KEY TAKEAWAYS: UK Skilled Worker Visa Offboarding
- Report the end of sponsorship on the SMS within 10 working days; weekends and bank holidays do not count.
- The clock starts on the last day of employment, so garden leave delays it while PILON sets it at the termination date.
- Your report must include the termination date, the reason and the worker's personal address, phone number and email.
- Keep Appendix D records until one year after sponsorship ends, or until a compliance officer approves them if sooner.
- The departing worker usually gets 60 days from the Home Office notice to find a new sponsor, switch route or leave.
A resignation letter lands on your desk. Your sponsored engineer is serving three months' notice, then moving on. As far as the Home Office is concerned, nothing reportable has happened yet. The reporting clock only starts when sponsorship actually ends, and most Skilled Worker visa offboarding mistakes come from getting that one date wrong.
Failing to manage offboarding correctly is one of the most common compliance traps for HR. Getting the timeline wrong or missing the reporting window doesn't just result in a warning—it can lead to a B-rating downgrade, suspension, or total revocation of your sponsor licence.
This guide covers both sides: your sponsor duties, and what to tell your departing employee.
What is Skilled Worker visa offboarding?
Skilled Worker visa offboarding is the set of sponsor duties a UK employer must complete when a sponsored worker leaves. The core duty is a Sponsor Management System (SMS) report within 10 working days of sponsorship ending. It applies to every exit, including:
- Resignation, dismissal or redundancy
- A fixed-term contract ending earlier than the date on the Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS)
- A worker who decides not to take up the role, or a job offer you withdraw
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Employer responsibilities when a sponsored worker leaves
1. Report the end of sponsorship in the SMS
- Deadline: no later than 10 working days after the event. Weekends and UK bank holidays do not count.
- Where: the "Report migrant activity" function in your SMS account. Our Sponsor Management System portal guide walks through access and common errors.
- Timing: you do not need to wait. Day 10 is the limit, not the target.
Our advice: report within two or three working days. Waiting until day 10 leaves no buffer for a locked SMS account or an absent Level 1 User.
2. When the 10-day reporting clock starts
Note on Redundancies: If you are making a sponsored worker redundant, the SMS reporting timeline is the same as a standard resignation (the clock starts on the last day of employment). However, you must explicitly state 'redundancy' as the reason for leaving in your SMS report. This creates a clean audit trail for the Home Office showing that the specific sponsored role no longer exists.
In practice, the trigger is the last day of employment, not the day someone resigns or is given notice. Unauthorised absence and long unpaid leave have their own reporting rules, covered in our UK sponsor licence compliance guide.
3. Manage visa costs and ISC refunds carefully
Many employers include repayment clauses in employment contracts to recover visa costs if an employee resigns early. However, you must be extremely careful: it is strictly illegal to claw back the Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) from the worker. Passing this cost onto the employee can result in the immediate revocation of your sponsor licence.
There is a financial silver lining for employers: if a worker leaves earlier than the end date on their Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), the employer is automatically entitled to a partial refund of the ISC from the Home Office for any full, unused six-month periods remaining on the visa.
4. Include the details the Home Office requires
- The termination date
- The reason: resignation, dismissal, redundancy or end of contract
- The worker's last known home address, phone number and any personal email addresses
That last point catches HR teams out. Work email is usually switched off on the last day, so collect personal details at the exit meeting.
5. Keep the right records
- Appendix D documents: keep them until one year after sponsorship ends, or until a compliance officer has examined and approved them, whichever comes first.
- Exit evidence: the resignation or termination letter, final working date, final payslip and your SMS report confirmation.
- Right to work checks: separate illegal working rules apply, so keep copies for the length of employment plus two years.
Our Appendix D record keeping guide lists every document compliance officers ask for.
6. Stop all work on the final day
Once sponsored employment ends, the person has no right to work for you, including an informal handover or consultancy after the end date. Your sponsor duties end once you report the exit.
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What to tell your departing employee: visa timeline and next steps
Your duties finish with the SMS report; your employee's questions will not. A short briefing at exit saves anxious emails later.
Skilled Worker visa timeline after employment ends
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The worker's options within the 60 days
- New sponsor: a licensed employer assigns a new CoS and the worker applies before their shortened permission runs out. See our UK change of employer guide for the hiring side.
- Switch route: for example a family visa or Global Talent, if they qualify.
- Leave the UK: before the window closes. Overstaying can damage future UK visa applications.
- Dependants: their permission is normally shortened to the same date as the main visa holder's.
Practical points to share
- The 60 days usually run from the Home Office notice, not the last working day (useful extra time, but nobody should plan around a delay). Keep contact details current so the notice is not missed.
- Time waiting for the notice is still time with permission. An indefinite leave to remain (ILR) application, though, needs an active sponsor at the point of applying. Anyone close to five years should get advice before their last day.
- Travel restrictions: Advise the worker not to travel outside the UK while waiting for their curtailment notice. Once their sponsored employment has officially ended, attempting to re-enter the UK can trigger the Border Force to cancel their visa on the spot, abruptly ending their 60-day grace period.
The same 60-day rule applies to other cancellations, such as payroll errors that trigger visa curtailment.
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Skilled Worker visa offboarding checklist for HR
- When notice is given: confirm the final working day in writing and collect personal contact details.
- At the exit meeting: brief the employee on the timeline above.
- Last day: end all work, including informal handovers.
- Within two or three working days: submit the SMS report.
- After reporting: file the confirmation and diarise the retention end date.
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How Jobbatical helps with sponsored worker exits
Offboarding requires precision. Missing the 10-day reporting window or bungling an Appendix D document retention date can jeopardize your sponsor licence. Jobbatical's Immigration Case Management Platform automates these highly sensitive offboarding workflows—tracking leaver dates, alerting you to SMS reporting deadlines, and keeping your Appendix D files audit-ready at all times.
Jobbatical's UK Sponsor Management Service tracks leaver dates, files SMS reports on time and keeps Appendix D files audit ready.
Sources: Sponsor guidance Part 3: sponsor duties and compliance, Appendix D: keeping documents and Employer's guide to right to work checks.
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Disclaimer: Immigration rules change quite frequently; please verify with official sources or contact us for the latest info before making any decisions.
Frequently Asked Questions about Skilled Worker Visa Offboarding
How long does an employer have to report a sponsored worker leaving?
You must report the end of sponsorship on the Sponsor Management System no later than 10 working days after the event. Weekends and UK bank holidays do not count. For most exits, the event is the worker's last day of employment, not the day they resigned or were given notice. You can report earlier.
Does garden leave delay the SMS report for a Skilled Worker?
Yes. A worker on garden leave is still employed and paid, so sponsorship has not ended. The 10 working day reporting clock starts on the last day of the notice period. If you pay in lieu of notice instead, the clock starts on the termination date stated in the letter.
What happens to a Skilled Worker visa after the employee leaves?
After the sponsor reports the exit, the Home Office normally cancels the worker's permission so that 60 days remain, or less if the visa was due to expire sooner. Within that window, the worker can find a new sponsor, switch to another eligible route, or leave the UK. Dependants are normally affected in the same way.
When does the 60-day period start for a Skilled Worker who loses their job?
The 60 days usually run from the date of the Home Office cancellation notice, not the last working day. The notice can arrive weeks or even months after the employer's report. Workers should keep contact details up to date and start planning straight away rather than relying on a delay.
Can a sponsored worker keep working after their sponsored job ends?
No. Once sponsored employment ends, the right to work in that role ends too. Supplementary work is also not allowed, because it depends on continuing the sponsored job. The worker cannot work in the UK again until a new visa or permission covering that work is in place.
What happens if an employer reports a sponsored worker's exit late?
A missed or late SMS report is a breach of sponsor reporting duties. The Home Office can respond by downgrading the licence to a B-rating with a paid action plan, suspending it, or revoking it in serious or repeated cases. A B-rating stops you assigning certificates of sponsorship to new workers.
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