Home Office guidance protects care workers when a sponsor licence is revoked

19 Sep 2026

If you work as a care worker or senior care worker on a sponsored visa, this update is for you. The Home Office updated its caseworker guidance on cancelling permission on 14 September 2026. The update note says it reflects a "temporary arrangement" for adult social care workers following sponsor licence revocation.

The guidance says: "You must not cancel a person's permission where the person holds permission on the Skilled Worker [or Health and Care Worker] route as a care worker (Standard Occupation Classification (SOC) 6135 or 6145) or senior care worker (SOC 6136 or 6146), and the sole reason for cancellation would be the revocation of the sponsor's licence."

This protection is narrow. It only applies when the revocation of the sponsor's licence is the only reason to cancel. If there are other grounds for cancellation, the normal rules still apply. The guidance describes the arrangement as temporary.

This is guidance for Home Office caseworkers. It does not tell workers to take any specific step. If your sponsor has lost its licence, check the guidance below and your own immigration documents for how it applies to your role.

Sources:

• Immigration status and enforcement action: caseworker guidance (GOV.UK)
• Cancellation and curtailment of permission (GOV.UK)