On 14 July the Home Office published a 120-page guidance note, "IAA Adviser Registration Explained", detailing competence, training and suitability standards for organisations that wish to provide immigration advice for a fee. The document accompanies the phased rollout of the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA), which replaces the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner. Key changes include a mandatory online portal for registration, tiered authorisation levels aligned with advice complexity and a requirement for corporate providers to appoint a compliance officer who has completed an accredited training course. Employers that give in-house immigration guidance to international assignees—such as help with Skilled Worker extensions—must now hold at least ‘Level 1 – Business’ authorisation or outsource to a regulated law firm. The guidance clarifies that sponsor-licence holders can continue to file work-visa applications for their own staff without separate IAA registration, but only if the advice is incidental to sponsorship and no fee is charged to the employee. Firms that manage applications for group entities or clients must register. Sanctions for unregulated advice range from civil penalties to criminal prosecution. Mobility managers should audit internal processes, enrol relevant staff in competence training and ring-fence budget for the IAA’s annual oversight fee, expected to be £950 for medium-sized employers.
Source: UK Government – Guidance
