Over the past few years, UK immigration work inside HR teams has mainly focused on salary thresholds, occupation codes, and proving genuine vacancies. That is now changing.
The UK Home Office is moving to a new UK Good Character Rules consolidated character framework called ‘Part Suitability’, which essentially means a single, centralised set of rules that tells the UK Home Office when an applicant can be refused a visa or when their current permission can be cancelled based on conduct, past offences, or previous immigration behaviour.
For HR, this means character and compliance behaviour will directly influence future visa outcomes, extensions, and settlement.
I. What the New Part Suitability Character Rules Actually Change
Part Suitability replaces and consolidates earlier suitability language that was previously located in Part 9 of the UK Immigration Rules (General Grounds for Refusal) and scattered across specific Appendices. Now there will be one central reference point for all suitability-related refusal and cancellation grounds.
This consolidation means that the decision makers will rely on one framework when assessing sponsorship and visa outcomes. HR teams should expect more uniform interpretation of what counts as a breach, deception, or non-suitability.
For example, under the new framework, even a prior immigration violation in another jurisdiction could be viewed as a suitability concern if it indicates a pattern of non compliance. So if an applicant overstayed a short term visa in a different country two years ago and that overstay was recorded at the border, that information might now be used in the UK suitability judgement. This is exactly the type of consistency shift that HR needs to be aware of.
II. Why These Rules Matter for Visa-Sponsored Talent
Suitability determines if a person is eligible to be granted a visa or to continue in their existing permission. For many roles within HR, these assessments have historically been handled late in the process by counsel when the application was being prepared.
This change pulls suitability forward in the timeline. Since suitability will be consistently tested across most routes, HR will need to understand suitability inputs earlier. Suitability concerns can no longer be discovered at the last minute because they can directly derail sponsorship strategy.
Suitability concerns can no longer be discovered at the last minute because they can directly derail sponsorship strategy.
For instance, HR can now build this into pre-screening, requesting basic disclosure of past immigration refusals or sanctions at the candidate declaration stage rather than waiting for counsel to uncover it at the filing stage.
III. Where HR May Need to Adjust Screening and Clearances Under the New UK Good Character Rules
The new suitability structure means HR will need to strengthen how it collects and evaluates information before initiating sponsorship. This includes:
- Updating pre-sponsorship questionnaires so they ask the right character questions that reflect the new, wider definition of previous breaches. For example, instead of only asking “have you ever been refused a UK visa,” the form now asks “have you ever breached visa conditions or overstayed in any country.
- Clarifying what documentation HR needs to see before deciding to sponsor (for example, if the individual previously overstayed or breached conditions in any country, not just the UK).
- Clarifying escalation triggers internally (for example, at what point does a case manager escalate a concern to Legal before taking a sponsorship decision).
- Improving coordination between talent acquisition and the sponsored worker compliance team so that early character concerns are identified before a Certificate of Sponsorship is issued.
- Reviewing communication with employees to make sure that if there is a potential suitability concern, HR manages expectations about risk, timelines, and possible outcomes.
The core shift is this: suitability is not a distant concept looked at only when the visa is filed. It now needs to be integrated at the very beginning of the hiring and sponsorship decision-making process.
IV. Screening Form Questionnaire Template
StepWhat HR should checkExample evidence/questions to ask1. Identity + travel historyHas the individual complied with immigration conditions in all jurisdictions?Ask: “Have you ever overstayed, worked without permission, or breached visa conditions in any country?” Request: copies of previous visas/entry stamps if relevant.2. Previous refusals/cancellationsHas any visa application ever been refused, cancelled, or curtailed?Ask: “Has any government ever refused or cancelled your visa?” Request: refusal letter/cancellation notice.3. Criminality and good characterIs there any conduct that could indicate risk to the sponsor licence?Ask: “Have you ever been convicted or charged with an offence?” Check: basic police cert (if available).4. Financial conduct (if applicable)Any history of fraud, false representation, or dishonesty that could trigger suitability concerns?Ask: “Have you ever been investigated or sanctioned for financial misconduct?”5. Internal escalation thresholdAt what point must HR pause and escalate to Legal?Example trigger: any admission of overstaying anywhere, any refusal in the past 5 years, or any adverse finding of dishonesty.
V. How This Intersects With Immigration Compliance Audits
In a sponsor licence audit, the UK Home Office does not only check documents. They check decision-making. They assess whether the sponsor applied the correct version of the Rules when they hired and sponsored a worker.
Once Part Suitability becomes the central reference point, it will become a standard against which HR screening decisions are judged.
If a refusal happens after sponsorship, the audit question becomes very simple: Did HR evaluate suitability based on the new framework at the point of hire, or did HR rely on outdated criteria?
This is why suitability is no longer a legal-only assessment. This now directly connects to sponsor licence compliance.
If HR updates its screening logic early, the organisation demonstrates proactive compliance, which is material evidence during an audit. If the organisation waits and continues to use older suitability questionnaires, it increases audit exposure.
VI. What HR Needs to Update as Soon as November Guidance Drops
Once the Home Office publishes the implementing guidance later in November this year, HR teams should move quickly to bring internal immigration processes into line. HR should be ready to:
- Update internal immigration questionnaires
- Update new joiner compliance forms
- Update the wording in sponsor compliance templates
- Brief talent acquisition teams on which character issues now trigger non-suitability
- Realign the language used in external counsel instructions
The moment the UK Home Office publishes the operational text, HR should make these changes immediately so every visa-sponsored case being prepared reflects the new suitability structure.
FAQ
1. Will this make visa refusals more common
Not necessarily. The wording is being consolidated, which means the Home Office will assess suitability in a more structured way.
2. Is this relevant only for family visas
No. While the biggest visible impact is on Appendix FM, the new suitability framework applies more broadly.
3. Do we need to change our Right to Work process
Not the statutory check itself. The compliance decision-making around sponsorship is what needs updating.
4. Do employees need to self-declare anything new
HR may need to ask more precise character questions in immigration questionnaires so the new framework can be applied properly.
VII. Way Forward
This is not a reason to panic. Suitability is not a brand-new concept. But the centralisation of suitability into one place means HR leaders must treat this as a governance update, not a legal definition change.
WayLit can support this transition by standardising how job, background, and suitability information flows between HR and Legal. This helps HR ensure that all information provided at the time of sponsorship is aligned and complete, which is exactly what this new framework expects.
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