Your Employment Rights While Sponsored, and Who to Contact

A sponsored worker has the same statutory employment rights as any other worker in the UK. Sponsorship changes your immigration status. It does not create a lesser class of employee.

That is worth stating plainly, because the fear of losing a visa is exactly what makes some employers comfortable cutting corners, and what stops some workers raising anything at all. This guide sets out the baseline entitlements, the deductions that should worry you, and which organisation handles which problem.

The baseline you are entitled to

Minimum wage

The National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage apply to sponsored workers. From 1 April 2026 the published rates are:

Age or category	Hourly rate
21 and over	£12.71
18 to 20	£10.85
Under 18	£8.00
Apprentice	£8.00

Rates change every 1 April. Note that the minimum wage is a floor for all workers, entirely separate from the Skilled Worker salary threshold and the going rate for your occupation code. Your sponsored role has to clear both, and the immigration threshold will normally be much higher.

Holiday

Almost all workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday a year, which is 28 days for someone working a five-day week. Part-time workers get the same 5.6 weeks, applied to their working pattern. Statutory paid holiday is capped at 28 days, and an employer may, but does not have to, count bank holidays within the entitlement.

Payslips and deductions

You are entitled to an itemised payslip. Deductions generally require a contractual basis or your written agreement, and cannot take you below the minimum wage.

Look carefully at deductions for accommodation, transport, uniform, training and equipment. Withholding pay, withholding holiday pay, or requiring workers to pay for work-finding fees, training or protective equipment are recognised markers of labour abuse, not ordinary payroll variation.

Written terms, and the sponsor's version of them

You are entitled to a written statement of employment particulars. Compare it against the Certificate of Sponsorship: the job title, occupation code, salary and weekly hours on the CoS should match the job you were actually hired to do.

A mismatch is not a paperwork nuisance. Your permission was granted on the basis of the CoS, so a role that has quietly become something else creates immigration risk for you as well as compliance risk for the sponsor.

Deductions that put your visa at risk, not just your pay

Two categories deserve particular attention.

Deductions that recover sponsor-only costs. The Home Office sponsor guidance states that a sponsor "must not recoup, or attempt to recoup, by any means, any part of the CoS fee", and "must not pass on any of the ISC to, or attempt to recoup it from, any of your sponsored workers". A sponsor doing this risks losing its licence, which would in turn affect your permission.

Deductions that take your salary below the threshold. Your salary is assessed on the gross figure, and sponsors are required to report a reduction in salary to the Home Office. An arrangement that reduces your effective pay, whether through a deduction, a cut in hours, or unpaid time, can move you below the level your permission depends on.

If either is proposed, get advice before agreeing. Agreeing in writing does not make an unlawful recoupment lawful.

Who to contact, by problem

The single most useful thing to know is that different bodies handle different problems, and going to the wrong one wastes weeks.

General advice on any workplace issue

Acas provides free and confidential advice on employment rights, contracts, working time, holiday entitlement, grievances and disputes. The GOV.UK pay and work rights page gives the helpline as 0300 123 1100, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, with translation available.

Start here if you are unsure. Acas can tell you which formal route fits your situation.

Underpayment of the minimum wage

HMRC handles national minimum wage complaints. HMRC can investigate an employer, recover arrears for workers and issue penalties. A complaint can be made without your employer being told who reported it.

Agency work and employment agencies

Complaints about employment agency legislation and agency workers are handled by the Fair Work Agency, as set out on the GOV.UK pay and work rights page.

Excessive working hours

The Health and Safety Executive handles working time issues, including maximum weekly working hours.

Labour exploitation and forced labour

The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority investigates labour exploitation, including human trafficking, forced labour and illegal labour provision, and takes intelligence from workers, charities and the public. Non-payment of the minimum wage, withheld pay and charging workers for work-finding fees or equipment fall within its definition of labour abuse.

If you believe someone is being held in forced labour or trafficked, report modern slavery. In an emergency, call 999.

Unpaid wages and unfair treatment

Claims for unpaid wages, unlawful deductions, discrimination and unfair dismissal go to an employment tribunal, and most claims require you to notify Acas first through early conciliation. Time limits are short, frequently three months less one day from the event, so get advice quickly rather than waiting to see whether things improve.

Care workers in England

International Care Workers and Senior Care Workers in England whose employer has lost its sponsor licence can use the government-backed regional support offer, which covers help with status and employment rights, finding a new sponsoring employer, and wellbeing support. Social care is devolved, so this specific offer applies in England.

Immigration status and employment claims are separate

This is the point most worth internalising.

Your right to be paid for work you have done does not depend on your sponsor's goodwill. An employer that owes you wages still owes them if you leave, if you are dismissed, or if the licence is revoked. Employment law and immigration law run on separate tracks, and a claim on one does not automatically resolve the other.

That cuts both ways. Winning an employment tribunal claim does not extend your permission, and a sponsor's failure to pay you does not by itself give you longer to stay. If both are in play, you need advice on both, and the immigration deadline is usually the one that moves first.

For immigration advice, use a regulated immigration adviser or an immigration solicitor. For employment matters, start with Acas.

Before you raise something

1. Keep records. Payslips, rotas, timesheets, contracts, the CoS details, and written messages about hours or pay.
2. Put things in writing. A short factual email creates a record that a corridor conversation does not.
3. Check your deadlines. Employment tribunal time limits are measured in weeks, not years.
4. Get advice before resigning. Resignation can affect both an employment claim and your permission.
5. Verify who you are dealing with. If a third party offers to fix an employment problem for a fee, treat that with the same caution as any other sponsorship-related payment request.

How to spot a sponsorship scam

Search licensed sponsor companies

Sources and verification

This guide was checked on 25 August 2026 against:

• GOV.UK: National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates;
• GOV.UK: holiday entitlement;
• GOV.UK: pay and work rights, including the Acas helpline and which body handles each complaint;
• Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority;
• Sponsor guidance Part 2: sponsor a worker; and
• GOV.UK: support offer to international adult social care workers.

This is general information, not legal or employment advice. Enforcement bodies, helpline details and statutory rates change, and tribunal time limits are strict. Confirm the current position on GOV.UK, contact Acas for employment issues, and use a regulated adviser for anything affecting your immigration status.