Right to work checks: what changed for employers on 1 July?

On 10 June, the Home Office published a draft Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Civil penalty scheme for employers on changes to right to work checks for EU, EEA and Swiss citizens (‘European citizens’) from 1 July 2021. Updated guidance to employers on conducting checks under the new rules was then published on 18 June 2021.

The Code applies to all right to work checks carried out from 1 July 2021, including any follow-up checks for employees recruited before 1 July 2021.

In this guide, our HR and Employment Law experts take a look at how your responsibilities as an employer changed as of 1 July, and the different ways you can now check a person’s right to work in the UK. They’ll explore questions including:

• Why are right to work checks so important for employers?


• What changes to right to work checks came into force on 1 July?


• How are right to work checks supposed to be carried out?


• How can I conduct right to work checks if my employees are working from home because of COVID?