Accessibility statement for Sponsor Management System

This accessibility statement applies to Sponsor Management System (SMS), which can be accessed at Sponsor management system (SMS).

This website is run by the Home Office. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

zoom in up to 200% without the text spilling off the screen
navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible. For example:

it does not currently work as well as it could when navigating the site with a screenreader
the content does not reflow when magnifying
you cannot skip to the main content when using a screen reader

You can see a full list of any issues we currently know about in the Non-accessible content section of this statement.

Feedback and contact information

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille:

Email: BusinessHelpdesk@homeoffice.gov.uk or EducatorsHelpdesk@homeoffice.gov.uk

You can find information about this service at https://www.gov.uk/uk-visa-sponsorship-employers.

If you need assistance in using this service, you can find ways to get help at https://www.gov.uk/assisted-digital-help-online-applications.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact:

the Business Helpdesk by email at BusinessHelpdesk@homeoffice.gov.uk
or contact the Educators Helpdesk by email at EducatorsHelpdesk@homeoffice.gov.uk

Read tips on contacting organisation about inaccessible websites.

Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

If you are in Northern Ireland and are not happy with how we respond to your complaint you can contact the Equalities Commission for Northern Ireland who are responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’) in Northern Ireland.

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The Home Office is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance Status

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Keyboard navigation

The focus indicator is not visible enough, particularly so for buttons. Users with sight disabilities may have problems locating or tracking where current keyboard focus is. This fails WCAG 2.4.7 Focus visible.

There is no "Skip to Main Content" link at the top of the page that moves focus to the main content area. When navigating the site, focus is usually in the main content area by default, but it would be useful to have a "Skip to Main Content" link at the top of the page in order to skip repeated content in the left panel if necessary. This fails WCAG 2.4.1 Bypass blocks

Using a screen reader

Where there are validation errors, these are not announced by the screenreader. The error messages are displayed at the bottom of the page in red but a screenreader user is not made aware and would have to navigate the whole page using the arrow keys to find out what has happened. This fails WCAG 3.3.1 Error identification.

In the PBS SMS, when performing a search, the search results are not announced to a screen reader user. When clicking Next, the search results are displayed but a screenreader user is not informed, hence the screenreader user is unaware of what is happening and would have to spend time navigating around the page to find the message. This fails WCAG 4.1.3 Status messages.

The heading structure on many pages is not correct. There are skipped heading levels, and, in some cases, additional sub-headings would be useful in order to aid navigation. Screenreader users may struggle to understand the structure of the page, or it may take longer than necessary to navigate to the section they want. This fails WCAG 2.4.6 Headings and labels and 1.3.1 Info and relationships

There are no Landmarks defined so screenreader users cannot use them to quickly navigate to a section of a page that they want. This fails WCAG 1.3.1 Info and relationships

On most pages, the heading structure is not correct. Screenreader users may struggle to understand the structure of the page and might have difficulty navigating quickly to the area they want. This fails WCAG 1.3.1 Info and relationships

When using the navigation links in the left-hand panel, a screen reader user is not informed about them being expanded or collapsed. They would be unaware that clicking the link has revealed other sub-options or links. This fails WCAG 2.4.4 Link purpose in context

Focus is also moved back to the top of the page. When subsequently moving down through the links in the expanded area they have no feedback from the screen reader that these links are sub-links or hierarchical. Screen reader users would not have the full context of the link. This fails WCAG 2.4.3- Focus Order

Other issues

Content does not reflow into a single column at 400% magnification. This can make it difficult to read the content especially in the left panel. All content is generally ok up to 200% magnification. This fails WCAG 1.4.10 Reflow

The initial focus position is often in the wrong place on entry to the page. Screenreader and keyboard only users would be confused about the focus order. This fails WCAG 2.4.3 Focus Order

Most links are not underlined unless the user hovers the mouse over the link. This means that colour is being used as the sole visible indicator of a link. Users with sight disabilities or colour blindness may find it harder to easily identify links on the page. This fails WCAG 1.4.1 Use of colour

There is an inactivity timeout, however, users are not warned when this is close to triggering and given the chance to extend their session. This could cause frustration for some users having to log back in and navigate back to where they were. They also may lose some of the data they entered. This fails WCAG 2.2.1 Timing adjustable

On the Login page, autocomplete is not configured for the UserID and Password fields. This could cause frustration for some users as the fields would not prepopulate with information held in the browser meaning that they would need to type their UserID and Password in again. This fails WCAG 3.3.8 Accessible authentication

On the Login and Forgotten Password pages the user is unable to view their password. This may make it harder for some users with disabilities to log in because they are unable to check whether they have entered the correct password. This fails WCAG 3.3.2- Labels or instructions

Some address fields are missing visible labels. This could make it more difficult for users of speech recognition software to move focus to these fields. This fails WCAG 1.3.1 Info and relationships

We plan to resolve these issues by March 2026.

Disproportionate burden

At this time, we have not made any disproportionate burden claims.

Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

At this time, we have not identified any content that is not within scope of the accessibility regulations.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 20^th August 2025. It was last reviewed on 27^th August 2025.

This website was last tested on 21^st July 2025.

Testing was carried out internally by the Home Office.

We tested the service based on a sample selection of pages within the site. Pages were selected to give a good coverage of all of the different elements that make up the pages on the site.