Getting the Right to Work rules right

Russell King at Xydus warns that the UK economy may crumble as a result of new Right to Work regulations

 

Covid changed the way we work forever, and as a result it also changed the way organisations onboard employees.

 

Temporary rules were previously put in place to ensure workers could be onboarded whilst avoiding face to face interactions. The success of these temporary changes led to the government implementing long lasting changes which affect every UK business.

 

On October 1st, the UK government’s completely overhauled right to work laws came into effect, making it an operational requirement for all UK workplaces to carry out remote digital RTW checks via Identity Service Providers or conduct manual checks in person.

 

However, many businesses are still unaware of the huge paradigm shift taking place in Right to Work. With the regulations now in force, its crucial companies understand digital identity to avoid facing severe consequences. 

 

Right to Work over the years

Right to Work checks are a legal requirement for employers to verify the lawful immigration status of job applicants prior to employment. Prior to the pandemic, the majority of Right to Work checks were required under Home Office rules to be conducted in person. The prospective employee showed their documents evidencing their right to work to the employer who took and kept a copy. 

 

On 30 March 2020, temporary adjustments were made to adhere to Covid-19 social distancing guidelines introduced by the Government. The adjustments during Covid allowed the checks to be carried out over video calls and for job applicants to send a photo of their documents to employers via email, rather than sending the originals.

 

Many organisations benefited from the relaxed rules for Right to Work - it enabled employers to engage remote workers and employ talent they may not have had access to otherwise. 

 

Changing the status quo

Under the rules implemented in April 2022, foreign nationals with a biometric residence card, biometric residence permit or frontier worker permit had to be checked online, not manually. Foreign nationals needed to provide their date of birth and share code to the employer for their status to be verified using the Government’s online checking service. However, the rules have now changed. 

 

Now, the government highly recommends employers use a certified Identity Service Providers (IDSPs) to complete remote digital right to work checks on behalf of employers. The digital check involves using Identity Document Validation Technology to authenticate and verify documents - no physical submission of documents required.

 

Therefore, for the first time ever, employers will be able to conduct right to work checks entirely virtually. 

 

Right to Work checks: Are you doing them right?

If businesses aren’t compliant with these new digital identity checks, they could face hefty fines, recruitment bans, and even jail time. Failing to comply can result in a civil penalty of up to £20,000 per non-compliant check, losing the ability to sponsor work visa applications for foreign nationals and even a criminal conviction in serious cases. 

 

Migrants are over-represented in the hospitality sector (28% of the workforce), transport and storage (26%), and information, communication and IT (25%). If companies lose the right to hire foreign workers in those key sectors, the already struggling UK economy would face some harsh prospects.

 

Based on the current UK working population as of July 2022, the number of employees is 29.6 million, a record high, thus getting onboarding right is pivotal. In addition to the initial Right to Work compliance push, audits are on the horizon. The legislation stipulates that records need to be kept for up to two years after an employee exits the business. This presents another new employer responsibility from October which employers may be unaware and unprepared for.

 

Where do businesses turn?

It is now a requirement for all UK workplaces to carry out remote digital RTW checks via IDSPs. Industry lobbying, combined with the pandemic, forced the UK Government to accelerate its plans for the introduction of digital Identity verification (IDV). Digital IDV involves verifying people’s identities through digital tools. The government has been working with these providers to build technology that will allow digital IDV to be carried out in line with its new ‘digital identity and attributes trust framework’. 

 

This framework outlines how identity can be verified using identity document verification technology (IDVT) to perform Right to Work checks, Right To Rent checks and engage government services.

 

Many digital identity providers only accept passports and, while this isn’t a problem for many, these documents are far from universal in the UK. Around 11 million adults in the UK don’t have a passport or driving licence - 3.5 million have no form of photo ID at all. 

 

All employers operating in the UK have to comply with the latest Right to Work legislation or face significant sanctions, fines and potential brand damage as well as losing the ability to sponsor work visa applications for foreign nationals.

 

Employers are no longer able to verify any right to work documents remotely over video call, and must either choose digital checks for eligible applicants or return to checking documents in person. Using IDSPs is now essential for any business that wants to hire workers remotely.

 

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Russell King is CEO and founder of Xydus

 

Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com