3 Reasons spreadsheets are keeping your business non-compliant

The hidden risks your spreadsheets are creating

Home Office enforcement is now at record levels, with sponsor licence revocations and suspensions rising year after year. Even a single missed report, incorrect record, or inconsistent spreadsheet entry can trigger an investigation or licence action.
This short guide breaks down the three most common compliance failures employers experience when relying on spreadsheets — all based on real cases and Home Office audit findings.
Inside, you’ll learn:

What’s inside the guide

1. Missed change-of-circumstances reporting

Spreadsheets cannot monitor deadlines, track changes, or alert HR teams when something requires reporting. The result is missed 10-working-day reporting windows — one of the most common causes of licence reviews and suspensions.
Includes a real employer quote on how Borderless eliminated this risk.

2. Inaccurate or out-of-date records

When HR, payroll, and operations each maintain separate sheets, conflicting versions become unavoidable. SOC code mismatches, salary discrepancies, missing evidence files, and incorrect BRP expiry dates become immediate red flags during audits.

3. No audit trail or security

Spreadsheets offer no user logs, no version control, no data validation, and weak security. During unannounced Home Office visits, employers cannot produce an auditable record of who changed what, when, or why — a critical requirement for licence-holding organisations.

Why download this guide?

This resource gives you:

• A practical breakdown of high-risk compliance gaps
• Real-world examples from immigration advisors
• Clear steps to reduce your risk and strengthen your processes
• A comparison of spreadsheets vs automated compliance platforms
• Insight into how UK employers are staying audit-ready every day

Whether you manage 2 sponsored workers or 200, this guide helps you understand the risks and gives you a clear plan to address them.