Office Address

Preventing Illegal Working

Employers´ Responsibilities

The Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 imposes a positive duty upon UK employers to ensure that they do not employ anyone who does not have the right to work in the UK. Under section 8 of the Act it is a criminal offence to employ anyone aged 16 or over who is not entitled to work in the UK, and any employer convicted of doing so may be fined up to £5000 for each person employed illegally. Section 8 of the Act requires all UK based employers to verify the immigration status of every person they intend to employ, by checking certain stipulated documents, which must then, once the employer is satisfied that they are genuine, be copied, and the copies retained by the employer. Doing so provides an employer with a statutory defence against conviction for employing an illegal worker.

To rely on the statutory defence, employers may rely on either one document from List 1 or two documents from List 2.

List 1:

• A passport showing that the holder is a British citizen, or has a right of abode in the UK.
• A national passport or national identity card showing that the holder is a national of a European Economic Area country or Switzerland.
• A residence permit issued by the Home Office to a national from a European Economic Area country or Switzerland.
• A passport or other document issued by the Home Office which has an endorsement stating that the holder has a current right of residence in the UK as the family member of a national from a European Economic Area country or Switzerland who is resident in the UK.
• A passport or other travel document endorsed to show that the holder can stay indefinitely in the UK, or has no time limit on their stay.
• A passport or other travel document endorsed to show that the holder can stay in the UK; and that this endorsement allows the holder to do the type of work you are offering if they do not have a work permit.
• An Application Registration Card issued by the Home Office to an asylum seeker stating that the holder is permitted to take employment.

List 2:

• You will be able to rely on the statutory defence if you rely on two documents from the following list, but you will not have the defence if you see one document from the first combination and one from the second combination.

First combination
A document giving the person's permanent National Insurance Number and name. This could be a P45, P60, National Insurance card, or a letter from a Government agency,

PLUS
One of the following documents:

• A full birth certificate issued in the UK, which includes the names of the holder's parents
• A birth certificate issued in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or Ireland
• A certificate of registration or naturalisation stating that the holder is a British citizen
• A letter issued by the Home Office to the holder which indicates that the person named in it can stay indefinitely in the UK, or has no time limit on their stay
• An Immigration Status Document issued by the Home Office to the holder with an endorsement indicating that the person named in it can stay indefinitely in the UK, or has no time limit on their stay
• A letter issued by the Home Office to the holder which indicates that the person named in it can stay in the UK, and this allows them to do the type of work you are offering
• An Immigration Status Document issued by the Home Office to the holder with an endorsement indicating that the person named in it can stay in the UK, and this allows them to do the type of work you are offering.

Second combination
A work permit or other approval to take employment that has been issued by Work Permits UK,

PLUS
One of the following documents:

• A passport or other travel document endorsed to show that the holder is able to stay in the UK and can take the work permit employment in question
• A letter issued by the Home Office to the holder confirming that the person named in it is able to stay in the UK and can take the work permit employment in question.

Employers must ensure that they do not discriminate against individuals on racial grounds when they are making these checks.

Further information about employers' responsibilities and duties can be obtained at www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk.