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A migrant worker doesn’t have to agree to provide you with a share code to check their immigration status using the online checking service. In these circumstances, or where their immigration status is otherwise unavailable to view online, you can conduct a manual check of their right to work documents, such as their passport or biometric residence permit. The online checking service makes immigration status checks much simpler and more streamlined for employers than manual checks. It also provides greater security, as you’ll not need to rely on physical documentation, reducing the risk of forged documents being given to you by a prospective employee. Under the EU Settlement Scheme, EEA and Swiss nationals living in the UK by 31 December 2020 were eligible to apply for either settled or pre-settled immigration status prior to the 30 June 2021.
This grace period does not, however, apply to any Home Office checks carried out before employment commences, where you should delay employing the individual until you’ve received written confirmation of their right to work. If you are looking to obtain a faster decision on your visa application, in many cases it is possible to pay for premium processing, or what’s known as a priority service, when you submit your application. You will need to check your application type for available priority services. If you are applying outside the UK, you will also need to check with the visa application centre where you intend to make your application. You must also use the Employer Checking Service to check someone’s immigration status if either they have a Certificate of Application, digital or non-digital, that states you need to ask the Home Office to check their right to work, or an Application Registration Card.
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For eligible EEA and Swiss nationals, this will typically include permission under the EU Settlement Scheme , whilst for non-EEA nationals, or for those without settled or pre-settled status under the EUSS, this will usually be by way of a work visa. Use VEVO to send proof of your visa conditions to others, for example, employers, landlords or the government of a country you would like to visit. When you first submitted your application for a UK visa, you will have been asked to provide your passport. Once your application has been successfully submitted, you should then have been given a case reference number. You will need to have this number to hand when you phone or email UKVI to check your UK visa status and the progress of your application.
UKVI will also still aim to process your application within standard global timescales. In these circumstances, you may be able to request a refund of the additional fee paid for premium processing. If you have already submitted a UK visa application and are now waiting to hear the outcome, visit the GOV.UK website to find information and updates from UKVI on visa processing in general.
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Make and retain copies of the documents in a format that cannot be manually altered, recording the date you made the check, and securely storing these documents for at least two years after that individual has stopped working for you. Check that the documents provided are valid, with the applicant present either face to face or under current relaxed rules until April 2022, via video link. Retain a clear copy of the response provided by the online service, storing that response securely by way of electronic or hardcopy for the whole of the individual’s employment and for a period of at least two years afterwards. You will need to download and fill in these request and payment forms from the Home Office. Only the first 5 requests received each day between 8 am and midday between Monday and Thursday are accepted. Register for an ImmiAccount and then use VEVO to see the visa conditions of visa holders who have given you permission.
Equally, employers were given a grace period up until this deadline date, where you could continue to check an EEA or Swiss applicant’s passport or national identity card to confirm their right to work. Since 1 July 2021, with the exception of Irish citizens, an EEA or Swiss worker must be able to show valid immigration status under either the EU Settlement Scheme or by way of a work visa in the same way as other foreign nationals. They can no longer rely on an EEA passport or national ID card to prove their right to work. In this guide, we look at how to check someone’s immigration status before you hire them, when further follow-up checks are required during the course of their employment and the issues of failing to carry out right to work document checks. Your statutory excuse against civil liability will continue from the expiry date of your employee’s permission for a further 28 days to enable you to obtain positive verification.
Your Biometric Residence Permit Number
Applications for indefinite leave to remain made from inside the UK will usually be dealt with within 6 months. UKVCAS was launched by the UK Home Office to speed up the processing of in-country further leave to remain applications. Applicants are required to attend a single appointment to have their identity confirmed, enrol any biometric information that may be required and submit their documentation in support.
You will need to answer a couple of questions about your application when using this tool, such as the case refernce number assigned when you submitted the application, and you should be provided contact information for different departments at UKVI. Use this tool to track the status of an immigration application, petition, or request. Ask to see the applicant’s original documents from either List A or List B of acceptable documents for a manual right to work check found on GOV.UK. When individuals submit their UK visa application to the Home Office, one of the most frustrating parts is the waiting time. You can contact UKVI for a decision on your application but there are costs involved in checking this information. You can ask about the progress of your application but you cannot receive information or advice about your personal circumstances.
Contact DavidsonMorris’ business immigration solicitors for expert advice on compliance with the UK right to work regime. Where a check has been properly conducted, an employer should be able to establish a statutory excuse against any civil liability. Your dedicated immigration lawyer will work closely with you to understand your case and identify your goal. We work with you throughout each step of the process, from assessing your eligibility, to completing your application, to liaising with UKVI on your behalf.
The online service allows the migrant worker to provide their employer with a share code which is then used to view their right to work in the UK. The online service operates on the basis of the migrant worker first accessing their own Home Office right to work record, where they can then share this information with someone else, including their employer, using a code generated giving you permission to view their status. This could be due to backlogs in processing applications by UKVI, both generally and, more recently, because of the coronavirus pandemic. This could also be because your supporting documents need to be verified and/or you are required to attend an interview, or because of your personal circumstances, such as any adverse immigration history or criminal convictions. If you applied for a priority or super priority visa and it is not possible to meet the applicable timescale, your application will still be put at the front of the queue at every stage of the decision-making process.
Employing illegal migrants is punishable by imprisonment of up to five years, an unlimited fine or both. The information from an online check is provided in real-time, directly from Home Office systems, allowing you to instantly check the details of an applicant’s right to work in the UK, including the types of work that they’re allowed to do and if there’s a time limit to doing this work. The type of permission needed will depend on several factors, such as the individual’s nationality and residence status.
See an estimate of how much time USCIS is taking to process your application or petition at its offices. Submit an online inquiry about your case or request other services, such as an accommodation request, or how to correct an error on your notice. There are different services to prove your right to work to an employer and to prove your right to rent to a landlord.
It could also be because an existing employee has an outstanding appeal, review or application with the Home Office. The easiest and quickest way to check someone’s immigration status and right to work is online using the Home Office’s ‘Right to Work Checking Service’. If you have applied overseas for a UK visa and attended an appointment at a visa application centre, you can go to the GOV.UK online tool to track your VFS application status.
You only need to use this service if you cannot check the applicant’s right to work online using their share code or check the applicant’s original documents. You can no longer request a manual check on a biometric residence permit holder's right to work. Immigration status can be checked online using the Right to Work Checking Service, although any prospective worker will first need to access and view their Home Office right to work record and then provide you with a share code.
Loss or Theft of a Visa or Arrival/Departure Record
VFS are the commercial partners used by UKVI to help deliver their overseas visa services. You will be given the option of contacting UKVI by either telephone or email, although email enquiries are more likely to be directed to the caseworker dealing with your application. As with in-country visa applications, you will not receive a decision on your application at your appointment to enrol your biometric information and provide your supporting documentation. When applying for a visa from outside the UK you will need to attend a visa application centre in the country from which you are applying to provide your biometric information, together with all necessary documents in support of your application. On a final cautionary note, additional sanctions may flow from failing to check an applicant’s immigration status, including a possible downgrade, suspension or revocation of your sponsor licence, impacting your permission to hire migrant workers. Based on the current official wait times, for those of you applying to remain in the UK on a temporary basis, including as spouses, workers, students, and Tier 1 general and entrepreneurs, the standard processing time is 8 weeks.
Equally, a migrant worker may have limited leave to remain in the UK under a work visa and will need to apply for an extension of that leave before it expires. To be able to establish a statutory excuse against a civil penalty, you must check the immigration status of all prospective employees before they start employment and only hire a migrant worker having conducted a prescribed right to work check. All UK employers have a responsibility to prevent illegal working by conducting prescribed right to work checks before hiring someone. In this way you can ensure that a person isn’t disqualified from doing the work in question by reason of their immigration status. If you fail to check the immigration status of an applicant before taking them on, you may be liable to a civil penalty of up to £20,000 if that person is later found to be working illegally for you. However, under the EU Settlement Scheme, EEA and Swiss nationals will not have a physical document confirming their immigration status, instead their status will be held in a digital format.
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