Case Scenario

“UKBA” – A Guide to checking a person’s Right to Work.

A Worker registered for work at an organisation. The worker provided all documents including references. All required checks were carried out including an enhanced DBS check and the worker was subsequently cleared for work. A few weeks later the DBS wrote to the organisation requesting for all documentation provided by the worker as they had some queries regarding the genuineness of all documents including the passport.

After the investigation concluded it transpired that the documents were counterfeit and an arrest warrant was issued by the police for Fraud. The organisation were not fined by the Home Office as they had carried out all reasonable checks on the worker. This also included a telephone call to check and confirm with the Home Office and recording the person they spoke to as evidence.

Had this organisation not carried out the proper checks they would have been held liable and faced a penalty of £20,000. There are several organisations who have faced penalties as a result of failing to conduct proper checks. The latest statistics provided by the Home Office showed that over 949 employers were fined in 2016 after an investigation found illegal workers.

It is therefore your responsibility as an employer to ensure that:

Employment leave

The candidate(s) have leave to remain status and can work in the UK.

Passport

To ensure the passport is up to date and has not expired.

Working hours per week

To ensure they are not working over the permitted hours per week if they are on a student visa (term/time).

Visa expiration

To carry out a request at least 2 months before the visa is due to expire and to ensure the candidate does not work beforehand.

For more information on this you can visit the Home Office page at:

https://www.gov.uk/penalties-for-employing-illegal-workers