Right to Work checks: what UK employers are legally required to do

Under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, it's a legal requirement for every UK employer to check that a person is allowed to do the work in question before they start employment — regardless of their nationality, and regardless of whether they "look" British. Skipping this, or doing it incorrectly, is what exposes an employer to a civil penalty if that person turns out not to have the right to work.

What is a "statutory excuse"?

A statutory excuse is your legal defence against a civil penalty. If you carry out a Right to Work check correctly — using one of the three methods below, before the person starts work — you establish a statutory excuse. If it later turns out the person wasn't entitled to work, you won't be penalised for that individual, provided the check was genuinely done properly and on time.

Conversely: no check, or a check done incorrectly or too late, means no statutory excuse.

The three accepted types of check

• Manual document check — available for anyone. You physically examine original documents from List A or List B in the presence of the holder (in person or by live video link while holding the original document), check they belong to the person and haven't expired, and take a clear copy.
• Home Office online check — for non-British/Irish citizens with a digital immigration status. The candidate generates a "share code" from gov.uk and you look it up on the Home Office's official checking service. No other portal counts for this purpose.
• Digital identity check via a certified provider — British and Irish passport holders (including Irish passport cards) only. A certified Identity Service Provider verifies the passport digitally and gives you an output report you can rely on. You must not treat someone less favourably for not wanting to use this route — they can always ask for a manual check instead.

List A vs List B: why it matters for follow-up checks

The document lists in the official guidance are split into two groups, and which one your new hire falls into determines whether you're ever done:

• List A — documents that prove a continuous, ongoing right to work (e.g. a British/Irish passport, or evidence of indefinite leave to remain). Check it once, correctly, and you have a statutory excuse for the entire time you employ that person. No follow-up checks, ever.
• List B — documents that prove a time-limited right to work (e.g. a visa with an expiry date). This establishes a statutory excuse only until that permission expires — you must carry out a follow-up check before then to keep it. See our follow-up checks guide for exactly when and how.

The three steps of a manual check

• Obtain the original List A or List B document(s) from the individual.
• Check that photos and dates of birth are consistent with the person in front of you, permission hasn't expired, any work restrictions are compatible with the job on offer, and the document looks genuine and unaltered.
• Copy the document in a format that can't be manually altered (scan or photocopy), and record the date the check was made. Keep this securely for the duration of employment and for two years afterwards, then destroy it.

Don't discriminate

You must apply the same check consistently to every prospective employee — you cannot only check people who "look or sound" like they might not be British, or make assumptions based on accent, name, or how long someone has lived in the UK. Doing so can be used as evidence of unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act 2010, separately from any immigration civil penalty.

What happens if you get it wrong

Employing someone without the right to work, without having correctly carried out a prescribed check, can lead to a civil penalty of up to £60,000 per illegal worker — the exact amount is set case by case under the Home Office's civil penalty code of practice. In serious cases there's also a criminal offence carrying up to five years' imprisonment and an unlimited fine, business closure, director disqualification, and loss of any sponsor licence.

This guide summarises the Home Office's published employer guidance as at the review date above. Right to Work rules change periodically (for example, digital identity checking has expanded significantly in recent years) — always check the current gov.uk employer's guide before relying on this for a real hiring decision.