Right to Work Checks (Employer Guidance)
Right to Work Checks: Guidance for Employers As a UK employer, you have a legal obligation to comply with the prevention of illegal working legislation. This requires you to conduct basic checks on every UK-based employee to verify they have the requisite permission to perform the work on offer. Importantly, as part of your recruitment, pre-employment checks, the […]
Prevention of Illegal Working Guide 2023
Under the prevention of illegal working legislation, it is unlawful for an employer to hire someone if they do not have the Right to Work in the UK or if they are breaching the terms of their stay by working. Employers in the UK must by law comply with the prevention of illegal working regime. Breaching […]
Check an Existing Employee’s Right to Work
Most UK employers are aware of the requirement to conduct a right to work check on every new recruit, but follow-up checks on existing staff can often get overlooked or forgotten altogether in the day-to-day running of an organisation. The following guide on right to work in the UK existing employees examines the rules around follow-up […]
Right to Work Checklist & Acceptable Documents
As a UK employer, you are required by law to check and record the immigration status of every employee, to verify they have the Right to Work in the UK. Put simply, your organisation must have in place appropriate HR systems to check and record your employees’ immigration and working status in line with the […]
How to Check Someone’s Immigration Status
Foreign nationals must hold valid immigration status to be able to live and work legally in the UK. Employers are required by law to verify the immigration status of all workers or face Home Office enforcement action. In this guide, we look at how to check someone’s immigration status before you hire them, when further […]
When an Employee Loses their Right to Work
If you become aware that an employee has lost their right to work, your next steps will be critical to ensure you do not breach your duties. Duty to prevent illegal working It is worth reminding that all UK employers operate under a duty to prevent illegal working. Failure to meet your duties under […]
Positive Verification Notice (Right to Work)
To avoid civil penalties and the possibility of criminal prosecution, employers must scrutinise the working documents produced by their employees and in certain circumstances contact the Home Office for a Positive Verification Notice by using the Employer Checking Service. When hiring any new employee, organisations must follow the prescribed requirements in order to obtain the […]
Employer Checking Service (Guide for HR)
Employers can, in certain circumstances, make use of the Home Office’s online employer checking service to conduct compliant right to work checks and avoid penalties for illegal working. There are, however, rules and limitations to using the employer checking service, making it important for employers, HR and those responsible for conducting an organisation’s right to […]
Illegal Immigration in the Workplace
As a UK employer you are under a duty to prevent illegal immigration by carrying out right to work checks. In this way you can ensure that both prospective and existing employees are lawfully allowed to work in the UK and undertake the work on offer. Any failure to carry out these document checks correctly, […]
How to Avoid Employing Illegal Immigrants
Employers across all sectors are falling foul of immigration compliance and facing allegations of employing illegal immigrants. Under current immigration rules, employers operate under onerous duties for the prevention of illegal working. Where employers are found to be in breach of their immigration compliance duties and are alleged to be employing illegal immigrants, they face […]
