Recommendation 31

We asked the Home Office whether there was sufficient scrutiny to tackle the level of non-compliance with visa rules. In particular, we noted the decrease in the number of full-time equivalent compliance officers in the Home Office, which fell from 65.5 in 2021 to 46 in 2024, and asked whether referring just 1% of sponsors for enhanced compliance checks was enough.83 The Home Office said it had introduced new practices, such as digital audits, and that it seeks to target resources to the highest risk cases, including potential trafficking or sponsors exploiting migrant workers.84 It told us it had reacted to fix problems that it identified and was seeking to be more productive and agile.85 Despite this, we were concerned that the Home Office is still reacting to problems rather than fixing the system.86 For example, we asked the Home Office about progress made in removing sponsors who may have already taken advantage of the system. It told us that it was tightening up the sponsor register and had increased the number of sponsor licence revocations, from 337 in 2023 to 1,494 in 2024.87