Sponsor licence ratings: A rating, B rating and action plans

A sponsor licence is A-rated when your application is approved. An A-rating lets you assign certificates of sponsorship. UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) can downgrade it to a B-rating if you do not meet your sponsor responsibilities. A B-rated sponsor cannot issue new certificates. To upgrade, you must pay £1,579 for an action plan.

What is an A rating?

You get an A-rated licence if your application is approved. An A-rated licence lets you start assigning certificates of sponsorship. Your business is also listed in the register of sponsors. See certificate of sponsorship and the register of licensed sponsors.

Part 1 of the sponsor guidance (version 08/26, valid from 28 August 2026) says:

• UKVI gives an A-rating when it first grants a licence, on the basis that you have systems in place to meet your sponsor duties
• UKVI will not grant a licence if you cannot achieve an A-rating
• your rating appears on the published register

What is a provisional rating?

You get a “provisional” rating instead of an A-rating if both of these apply:

• you apply to sponsor a UK Expansion Worker
• your authorising officer is based outside the UK

You can only assign one certificate of sponsorship. It must go to the authorising officer so that they can enter the UK. Once they have their visa, you can upgrade to an A-rating. You can then ask for more certificates through the sponsorship management system (SMS).

A provisional rating cannot be downgraded to a B-rating. If a provisional sponsor does not meet its duties, UKVI will normally revoke the licence. (Part 1 and Part 3)

What is a B rating?

UKVI may downgrade your A-rated licence to a B-rating if you do not keep meeting your sponsor responsibilities. See sponsor duties.

If this happens:

• you cannot issue new certificates of sponsorship until you have made improvements and upgraded back to an A-rating
• you can still issue certificates to workers you already employ who want to extend their permission to stay

UKVI generally only downgrades for fairly minor breaches that an action plan can fix. In more serious cases it suspends or revokes the licence. During the action plan, you also cannot add branches or a new route to your licence. (Part 3 of the sponsor guidance)

How do you upgrade from a B rating to an A rating?

You need to follow an action plan from UKVI, and you have to pay £1,579 for it. You must pay within 10 working days of the date UKVI tells you about the downgrade. If you do not, you will lose your licence.

Step	What happens
Fee	£1,579 for an action plan
Payment deadline	10 working days from the date UKVI tells you about the downgrade
Missed deadline	You lose your licence
All steps completed and nothing else to improve	You are upgraded to an A-rating
Steps not completed	You lose your licence
Other improvements needed	You get another B-rating and a new action plan, and you pay the fee again

Part 3 says:

• all action plans last a fixed 3 months
• after that, UKVI does more compliance checks
• UKVI restores the A-rating if you met every requirement and it has no other concerns
• if you are not sponsoring any workers, you can choose not to pay and surrender the licence instead, by sending back a signed declaration within 10 working days
• UKVI will closely monitor how you use any certificates you assign while you are B-rated
• if you use them to sponsor a new worker, UKVI will revoke your licence

How many B ratings can a sponsor have?

You can only have 2 B-ratings while your licence is valid. You lose your licence if you still need to make improvements after your second action plan.

Part 3 of the sponsor guidance puts the limit this way:

• a sponsor can be B-rated, and subject to an action plan, for a maximum of 3 months at a time
• a sponsor can be B-rated twice during any 4-year rolling period in which it holds a licence
• the rolling period is counted from the date the licence was first granted
• if you meet the rules for a downgrade a third time in that period, UKVI revokes the licence

Is there a rating for each route?

No. Part 1 says you get a rating for each type of licence you hold (Worker, Temporary Worker and Student). The rating applies to all routes under that type. You cannot have different ratings for single routes.

For example, say a sponsor is licensed on Skilled Worker and Senior or Specialist Worker. Its licence is downgraded because of failings on one route. It shows on the register as “Worker (B rated)”.

In exceptional cases, UKVI may downgrade one type of licence and let you keep the A-rating on another. (Part 1)

What happens if your licence is revoked?

You cannot appeal if your licence is revoked, but you can reapply. You have to wait at least 12 months before you reapply, and you need to start a new application. Part 3 says the wait is at least 24 months if the licence has been revoked more than once.

See how to apply for a sponsor licence and sponsor licence eligibility.