New Rules For Right To Work Checks

Employers need to be aware that from October 2022, there are new rules for the ‘right to work’ in the UK. Employers have to conduct a ‘right to work’ check on all new employees through one of the three methods specified by the Home Office to be considered a “valid check”.

All UK employers need to conduct ‘right to work’ checks before bringing new staff onboard. This is to ensure that individuals are not disqualified because of their immigration status and also for employers to prevent illegal employment.

Failure to conduct ‘right to work’ checks as an employer might result in illegal employment and could face a civil penalty of up to £20,000 per worker.

Under the new rules, there are three types of ‘right to work’ check methods:

• 1. Manual ‘right to work’ check

Manual checks are mainly for people from List A, such as British citizens or people who have an Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).

Employers need to check if the employee’s documents are genuine and whether it represents them. The employer needs to meet the employee and make sure that the photo is a match and they have the right to work in the UK. All corresponding documents must be a match and still valid.

The employer needs to keep a copy of all relevant documents such as Passports or ILR cards, here is the list. All copies of documents obtained should be stored securely for at least two years after the employee has left.

• 2. A ‘right to work’ check using Identity Document Validation Technology (IDVT) via the services of an Identity Service Provider (IDSP)

Employers can also use IDVT via the IDSP to complete the digital identity verification element of the ‘right to work’ process. This method only applies to British and Irish citizens who hold a valid passport (including Irish passport cards).

To conduct the ‘right to work’ checks, the employer needs to complete the identity verification of the employee through the IDSP, as recognised by the Home Office.

The Home Office recommends that employers use IDSP checks with certified providers. You can find a list of certified IDSP providers here.

The employer needs to make sure that the photographs and the employee’s details from the IDVT check are consistent with the individual they are employing.

Following the check, the employer needs to retain a copy of the IDVT identity check for the duration of employment and two years after the employee has left.

• 3. Home Office online ‘right to work’ check

For employees with a biometric residence permit (BRP), EEA biometric residence card (BRC) and Frontier Worker permit (FWP) or electronic visa (E-visa), employers have to use the Home Office ‘Online right to work checking service’ to check employees’ right to work.

The employer needs to obtain the ‘Share Code’ generated by the new employee, date of birth and employee’s immigration status. This then will tell employers how many hours the employee can work per week.

Once again, the employer needs to keep a record of all the employee’s relevant documents for the period of employment and additional two years after the employee has left.

At the same time, if the potential/existing employee is on a ‘limited period’ visa, the employer must also perform a follow-up check to determine when the employee’s (original) visa is valid.

In conclusion, if you’re going to have new employees coming onboard, remember to conduct ‘right to work’ checks (as above). This is to ensure that the ‘right to work’ checks have met the requirements of the Home Office.