New Guidance: How to Conduct Right to Work Checks

As of 1st July 2021, there has been new guidance outlined on how to conduct right to work checks. 

All employers in the UK have a responsibility to prevent illegal working. An employer would satisfy this obligation by conducting simple Right to Work checks before they employ an individual and thereafter a follow up check, if required, to make sure the individual is not disqualified from carrying out the work in question by reason of their immigration status.

There are three steps:

Step 1: Obtain

When conducting your Right to Work checks you must obtain original documents from either List A or List B of acceptable documents at Annex A. 

Step 2: Check

Check all documents you have been provided with are genuine and are provided by the employee who is the holder of those documents. You must check:

• photographs and dates of birth are consistent across documents and with the person’s appearance in order to detect impersonation;
• expiry dates for permission to be in the UK have not passed; 
• any work restrictions to determine if they are allowed to do the type of work on offer (for students who have limited permission to work during term-times, you must also obtain, copy and retain details of their academic term and vacation times covering the duration of their period of study in the UK for which they will be employed); 
• the documents are genuine, have not been tampered with and belong to the holder; and 
• the reasons for any difference in names across documents can be explained by providing evidence (e.g. original marriage certificate, divorce decree absolute, deed poll). These supporting documents must also be photocopied and a copy retained.

Step 3: Copy

As part of the Right to Work checks, make high quality copies of each document and store safely (electronically or hardcopy). 

• See how Bizimply can help you store these documents so when requested, they can be located easily. 

Bizimply recommend you use the Government’s ‘Right to Work Checklist’ to ensure you have correctly carried out all the steps you need to. Or else use their online interactive tool ‘Check if someone can work in the UK’, which will take you through the process by asking you a series of questions. 

Check out our Webinar on Right to Work Checks to get all the information you need. 

If you choose to carry out retrospective checks, it is important you do so in a nondiscriminatory manner. The Code of practice for employers: will ensure you avoid unlawful discrimination while preventing illegal working provides practical guidance when conducting right to work checks.

For any further information please contact us at [email protected] or if you would like to speak to one of our advisors to learn more about Bizimply, click here.