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GOV.UK Right to Work Checking Service

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What it is

GOV.UK Right to Work Checking Service lets employers check a job applicant’s permission to work in the UK. To start an online check, an employer needs the applicant’s date of birth and right to work share code; the result shows permitted work types and, when permission is time-limited, how long it lasts. British and Irish citizens cannot get share codes, so employers must check physical documents or use an identity service provider offering Identity Document Validation Technology. The accompanying employer guidance covers initial checks, acceptable documents, and follow-up checks. Employers must check again when time-limited permission is due to expire. For manual checks, they must record the check date and keep document copies throughout employment and for two years after it ends, while following data protection law. In specified cases where an applicant cannot show documents or online immigration status, employers must ask the Home Office to check status and keep the resulting Positive Verification Notice. The service is web-based and free. The page also lists an Employer Enquiry helpline with weekday hours.

Spec sheet

What it does
Employers use the service to check whether a job applicant is permitted to work in the UK.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Purpose
The service lets employers check a job applicant’s right to work in the UK.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Audience
The employer’s guide explains how employers check people before employing them to make sure they are allowed to work in the UK.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Support
The page lists the Employer Enquiry helpline, available Monday to Thursday from 9am to 4:45pm and Friday from 9am to 4:30pm.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Access
The GOV.UK page links to the right to work service to start a check online.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Alternative checks
Employers can check original documents or use an identity service provider that offers Identity Document Validation Technology.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Audit record
The service keeps an audit record of employer checks for Home Office audit purposes.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
British and Irish citizens
British and Irish citizens cannot obtain an online share code and must use physical documents or an identity-service provider.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Check results
It shows the types of work the applicant is allowed to do and how long they can work in the UK if their permission has a time limit.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Compliance guidance
The employer’s guide covers initial and follow-up checks and acceptable documents for manual checks.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Confirmation
The Home Office sends a Positive Verification Notice to confirm the applicant has the right to work, and the employer must keep it.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Data protection
The guidance tells employers to follow data protection law when copying and keeping documents.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Data source
Right-to-work information is derived from immigration data previously submitted by the individual and held in the Home Office Person Centric Data Platform.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Document alternative
Employers may check original documents instead when an applicant has no share code.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Eligibility limit
British and Irish citizens cannot get a share code, so employers must check their physical documents or use an online identity service provider.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Employer duty
A right-to-work check must be completed before employment starts to establish a statutory excuse against civil penalties.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Employer identification
The online process asks employers to enter their organisation or business name so the Home Office records who performed the check.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Evidence retention
Employers must retain right-to-work evidence for the employment period and two years afterwards.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Follow-up checks
Employers must repeat checks before a time-limited permission expires.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Guidance coverage
The employer guide explains initial and follow-up checks, TUPE situations and acceptable documents for manual checks.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Home Office escalation
If an applicant cannot show documents or online immigration status in specified circumstances, employers must ask the Home Office to check their status.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Hosting
The Person Centric Data Platform database hosting the status and audit data runs on Amazon Web Services.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Identity-service providers
The guidance permits employers to use identity-service providers offering Identity Document Validation Technology for eligible checks.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Legal data context
The ICO treats right-to-work verification as a legal obligation that can justify pre-employment vetting.Read 15 Oct 2026 · ico.org.uk
Limit: data accuracy incident
Parliamentary testimony describes an applicant whose online profile displayed other people’s passport photographs, causing them to decline a job offer.Read 15 Oct 2026 · committees.parliament.uk
Limit: employment impact
Parliamentary evidence records people losing job opportunities or being suspended when eVisa or share-code problems prevented proof of status.Read 15 Oct 2026 · committees.parliament.uk
Limit: eVisa errors
A 2026 immigration-law report says applicants have recently encountered missing or incorrect status data and failures generating share codes.Read 15 Oct 2026 · morgansmithimmigration.com
Limit: terminology confusion
A 2018 inspection found that having separate Employer Checking and Online Checking systems and unfamiliar terminology could confuse users.Read 15 Oct 2026 · assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
Maker headquarters
The Home Office says its main offices are in London, with staff elsewhere in the UK.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Maker role
The Home Office is the UK government department responsible for immigration, passports, crime, counter-terrorism and policing.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Maker workforce
The Home Office annual report records 51,022 employees at 31 March 2024 and 54,429 total departmental-group staff.Read 15 Oct 2026 · assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
News: October 2026 rule expansion
The employer checklist was updated on 1 October 2026 to apply prescribed checks to additional worker and subcontractor arrangements.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Photograph comparison
For an online check, employers must ensure the displayed photograph belongs to the person presenting themselves for work.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Praise: digital convenience
The Home Office impact assessment says digital checking lets people exercise rights digitally and lets employers check status more easily and securely.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Privacy rights
The Home Office says subject rights are handled by a dedicated team and assessed case by case through its case-management system.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Published risks
The impact assessment identifies inadvertent sharing, unlawful disclosure after consent withdrawal and inaccurate employer results as risks.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Record keeping
For manual document checks, employers must keep copies during employment and for 2 years after the person stops working, and record the check date.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Security classification
The impact assessment classifies the processed data as Official or Official-Sensitive.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Share-code verification
The online check uses an applicant’s right-to-work share code together with their date of birth.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Support contact
The service guidance lists the Home Office Employer Enquiry helpline and a business-helpdesk email for assistance.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Supported working arrangements
The October 2026 checklist covers employees, workers, individual subcontractors and some online matching-service arrangements.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Three permitted methods
Employers must use a manual document check, a Home Office online check or a check through a registered Right to Work digital verification service provider.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
What employers need
To use the online check, an employer needs the applicant’s date of birth and right to work share code.Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Work permissions shown
Results show the types of work the person may do and any time limit on their permission.Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk

Plans and prices

GOV.UK Right to Work Checking Service Free Online employer check · Share code and date of birth required · UK right-to-work status Read 15 Oct 2026 · gov.uk
Right to work checking service Free No price or usage limits stated on the opened pages Read 4 Oct 2026 · gov.uk

Every GOV.UK Right to Work Checking Service plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Online checks use a share code and date of birth.
  • Results show permitted work types and time limits.
  • Guidance covers initial and follow-up checks.
  • The service is free to use.

Limits

  • British and Irish citizens cannot get share codes.
  • Time-limited permission requires a follow-up check.
  • Manual checks require document copies and a recorded date.

Who it suits

It suits employers checking whether applicants can work in the UK and managing follow-up checks. Employers using manual document checks should also be prepared to record and retain documents as directed.

Verdict

The service offers employers an online route to check applicants who have a share code, with guidance for other cases and follow-up obligations. Manual checks and some status cases require additional record keeping or Home Office confirmation.

Where Specifiction places it

Alternatives to GOV.UK Right to Work Checking ServiceAll alternatives →