Care home immigration: how to maintain your sponsor licence through the 2026 enforcement surge

Care homes and domiciliary care providers have faced more Home Office enforcement action than almost any other sector over the past eighteen months. The combination of a heavy reliance on overseas staff, variable pay structures, and administrative pressure on HR teams has made the care sector one of the highest-risk environments for sponsor licence compliance in the UK.

This guide covers what care home operators need to be doing right now to protect their sponsor licence and maintain their ability to recruit internationally.

Why care homes are a particular enforcement target

The Home Office’s data-sharing with HMRC has made it straightforward to identify discrepancies between the salary declared on a Certificate of Sponsorship and the wages actually paid. In the care sector, these discrepancies arise for several reasons:

• Shift workers whose monthly pay varies due to leave, bank holidays, or overtime fluctuations
• Deductions for accommodation provided by the employer that reduce net pay below the CoS declaration
• Workers moved between roles or care settings without the CoS being updated
• Changes in contracted hours not reflected on the SMS

From 8 April 2026, salary compliance is assessed on a per-pay-period basis, not annually. In a sector where monthly pay rarely stays constant, every care home sponsor needs to review their payroll records now.

The Health and Care visa: what care homes need to know

The Health and Care visa remains available for care workers already in the UK who wish to extend or switch employers. New overseas applications for care worker roles have been restricted since July 2025. Care home operators who are relying on international recruitment need to:

• Understand which of their current sponsored workers are approaching visa expiry and plan renewals in advance
• Ensure that any role changes, location changes, or pay adjustments are reflected on the SMS promptly
• Review the salary compliance position for every sponsored worker under the new per-pay-period rules

Right-to-work checks: the record-keeping obligation

Updated sponsor guidance from March 2026 introduced new obligations around right-to-work checks. Sponsors must retain evidence that they have provided sponsored workers with information about their employment rights in the UK. This applies to every sponsored worker, including those who have been in post for some time. A brief written communication or a signed onboarding document covering this point satisfies the requirement  but it must exist and be retained.

Immigration services Davenport Solicitors provides to care home operators

We help care homes attract and retain international talent through a full range of immigration services:

• Sponsor Licence application and management
• Immigration compliance reviews and ongoing support
• Skilled Worker visa guidance for overseas staff
• Right-to-work check procedures and training
• Health and Care Worker visa application support
• Certificate of Sponsorship management
• Home Office compliance training for HR teams and SMS users

What care home operators should do this month

• Audit payroll records for every sponsored worker against their CoS salary declaration, reviewed on a per-pay-period basis
• Ensure all SMS records are current and accurate
• Review right-to-work check documentation and confirm the new employment rights information requirement is met for all sponsored workers
• Book SMS Level 1 and Level 2 User Training if your compliance team has not received recent formal training

How Davenport Solicitors can help

At Davenport Solicitors, we are a specialist adviser to the care home and social care sector on employment law and immigration. We understand the operational pressures of the sector and provide practical, legally grounded support. Call us on 020 7903 6888 or email contact@davenportsolicitors.com