We are proud to share a recent success story from NARA Solicitors.
We recovered over £16,000 for a client who was defrauded by people posing as a legitimate route into UK employment.
Our client was offered a job in the UK. She was told which company would be sponsoring her, and she was told that a sum of money had to be paid to secure the sponsorship and the Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) that went with it. It was presented to her as a cost of the process, not as a favour or a shortcut.
She paid what she was asked to pay. Over £16,000.
She was then handed a document that appeared to be a Certificate of Sponsorship, carrying the sponsoring company's details. As far as she knew, the job was real, the sponsor was real, and the process was moving forward.
She came to us for assistance after the money had already been paid.
Sponsorship fraud does not look like fraud from the inside. It arrives as a job offer from what appears to be a real company, followed by a request for money framed as a normal part of the process, followed by a document that looks correct.
Someone who has never been through the UK sponsorship system has no reason to question any of that. And the fraud is designed that way.
But there are two things worth knowing.
First, a CoS is not a certificate you hold in your hand. It is an electronic record created by a licensed sponsor on the Home Office sponsorship management system, carrying a unique reference number the worker uses in their visa application. A printed document proves nothing on its own.
Second, a genuine sponsor is not allowed to charge a Skilled Worker for the sponsor licence fee or the cost of assigning a CoS. Those are the employer's costs, and a sponsor who passes them on to a worker risks having their licence revoked. So a demand for payment is not a sign that a worker has done anything wrong. It is a sign that the people asking are not operating legitimately.
We did not begin with a complicated legal argument. We began with the fastest check available.
We immediately advised our client to contact the named sponsoring company directly and ask whether they had assigned a CoS in her name.
The company confirmed that the certificate was fraudulent. They had not issued it. It had never come from them.
That single step changed everything. Our client went from suspecting she had been deceived to holding confirmation from the company itself that the document she had paid over £16,000 for did not exist.
The Outcome
Following our intervention, the full £16,000 was recovered for our client.
For someone who had saved and borrowed to build a future in the UK, that recovery mattered enormously. Many people in the same position never see their money again, usually because they do not find out what has happened until far too late.
If you have paid money in connection with a job offer and sponsorship, and something does not feel right, contact NARA Solicitors. The sooner you act, the better your chances of recovering what you paid.
What Others Should Know
Verify the CoS with the sponsor directly. Use the phone number or email address on the company's own official website, not the contact details you were given by whoever arranged the job. Ask whether they have assigned a CoS in your name.
Check the sponsor is on the register. The Home Office publishes a list of licensed sponsors. If the company is not on it, they cannot sponsor anyone.
Know what a sponsor can and cannot charge you. The sponsor licence fee and the cost of assigning a CoS are the employer's to pay. If you are being asked for them, something is wrong on their side, not yours.
Do not judge by how a document looks. Fraudsters produce paperwork that looks correct. Only the sponsor and the Home Office can confirm a CoS exists.
Also read: Understanding minor and significant errors in a CoS and how to check a sponsor licence status.
NARA Solicitors handles business and personal immigration. We advise employers on sponsor licence applications and compliance audits, and we advise workers on Skilled Worker visa applications, refusals, and cases like this one. You can read more client outcomes on our success stories page.
If you have been offered a job with sponsorship and asked to pay for it, or you suspect the Certificate of Sponsorship you were given is not genuine, NARA Solicitors is here to help. We can check the position for you and advise on your options.
Book a consultation with NARA Solicitors today.
