Right to work checks
The check protects you only if it was done in the prescribed way, before employment started, and you can still produce the evidence. Any of the three going missing costs the statutory excuse.
What the law requires
Under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 an employer may be liable to a civil penalty for employing someone who does not have permission to work. Carrying out a check in the way prescribed by the Home Office, before employment begins, establishes a statutory excuse against that penalty. Checks may be manual, through the Home Office online service using a share code, or through an identity service provider where the rules allow. Where permission is time-limited, a follow-up check is required before it expires. Evidence must be kept for the period set out in Home Office guidance.
Legislation referred to on this page: Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 · Immigration Act 2016 · Home Office employer right to work checks guidance. Named so you can read the source. Nothing on this page is legal advice, and whether a duty applies to your organisation is a question for you and your adviser.
Who it applies to
- Every employer in the UK, for every employee — the excuse depends on checking everyone rather than selectively.
- Checks are required before employment starts, and again before time-limited permission expires.
- The prescribed methods and retention periods are set out in Home Office guidance, which is updated from time to time.
What you have to be able to show
The list an inspector, insurer or auditor actually works through.
- The evidence for each check, in the prescribed form, dated before the start date.
- Which method was used, and the share code where the online service was used.
- Follow-up check dates for time-limited permission, and the follow-up itself.
- That checks are done consistently, not by nationality or appearance.
- Retention for the required period, and disposal after it.
How DutyHub records it
DutyHub does not carry out any of the work below. It records who did, when, and what they found.
The check as a dated obligation
It sits against the person with the date it was done and the date any follow-up falls due, so an expiry cannot pass unnoticed.
Evidence held under retention
The file is kept against the person for the required period and then disposed of on schedule, because keeping it for ever is its own problem.
Consistency you can demonstrate
The register shows the check against every person rather than only the ones somebody thought needed it.
Start with what applies to you
Add your premises and answer a short set of questions about them. DutyHub works out which duties land on which building, and shows you the gaps before anybody else finds them.
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