From 1st October 2022, we see the new changes in employment legislation come into place around the Right to Work in the UK.
The new legislation promotes the move to using digital Right to Work checks to be completed for foreign workers coming into the UK. This affects all UK businesses and will mean that they’ll need to use certified Government Identity Service providers to conduct the checks.
The move to digital checks is a shift to a quicker and more effective method of completing these checks. Businesses will be required to follow the process or face a civil fine of up to £20,000, and this is applicable per individual too.
This process will now replace the temporary one that was put in place during the pandemic where copies were sent to employers to check over email or video call and replaced the in-person checks pre pandemic.
Under the new digital check’s employers will need to upload images of the documents to the certified companies, who will use ID verification technology to establish the right to work within the UK for employees. It’s also worth noting that there will be a requirement to keep a record of these checks for up to 2 years after the employee leaves your business.
If this is something you haven’t yet prepared for you can find a list of all the certified suppliers and all the relating information on a dedicated government page for digital identity certification.
