Home Office application fees (2026)
The sponsor licence application fee is £611 for small sponsors and charities, and £1,682 for medium and large sponsors. These are 2026 rates. All application fees are non-refundable regardless of outcome.
| Sponsor type | Application fee | Priority service add-on | Total with priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small sponsor / charity | £611 | +£750 | £1,361 |
| Medium or large sponsor | £1,682 | +£750 | £2,432 |
How your size category is determined
Size is determined from Companies House and HMRC records, not from self-declaration. A company qualifies as small if it satisfies at least two of: annual turnover of £10.2 million or less; balance sheet total of £5.1 million or less; 50 employees or fewer. Charities and educational institutions qualify for the small sponsor fee regardless of size. If your Companies House data is out of date or reflects a historic period when the business was smaller, the category applied may differ from what you expect. Check before applying.
Application fees are non-refundable
The Home Office does not refund application fees on refusal. Priority processing fees are also non-refundable. A refused application costs the same as a successful one, which makes the commercial case for ensuring the application is well-prepared before submission straightforward. See our application guide for preparation advice.
Priority processing, when it adds value
Priority processing costs £750 and targets a decision within 10 working days, against the standard target of approximately 8 weeks. It is a target, not a guarantee. The 10-working-day clock pauses when the Home Office requests additional information and resumes only when you respond.
Priority processing adds genuine value when you have a specific start date that cannot be achieved within standard processing and when your application is clean and unlikely to generate an information request. It adds less value when your application has documentary gaps likely to trigger an information request, in that case the effective processing time with a request may not be materially different from standard, and the fee buys you less than it appears to.
Priority processing does not guarantee approval. It affects how quickly a decision is made, not the outcome of that decision.
Certificate of Sponsorship fees
Every worker sponsorship, whether a new application, a visa extension, or a change of employer, requires you to assign a Certificate of Sponsorship. Each assignment carries a fee paid by the employer at the point of assignment in the SMS.
| CoS type | Fee | When paid | Transferable to worker? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Defined CoS (Skilled Worker) | £525 | At SMS assignment | No, unlawful to pass on |
| Undefined CoS (Skilled Worker extension) | £525 | At SMS assignment | No, unlawful to pass on |
| Temporary Worker CoS | £25 | At SMS assignment | No, unlawful to pass on |
The prohibition on passing CoS fees to workers is absolute. They cannot be deducted from salary, invoiced, or included in a repayment clause in the employment contract. Doing so is a breach of sponsor duties and may constitute an unlawful deduction from wages under employment law. The same restriction applies to the Immigration Skills Charge. See our Certificate of Sponsorship guide for detailed assignment guidance.
CoS fees at scale
For an employer sponsoring 15 workers over five years, with each worker requiring at least one extension CoS, the CoS fees alone amount to over £7,000. This accrues incrementally across multiple assignments and is often absent from the initial cost planning discussion. Including an estimated CoS fee line in your annual immigration budget prevents it from appearing as an unexpected line item.
Immigration Skills Charge. The largest ongoing cost
The Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) is a levy paid by employers when assigning a Certificate of Sponsorship for most Skilled Worker and intracompany transfer roles. It is paid upfront for the full visa period at the point of CoS assignment, not billed annually.
| Sponsor size | Per year | Per additional 6 months | Five-year visa total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small sponsor / charity | £480 | £240 | £2,400 per worker |
| Medium or large sponsor | £1,320 | £660 | £6,600 per worker |
For a medium or large employer sponsoring 20 workers for five years each, the ISC amounts to £132,000 over that period, a figure that rarely appears in the initial cost planning discussions most organisations have about international recruitment, but one that belongs in the workforce planning budget, not just in the immigration team's operational costs.
ISC exemptions
The ISC does not apply to all sponsored roles. Exempt categories include: Temporary Worker routes; certain PhD-level occupations; Government Authorised Exchange workers; and some roles in university research and academia. Exemptions are defined at the role level, not the employer level. Check the applicable exemption position for each specific role against the current guidance on GOV.UK before assignment.
Legal and professional fees
| Service | Typical fee range | What this covers |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-submission document review | £500–£900 | Review of application documents and written report; excludes form completion |
| Full application service | £1,500–£3,000 | End-to-end management; varies with complexity and business type |
| Mock compliance audit | £800–£2,000 | Independent record and SMS review; written findings report |
| CoS assignment review | £250–£660 | Review of SOC code, salary, and role details before assignment |
| Suspension response | £2,000–£5,000+ | Action plan preparation; depends on number of grounds and evidence required |
| Annual compliance retainer | £200–£600/month | Regular compliance checks, SMS support, advisory access |
Confirm before instructing whether VAT is included in the quoted figure, what specifically is covered by the fixed fee, and what the position is if additional work is needed. Suspension response fees are rarely available as fixed fees at the outset because the scope depends on the specific grounds stated in the Home Office notice.
Hidden and commonly overlooked costs
Employers who focus on the application fee in their initial cost planning consistently encounter several items that were not accounted for:
- The salary threshold as a hiring constraint. The requirement to pay at least £41,700 or the going rate, if higher, is not a fee in the traditional sense, but it has a direct cost impact. For sectors where salaries have historically been lower, the threshold constrains which roles and candidates can be sponsored and changes the economics of international hiring.
- SMS management staff time. The Sponsor Management System requires time to manage: CoS assignments, reporting obligations, personnel file maintenance, and system updates. This time cost is invisible in a fee schedule but real in the HR budget. For small businesses, the compliance burden is not trivial.
- Defined CoS allocation processing time. After the licence is granted, defined CoS allocations must be separately requested and processed. This step adds additional days, sometimes more, to the timeline between licence approval and a worker's first day. Employers who plan their timeline to the day of licence approval without accounting for this step find their recruitment plans disrupted.
- Cost of non-compliance. Compliance failures cost money: suspension responses, legal representation, potential civil penalties, and operational disruption. A modest annual compliance review costs a fraction of what managing an enforcement situation costs. The cost of prevention is almost always less than the cost of the problem. See our compliance audit guide for details.
- Worker visa costs. The visa application fee is borne by the worker (£943 for up to 3 years; £1,872 for over 3 years at 2024–25 rates), as is the healthcare surcharge, several thousand pounds for a five-year visa. Some employers contribute to these costs as part of the employment offer. Budget accordingly if your offer includes immigration cost support.
Cost planning for employers, a realistic total cost example
To illustrate the total cost, consider a medium-sized employer sponsoring five Skilled Workers for five years each:
| Cost item | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sponsor licence application | £1,682 | One-off; medium sponsor rate |
| Priority processing (optional) | £750 | One-off if chosen |
| Defined CoS fees, initial (×5) | £1,195 | £525 × 5 workers at CoS assignment |
| Defined CoS fees, extensions (×5) | £1,195 | £525 × 5 workers at extension |
| Immigration Skills Charge (×5 workers × 5 years) | £25,000 | £1,320/yr × 5 workers × 5 years |
| Professional fees, application | £1,500–£2,000 | Full-service application |
| Annual compliance review (×5 years) | £5,000–£10,000 | £1,000–£2,000/year |
| Total (5-year horizon) | ~£36,000–£41,000 | Excluding worker visa fees and salary costs |
This example excludes the salary threshold requirement, the worker's own visa fees, and any enforcement costs. The ISC alone, £25,000 in this example, represents by far the largest single component of the total cost over a five-year period and is the item most often absent from initial planning discussions.
In-house management vs professional support
Many employers with established HR functions manage their sponsor licence entirely in-house and do so effectively. The question is not whether in-house management is legitimate. It clearly is, but whether the in-house resource has the current knowledge, sufficient capacity, and appropriate processes to manage compliance reliably.
A risk-adjusted cost comparison is more useful than a direct fee comparison. An overstretched HR team with outdated knowledge of the guidance may appear cheaper on paper but carries a higher compliance risk. The cost of a suspension response, legal fees, staff time, operational disruption, and potential revocation consequences, typically far exceeds the cost of the preventive professional support that could have avoided it.
Many employers find that a hybrid model works well in practice: professional support for the initial application and compliance setup, annual mock audits to maintain confidence in the compliance position, and specific professional input when unusual or complex situations arise. This balances cost with assurance in a way that neither pure in-house management nor full-service external engagement alone provides.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a sponsor licence cost in 2026?
The Home Office application fee is £611 for small sponsors and charities, or £1,682 for medium and large sponsors. Priority processing costs an additional £750. The main ongoing costs are the Certificate of Sponsorship fee (£525 per worker assignment) and the Immigration Skills Charge (£480 per year for small sponsors; £1,320 per year for medium and large sponsors).
Who qualifies as a small sponsor?
A company qualifies as small if it satisfies at least two of: annual turnover of £10.2 million or less; balance sheet total of £5.1 million or less; 50 employees or fewer. Charities and educational institutions qualify for the small rate regardless of size. The category is determined from Companies House and HMRC records.
What is the Immigration Skills Charge?
The ISC is a levy paid by employers when assigning a Certificate of Sponsorship for most Skilled Worker roles. It is paid upfront for the full visa period. The charge is £480 per year for small sponsors and £1,320 per year for medium and large sponsors. For a five-year Skilled Worker visa from a large employer, the ISC is £6,600 per worker.
Can the Immigration Skills Charge be passed to the worker?
No. The ISC must be paid by the employer and cannot be deducted from salary, invoiced to the worker, or included in a repayment clause. Doing so is a breach of sponsor duties and may constitute an unlawful deduction from wages.
What ongoing costs should I budget for?
Ongoing costs include: Certificate of Sponsorship fees (£525 each time you sponsor or extend a worker); the Immigration Skills Charge (paid upfront for each visa period); staff time for SMS management; and professional fees for compliance reviews or specific advice. The salary threshold requirement is also a material cost constraint on who can be sponsored.
Do Home Office immigration fees change?
Yes. Immigration fees are reviewed periodically by the government and have increased significantly since the points-based system was introduced in 2021. Always confirm current fees on GOV.UK before submitting an application. The figures on this page reflect 2026 rates and may not reflect changes made after publication.
Need personalised advice?
This guide provides general information only. For advice tailored to your circumstances, speak to one of our immigration advisers.
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