Employers have a fresh 96-page “Right to Work Checks: an employer’s guide” dated 1 October 2026, replacing the July draft and marking the definitive rulebook for onboarding workers in the UK’s digital-status era. The guide confirms that from today employers who want the protection of a statutory excuse must either: a) use the Home Office online checking service with the worker’s share code, or b) carry out a digital identity check through a certified Identity Service Provider for British and Irish passport holders. Expired Biometric Residence Permits are explicitly ruled out as evidence, a change aimed at forcing migrants onto eVisas. The Home Office warns that using screenshots, photocopies or any third-party portal other than the official service will invalidate the check. TUPE, follow-up and contractor scenarios are clarified, and a new annex shows how to verify digital Certificates of Application for EU Settlement Scheme applicants. For HR and global mobility teams the timing is tight: existing onboarding software and supplier contracts must be audited to confirm they meet the updated technical and data-protection requirements. Auditors expect particular confusion around hybrid processes where initial verification is done online but in-person ID is still collected. Failure to comply carries civil penalties of up to £60,000 per illegal worker and potential criminal liability for knowing employment. Given that over half of UK visas are now paperless, the guidance effectively cements the shift to real-time, cloud-based status checking and will influence vendor selection and HRIS integration projects through 2027.
Source: GOV.UK – UK Visas & Immigration
