With the regular changes to the UK Right to Work (“RTW”) checks over the last year or so, employers may be forgiven for having lost track of what the latest requirements are.
As mentioned in our last blog on RTW checks (You’re Joking – Not Another One! Further Changes to the Right to Work
We have commented before that, in the past year, there have been a large number of changes to the Right to Work (“RTW”) check process. Much of this has been driven by the enforced move to remote and hybrid working caused by the pandemic.
As a reminder, RTW checks must be undertaken by employers on:
The official 30 June deadline to submit an initial application under the EU Settlement Scheme (“EUSS”) has now passed. There were a flurry of last minute applications and reports of people being unable to submit their applications due to technical difficulties caused by the number of people logging onto the on-line form. There is a significant backlog of applications and some applications have yet to arrive with the Home Office as they had to be submitted by post. Fortunately, whilst an application is pending, an applicant continues to have the right to live and work in the UK.
Whilst the deadline for applications has come and gone, there may still be hope for some who may not have managed to submit an application in time.Continue Reading Closure Of The EU Settlement Scheme – Not Quite The End . . . Yet
In an eagerly anticipated update, the Home Office has now announced that the Covid-19 adjustment to the right to work (“RTW”) check will no longer end on 20 June 2021 but will be extended to 1 September 2021.
The RTW check seems to be the most frequently changing area of UK immigration law at present
The Home Office has finally published its revised Code of Practice on Preventing Illegal Working (the “draft Code”) covering the changes to the right to work check requirements for EEA citizens which come into effect on 1 July 2021.
In this article, we look at the changes that the draft Code introduces, how this will affect UK employers and the areas of continued uncertainty.Continue Reading UK Government Publishes 1 July Right To Work Guidance
Further Changes to Right to Work Checks Effective 17 May 2021
Since 30 March 2020, due to Covid-19, the Home Office has allowed an adjustment to the normal right to work (“RTW”) check process which must be undertaken by employers if they wish to avoid any potential liability for employing an individual who does not have the appropriate immigration permission to undertake their employment in the UK. Under this adjustment, employers can check an employee’s immigration status in the UK by using scans or copies of documents instead of having to see the original documents. Alternatively, the employer can use the on-line RTW checking service if the employee has one of the following:
a. Biometric Residence Permit; or,
b. Biometric Residence Card; or,
c. status under the EU Settlement Scheme or Points Based System.
As of 17 May, this adjustment will cease and employers will once again be required to check original documents, unless they are able to use the RTW checking service. Since the on-line service can only be used to check the RTW status of migrant workers, this means that, from that date, in the majority of situations, employers will be required to physically inspect prospective employee’s original documents and carry out the check either in the presence of the employee or via a live video link. Even if they are using the on-line service, employers will still need to meet the prospective employee in person or via a live video link.Continue Reading UK Right to Work Checks: Sunset of the Covid-19 Concession and Brexit Impact
The United Kingdom, like the United States, has formally announced an alternative, temporary method by which employers may conduct right to work (RTW) checks during the coronavirus pandemic, when employers have instituted telecommuting and work-from-home arrangements and thus are onboarding newly hired employees remotely. Because it remains an offence in the United Kingdom to knowingly employ anyone who does not have the right to work in the UK, these temporary measures provide a practical means for an employer to conduct these checks and verify a worker’s right to work when employees are telecommuting during the COVID-19 period.
Continue Reading The United Kingdom, Like the United States, Formally Sanctions Video Checks of Right to Work, As COVID-19 Work From Home Arrangements Continue