As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, hybrid, and remote work are gaining popularity in the United Kingdom. Companies with a sponsor license may also consider reducing their physical workspace and allowing remote or hybrid work.

During the pandemic, the Home Office advised that sponsors were not required to inform them if a sponsored employee was working from home. The new guidance establishes a requirement for reporting when a sponsored skilled worker has or will move to a hybrid working pattern as a more permanent working arrangement. Temporary changes to the workplace are not required to be reported. 

Working from Home

On Home Office guidance, remote working means that “employees do not have a fixed workplace and may work full-time from home or an alternative location.” Hybrid working is defined as “where the worker will work remotely on a regular and planned basis from their home or another address, such as a work hub space, that is not a client site or an address listed on your license, in addition to regularly attending one or more of your offices or branches or a client site.”

The Home Office guidance on remote work is ambiguous, but it is implied that it is permitted because it is mentioned under-reporting duties.

Reporting the skilled worker’s place of work

Having a sponsor license comes with duties and responsibilities, such as reporting the skilled worker's place of work.

These responsibilities must be carried out with the possibility of a Home Office compliance visit in mind.

Particularly, sponsor organisations must ensure that the work location listed on the Sponsorship Certificate accurately represents each worker's normal work pattern.

This is an additional reporting requirement for those sponsoring overseas workers, in addition to obligations to update the Home Office on a sponsored worker's regular attendance at one or more office/branch or client sites specified on their certificate of sponsorship. The requirement for sponsors to keep up-to-date residential address information for sponsored workers also remains.

How to report hybrid working arrangements

The sponsor guidance was recently updated to provide specific advice for workers to change their work location. It states that the Home Office must be reported if the address indicated on the certificate of sponsorship for a sponsored worker changes.

• the worker is or will be, working at a different site, branch, or office of your organisation, or a different client’s site, not previously declared to us
• the worker is or will be, working remotely from home on a permanent or full-time basis (with little or no requirement to physically attend a workplace)
• the worker has moved or will be moving, to a hybrid working pattern

Therefore, sponsor companies do not need to report the short changes to the work patterns of the workers. They only need to report to the Home Office if overseas workers change their working patterns to a more permanent working arrangement.

Any report that confirms that an overseas worker has been sponsored to work in the UK but is working completely or close to completely remotely may need to be reasoned. To avoid questions of why the worker needed to be sponsored to come to the UK if they are working remotely, it may be necessary to confirm in the report why it is they need to be working in the UK – whether that is for tax, regulatory or other purposes.

If a sponsor company does not comply with the duties. The Home Office may cancel the migrant(s)' permission to stay, reduce allocations of sponsorship certificates, downgrade the license, suspend or revoke the license.

For expert advice on any sponsored license or compliance matter, please call us at 0203 865 6219 or leave us a message.