Right to Work Checks in the UKAn employer’s guide to getting Right to Work (RTW) checks correct and how to make sure you have a statutory excuse for every employee – at scale.

Why do Right to Work checks matter for your business?

Right to Work checks are essential – not optional – for UK employers, regardless of business size, to ensure legal compliance and protect your business against risk. They go beyond a simple identity verification, and are required to maintain a lawful and efficient workforce. Choosing a solution that covers all Right to Work requirements, including secure data storage and imposter detection, enables businesses to streamline hiring, reduce compliance complexities, and focus on building a strong, talented team.

For UK nationals

For UK nationals, the Right to Work check is usually a one-time requirement completed at the start of employment. UK legislation dictates that employers must:

• Obtain the right documentation to prove an employee’s Right to Work in the UK
• Check that the documentation is valid and compliant
• Copy the documentation and keep it on file in case of an audit.

You should then ensure that records are kept for a minimum of two years after the employee leaves your employment, as required by UK law.

For non-UK nationals

For non-UK nationals, the Right to Work process can be more complex. Some non-UK nationals may have settled status, while others may hold time-limited work permits that require periodic verification.

In cases where a work status is time-limited, look to use a system that stores the expiration date and notifies you when it needs to be renewed will help your business stay compliant. If you’re outsourcing a solution from an IDSP (Identity Service Provider), look for one that offers this.

Importantly, Right to Work checks go beyond simply looking at identification documents. Businesses must adhere to a structured, government-approved process to protect themselves from penalties should something go wrong. This includes making sure you have a statutory excuse for each of your employees, and that you could provide proof of this if you were audited.

What is a statutory excuse?

A statutory excuse is a legal protection for employers in the UK that helps avoid penalties when hiring staff. By following the correct steps to check an employee’s Right to Work, businesses can ensure they won’t face consequences if the employee is later found to be ineligible.

Essentially, having a statutory excuse means you’ve done your due diligence in verifying an employee’s work status, which provides you with legal reassurance if you’re ever audited.

How do I get a statutory excuse?

So, now you know that getting a statutory excuse is essential for protecting your business from potential penalties, how do you go about getting one?

You will have a statutory excuse for each employee if you can provide:

• Proof that you obtained, checked and copied valid documentation
• The date that the Right to Work check took place

If the Right to Work check took place remotely, you also need to complete an imposter check on day one of the person’s employment. This verifies that the person presenting the documents is the individual in question and you can do this either in person or via a video call.

Many organisations don’t realise that missing a document or skipping a step could leave them exposed to penalties. So, by being diligent about this process, you can protect your business and minimise the risks of non-compliance.

How you store your Right to Work checks is key

Imagine a large company with hiring managers in various regions, each responsible for their own recruitment processes.

Although they have conducted Right to Work checks for every employee, due to a lack of standardised procedures each manager has developed their own methods for conducting and storing them. Some may rely on physical documents stored in local HR files, while others might use spreadsheets or cloud storage without consistent record-keeping practices.

This disparate approach means that if the UK Border Force conducts an audit of the entire workforce, the company faces a significant challenge. They are asked to provide proof for all employees, but the data is scattered across multiple formats and locations. It can be incredibly time- and cost-intense to collate all of this information, especially to an audit deadline.

Legislation updates and fines

The landscape of Right to Work compliance is rapidly evolving, especially with the rise of remote work. Recent legislative changes and digital identity solutions have transformed how employers conduct Right to Work checks.

These developments highlight the need for businesses to stay informed about their responsibilities under the law. Failure to adapt can lead to significant financial repercussions, so it’s important for employers to understand the latest requirements and ensure compliance, as well as being prepared for what the future of employment might look like.

Large organisations: Where it gets tricky

Rolling out a consistent Right to Work check process across a large organisation can be quite challenging. Here are some key difficulties that it’s important to be aware of as an employer in order to mitigate risk:

1. Consistency at scale: Implementing the full  Right to Work check process consistently across multiple branches or departments is no small feat. Different hiring managers may adopt varied methods, leading to discrepancies in how checks are conducted and documented.
2. Effective training: Ensuring that hiring managers and HR staff are well-trained in the most up-to-date compliance requirements is crucial, yet often difficult. Without proper training, there is a higher risk of errors, which can result in non-compliance and potential penalties.
3. Record keeping: Storing records properly poses another challenge. Many organisations encounter record-keeping issues, which can complicate audits. If documents are not organised or stored in a consistent manner, retrieving the necessary information can become a cumbersome task.
4. Imposter checks: With the increasing prevalence of remote Right to Work checks, keeping track of imposter checks becomes more complex. Verifying the identity of candidates in person is often replaced by remote checks, which can lead to lapses if not managed carefully.

This highlights the importance of working with reliable Identity Service Providers (IDSPs). IDSPs are certified entities that specialise in conducting Right to Work checks. While some providers may offer Right to Work checks (i.e confirming that identity documentation provided is authentic – this is simply an identity check), that is only one part of obtaining a statutory excuse.

For complete compliance and peace of mind, look for a solution that offers:

1. Streamlined, centralised storage that you can use across your entire business.
2. A simplified process for both hiring managers and prospective employees so that documentation can be uploaded, checked and stored with ease.
3. Reminders and checklists for key aspects like visa expiry dates and imposter checks to ensure that you remain compliant, even at scale.

I have done a lot of customer research with high profile employers across different sectors, and the overwhelming feedback was that they needed operational efficiency. A single process which enabled them to manage Right to work checks in line with legislation, regardless of where the candidates came from or the documents they had.”

– Phil Blasdale, Head of Product HRDI

Impact and risk of not getting a statutory excuse

Failing to secure a statutory excuse can heavily impact businesses, especially as compliance regulations tighten. For SMEs, which make up 99% of UK businesses, non-compliance risks are especially severe, as these companies lack the financial resources of larger corporations. A single oversight could result in substantial fines – £45,000 fine for the first offence – and put operations at serious risk.

While SMEs may struggle with fines, larger firms are typically more financially resilient and better able to absorb these penalties. They can afford the fines, but can they afford the reputational damage?

Larger businesses are especially vulnerable to the lasting effects of negative publicity, which can erode customer trust and harm brand reputation. The UK Border Agency has the authority to publish the names of businesses that fail to comply with Right to Work regulations, leading to media exposure that may impact public perception and relationships. For many large corporations, such damage can be difficult to repair, despite their established market presence