Right to Work Check (UK)
A mandatory verification by UK employers to confirm that a job candidate or employee has legal permission to work in the United Kingdom.
- What Is a Right to Work Check (UK)?
- Three Methods for Conducting Right to Work Checks
- When to Conduct Checks and Follow-Up Obligations
- Penalties for Non-Compliance
- Avoiding Discrimination During Right to Work Checks
- Record-Keeping Requirements
- Right to Work Checks for Remote Hiring
- Frequently Asked Questions About UK Right to Work Checks
What Is a Right to Work Check (UK)?
Key Takeaways
- ✓UK employers are legally required to verify every employee's right to work in the UK before employment begins.
- ✓Failure to conduct proper checks can result in civil penalties of up to 45,000 GBP per illegal worker for a first breach (UK Home Office, 2024).
- ✓There are three methods: manual document check, the Home Office online checking service, and Identity Document Validation Technology (IDVT) for British and Irish citizens.
- ✓Checks must be completed no more than 28 days before the employee's start date.
- ✓Conducting the check correctly provides a statutory excuse, which is a legal defense against civil penalties if the worker turns out to have no right to work.
A right to work check is a legal requirement under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006. Every UK employer must verify that each employee, whether British, settled, or a visa holder, has the legal right to work in the United Kingdom before their first day of work. The check confirms that the person isn't subject to immigration controls that prevent them from taking the job, or that any visa or immigration permission they hold allows them to do the work being offered. This isn't optional. It applies to every hire. British citizens, EU nationals with settled or pre-settled status, visa holders, refugees, and everyone else. Checking only "foreign-looking" candidates would be discriminatory and is specifically prohibited. You must apply the same process consistently to every person you hire. The consequences for getting it wrong are serious. Since February 2024, the maximum civil penalty for employing an illegal worker rose to 45,000 GBP per worker for a first breach and 60,000 GBP for repeat offenses. Criminal prosecution can lead to up to 5 years in prison if the employer knowingly hired someone without the right to work. Beyond penalties, there's reputational damage and the disruption of losing an employee mid-engagement.
Who needs to be checked
Every employee. No exceptions based on nationality, ethnicity, or how long you've known the person. The obligation applies to all paid workers including full-time employees, part-time staff, agency workers (the agency must check), zero-hours contract workers, interns (if paid), and apprentices. Volunteers who aren't paid don't require a right to work check, but if they receive any form of payment or benefit-in-kind, they do. Self-employed contractors aren't covered, but HMRC's employment status rules may reclassify some "contractors" as workers, which would trigger the requirement.
What a statutory excuse means
If you conduct the right to work check correctly, following the prescribed steps exactly, you obtain a "statutory excuse." This means that if the employee later turns out to have no right to work (for example, their visa was forged and the forgery wasn't reasonably detectable), you won't face a civil penalty. The statutory excuse is your legal shield. But it only works if you followed every step of the prescribed process. A sloppy check, even one that reached the right conclusion, doesn't provide the statutory excuse. This is why process matters more than instinct.
Three Methods for Conducting Right to Work Checks
The UK Home Office prescribes three acceptable methods. The method you use depends on the individual's nationality and immigration status.
Method 1: Manual document check
This is the traditional method and still the most commonly used. The process has three steps. Step one: obtain the original documents from the candidate (not copies, not photos, originals). Acceptable documents fall into two categories. List A documents prove permanent right to work (British passport, Irish passport, certificate of registration as a British citizen, etc.). List B documents prove time-limited right to work (biometric residence permits, frontier worker permits, immigration status documents with a work endorsement). Step two: check the documents in the presence of the holder. Verify they're genuine, the photos and dates of birth are consistent, the dates for permission to work haven't expired, and the person standing in front of you matches the photo. Step three: make a clear copy (scan or photocopy) and record the date the check was performed. Keep these records for the duration of employment plus two years after the employment ends.
Method 2: Home Office online checking service
Some individuals can't prove their right to work with physical documents. This includes people with eVisas, biometric residence cards, status under the EU Settlement Scheme shown digitally, or Frontier Worker Permits issued digitally. For these individuals, use the Home Office online checking service at gov.uk/view-right-to-work. The candidate provides you with a share code (generated from their account) and their date of birth. You enter these details online, and the system confirms their right to work, any restrictions, and the expiry date. You must save or print the online check result page and keep it as your record. This method is mandatory for people who hold digital immigration status. You can't ask them for a physical document if their status is digital-only.
Method 3: Identity Document Validation Technology (IDVT)
Since April 2022, employers can use certified Identity Service Providers (IDSPs) to conduct digital right to work checks for British and Irish citizens who hold a valid passport (including Irish passport cards). The IDSP uses chip-reading technology to verify the document's authenticity and performs a biometric comparison to confirm the holder's identity. This method was introduced to support remote hiring. It eliminates the need for an in-person document check for British and Irish passport holders, which is helpful for fully remote roles. You can only use IDVT for British and Irish citizens with valid passports. It can't be used for visa holders or anyone without a chipped passport.
When to Conduct Checks and Follow-Up Obligations
Timing is critical. Checking too early, too late, or failing to conduct follow-up checks on time-limited workers are all common mistakes.
Initial check timing
The right to work check must be completed before the employee starts work. Not on day one. Before day one. The check can be conducted up to 28 days before the start date. Checking earlier than 28 days means the check won't provide a statutory excuse. Example: if the employee starts on March 15, the earliest valid check date is February 15. If you check on February 10, it doesn't count, and you'll need to repeat it.
Follow-up checks for time-limited workers
If the employee's right to work is time-limited (List B documents), you need to conduct repeat checks before their permission expires. For List B Group 1 documents (biometric residence permits with an expiry date), check again before the expiry date. For List B Group 2 documents (Certificate of Application for people with pending immigration applications), check every six months until the application is resolved. Missing a follow-up check means losing your statutory excuse from that point forward. Set calendar reminders in your HR system well in advance of expiry dates. Don't wait until the last week.
What to do if a check reveals no right to work
If a prospective employee can't demonstrate their right to work, you can't employ them. Period. Don't offer workarounds, don't let them start while they "sort it out," and don't hire them as a contractor to avoid the requirement. If an existing employee's right to work expires and they can't provide evidence of a pending application or extended permission, you must terminate their employment. Continuing to employ them after their permission expires is an offense. Before terminating, use the Home Office Employer Checking Service to verify the situation, as there may be an administrative delay rather than an actual loss of status.
Penalties for Non-Compliance
The penalty increases in February 2024 were substantial. Civil penalties tripled from the previous levels. The Home Office has also increased the number of enforcement visits and now publishes the names of penalized employers, adding reputational damage to the financial penalty. A statutory excuse is your only defense against a civil penalty. If you can demonstrate you conducted the prescribed check correctly and on time, the penalty doesn't apply, even if the worker was in fact working illegally.
| Penalty Type | First Breach | Repeat Breach | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil penalty per illegal worker | Up to 45,000 GBP | Up to 60,000 GBP | Increased from 15,000/20,000 GBP in February 2024 |
| Criminal prosecution (knowingly employing) | Up to 5 years imprisonment | Up to 5 years imprisonment | Applies when employer knew or had reasonable cause to believe worker had no right to work |
| Business closure | Possible | Likely | Premises can be closed for up to 48 hours under immigration enforcement powers |
| Sponsor license revocation | Possible | Likely | If the employer holds a sponsor license, non-compliance can trigger suspension or revocation |
Avoiding Discrimination During Right to Work Checks
Right to work checks create discrimination risk if not handled carefully. The Equality Act 2010 prohibits discrimination based on race, nationality, and ethnic origin, and poorly managed right to work processes can violate these protections.
Common discriminatory practices to avoid
Only checking people who "look" or "sound" foreign: you must check everyone, without exception. Asking for extra documents from certain nationalities: if a candidate presents a valid List A document, don't ask for additional proof. Rejecting genuine documents because you're unfamiliar with them: biometric residence permits, EU Settlement Scheme letters, and status letters from the Home Office are all valid. Treating candidates differently based on their accent, name, or appearance during the checking process. The Home Office's code of practice on avoiding unlawful discrimination is mandatory reading for anyone involved in the hiring process.
Building a non-discriminatory process
Apply the same process to every candidate at the same stage of hiring. Ask all candidates the same question: "Can you provide evidence of your right to work in the UK?" Accept any document from the prescribed lists. Don't express surprise or skepticism at specific document types. Train every person involved in right to work checks on both the legal requirements and the anti-discrimination obligations. Document your process and apply it consistently.
Record-Keeping Requirements
Proper record-keeping is essential for maintaining your statutory excuse. If you can't produce the records during an enforcement visit, it's as if you never did the check.
What to keep
For manual checks: a clear copy of every document inspected (both sides of biometric residence permits and travel documents showing the photo page and any endorsement pages). For online checks: a printed or saved copy of the result page from the Home Office online checking service. For IDVT checks: the output from the certified Identity Service Provider. In all cases, record the date the check was performed. This date is critical: if the date is missing, you can't prove the check was done within the required timeframe.
How long to retain records
Keep right to work records for the duration of employment plus two years after the employment ends. This applies regardless of how the employment ended (resignation, redundancy, dismissal, or retirement). If an enforcement visit happens within those two years, you need to produce the records. After two years post-employment, you should securely destroy the records in line with GDPR data minimization principles. Holding them longer than necessary creates unnecessary data protection risk.
Right to Work Checks for Remote Hiring
Since the end of the COVID-19 temporary measures in September 2022, the rules for conducting right to work checks remotely have tightened.
Current options for remote checks
British and Irish citizens with valid passports can be checked remotely using IDVT through a certified IDSP. Everyone else, including visa holders, settled status holders, and people without passports, must either attend an in-person document check or use the Home Office online checking service (if they have digital immigration status with a share code). The COVID-era allowance for video call document checks ended on September 30, 2022. Checks done via video call after that date don't provide a statutory excuse.
Practical tips for remote employers
If you're hiring remotely and the candidate can't use IDVT or the online service, arrange for an in-person check at a local office, co-working space, or through a third-party provider that offers right to work verification. Some law firms and HR consultancies offer this as a service. Don't skip the check because it's inconvenient. The penalty is up to 45,000 GBP per worker. The cost of a third-party verification service is typically 20-50 GBP.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to check British citizens?
What if the candidate can't provide documents before their start date?
Can I accept an expired passport from a British citizen?
What about EU nationals after Brexit?
How often should I repeat checks for visa holders?
Can I outsource right to work checks to a third party?
Written by Adithyan RK