Responding to a suspension, downgrade or revocation of your licence
A suspension letter stops you assigning certificates immediately and gives you a short deadline to respond in writing. What you say in that response, and the evidence you attach, largely decides whether the licence is reinstated, downgraded to a B-rating with an action plan, or revoked. Revocation curtails the permission of the workers you sponsor, so the response is a business continuity issue as much as a legal one.
- Suspension effect
- No new certificates
- Response window
- Set by the Home Office letter
- Re-application fee — small sponsor
- £611
- IAA regulated advisers
- ILPA member (9304)
- ICO registered (ZB830408)
- Professional indemnity insured
The three outcomes you are dealing with
- B-rating: the licence continues but you must complete a mandatory action plan, and you cannot assign new certificates while downgraded
- Suspension: certificate assignment stops while the Home Office investigates and considers revocation
- Revocation: the licence ends, sponsored workers' permission is curtailed, and a cooling-off period applies before you can re-apply
What we do first
- Read the letter and diarise the exact response deadline
- Identify every allegation and separate the ones that are factually wrong from the ones that are correct
- Pull the underlying evidence: HR files, right to work checks, payroll, reporting history and SMS records
- Fix what can be fixed now, and document the fix with dates and owners
- Draft the written representations, addressing each allegation on its own terms
Why sponsors get suspended
- Right to work checks missing, late or carried out on the wrong documents
- Reportable changes not reported within the required timescale
- Sponsored workers doing a different role, or paid less, than the certificate stated
- Records that cannot be produced during a compliance visit
- Key personnel who have left, or who cannot explain the sponsor duties
- Concerns that a vacancy was not genuine
If the licence has already been revoked
- Workers you sponsor will normally have their permission curtailed, and need alternative options quickly
- A cooling-off period applies before a fresh licence application can be made
- Any re-application must show the failures have been addressed, not just repeated assurances
- We advise on the position of each affected worker alongside the employer position
Home Office fees relevant to a lost licence
| Responding to a suspension or action plan | No Home Office fee |
|---|---|
| Fresh licence application after revocation — small or charitable sponsor | £611 |
| Fresh licence application after revocation — medium or large sponsor | £1,682 |
Home Office charges as published in our fee data (effective 8 April 2026). There is no Home Office fee for responding to a suspension. Figures below are Home Office charges, not our professional fees.
Send us the letter and the deadline
Tell us what the Home Office has said and when the response is due. We will confirm what evidence we need from you and start on the written response straight away.
- IAA regulated advisers
- ILPA member (9304)
- ICO registered (ZB830408)
- Professional indemnity insured