannot assume sponsorship is bundled. See the partner-entity EOR entry.

Owned-entity (buyer's own) routing

If the buyer holds its own legal entity in the destination country, that entity can apply for and hold a sponsor licence directly. This is the most common route for medium and large companies sponsoring at scale. See the local entity entry.

What do buyers consistently get wrong on work permit sponsorship?

The recurring mistakes cluster into four moves that surface during candidate selection, EOR negotiation, or audit.

The first is assuming EOR providers bundle sponsorship by default. Partner-entity EOR arrangements often cannot sponsor, and the buyer discovers this when trying to hire a candidate who needs a work permit. The fix is to verify sponsor-licence status of the EOR's local entity at RFP stage.

The second is underestimating processing time. US H-1B candidates outside cap-exempt categories cannot start until the next fiscal year if the lottery is missed. UK Skilled Worker hires take 3-8 weeks end-to-end including overseas visa processing. Hiring teams that promise October start dates in March often need to re-plan.

The third is missing the going-rate or prevailing-wage floor. UK going rates per SOC code are published and binding; salaries below the floor cannot proceed regardless of candidate willingness. US prevailing-wage determinations from the Department of Labor set the H-1B floor and ignore candidate flexibility.

The fourth is treating sponsorship as a one-off transaction. Sponsor licences carry ongoing reporting, audit, and revocation risk. A UK sponsor licence revoked for compliance failure removes the right to sponsor across the entire entity and forces all sponsored workers to find alternative sponsors or leave. See the global mobility entry for the wider mobility framework.

What does an EOR or payroll provider handle on work permit sponsorship?

An EOR or payroll provider handles sponsorship in narrowly defined cases (owned-entity EOR with sponsor licence) and otherwise refers the buyer to in-country immigration counsel.

For multi-country buyers, the practical split is that owned-entity EORs and buyer-owned entities can sponsor in their own countries, partner-entity EORs cannot reliably sponsor, and complex routes (US H-1B + PERM, UK senior worker, EU Blue Card with family) usually run through dedicated immigration counsel coordinated with the legal employer.

See the employer of record entry for the EOR scope and the A1 certificate entry for the short-term EU posting alternative that avoids full work-permit sponsorship.

Work permit sponsorship FAQs

Can an EOR sponsor a work permit?

Sometimes. An owned-entity EOR (where the EOR's local entity holds a sponsor licence) can sponsor in the country where the entity is registered. A partner-entity EOR depends on whether the third-party local partner holds a sponsor licence; many do not.

The buyer cannot assume sponsorship is bundled with an EOR contract and should verify sponsor-licence status of the specific local entity at RFP stage.

What does UK Skilled Worker sponsorship cost end-to-end?

Typical end-to-end cost is £8,000-£25,000 per sponsored worker depending on tier and family situation. Components include sponsor licence application (£1,476 large, £536 small), Immigration Skills Charge (£1,000 per year for medium/large, £364 for small), Certificate of Sponsorship (£239), visa application fees, and Immigration Health Surcharge (£1,035 per year per main applicant).

Dependants add further surcharges and visa fees. Legal and advisory fees vary depending on whether the buyer uses in-house counsel or external immigration firms.

How long does US H-1B sponsorship take?

Typical H-1B processing runs 6-12 months from registration to start date. The fiscal year cap-subject lottery runs in March each year for October starts. Candidates outside the lottery have to wait for the next cycle.

PERM labour certification (for the parallel green card track) typically adds 18-36 months. Cap-exempt categories (university, government research, certain healthcare) bypass the lottery and process faster.

What is the EU Blue Card route in Germany?

The EU Blue Card is a work and residence permit for highly qualified non-EU nationals working in an EU member state. Germany sets the 2026 salary thresholds at €45,300 standard and €41,041 for shortage occupations.

The Blue Card is granted for up to 4 years initially, allows intra-EU mobility after 12-18 months, and can lead to permanent residence faster than standard routes. Processing typically runs 2-4 months.

What happens if a sponsor licence is revoked?

Sponsor licence revocation removes the right to sponsor workers across the entire entity. All sponsored workers lose their right to remain on the sponsored route and have a curtailment period (typically 60 days in the UK) to find an alternative sponsor or leave the country.

The revoked entity cannot apply for a new licence for a cooling-off period (typically 12 months). Revocation usually follows audit findings on compliance failures.