As of 1st October, temporary arrangements around remote Right to Work checks will come to an end, leaving employers to decide whether to revert back to manual checks or not.
The government responded to the COVID-19 outbreak by enabling businesses to remotely conduct Right to Work and criminal record checks, so long as they used accredited Identification Document Validation Technology from an official Digital Identity Service Provider.
With some workers returning to the office, and hybrid working arrangements here to stay, it will now be left to employers to impose one of three types of checks.
- Online checks using the Home Office online service for individuals with a biometric residence permit. Applicants will still be required to share a Right to Work code with their employer which will trigger a separate verification process through the Home Office.
- In-person check for British or Irish citizens using formal documentation
- Additionally, companies may choose to engage a IDSP to utilise IDVT to conduct ID checks on British or Irish passport holders.
The Government’s intervention of allowing digital Right To Work checks came into effective at the onset of the pandemic in March 2020 and were revoked as of 30 September 2022.
