Immigration Corner | How a person can prove the right to work in the UK

Dear Mr Bassie,

Please advise about how a person can prove that they have the right to work in the United Kingdom. Your advice would be very much appreciated.

VR

Dear VR,

Persons will need to prove their right to work in the United Kingdom (UK) to an employer before they start working for them. How this is achieved will depend on their nationality and what kind of permission they have to work over there.

A BRITISH OR IRISH CITIZEN

Persons who have either British or Irish citizenship can prove their right to work in the UK with either a British passport or an Irish passport or passport card. Please note that the passport or passport card can be current or expired.

Those persons who do not have a passport or passport card can prove their right to work with one of the following:

• A UK birth or adoption certificate;

• An Irish birth or adoption certificate;

• A certificate of registration or naturalisation as a British citizen.

Persons must also give their employer an official letter or document from a previous employer or a government agency. For example, he/she could use a letter from HM Revenue and Customs, the Department for Work and Pensions or the Social Security Agency in Northern Ireland. The letter must show their name and National Insurance number.

Those individuals that do not have a passport or passport card may be able to use an online identity service provider to prove their right to work. They should ask their employer if they offer this option.

PERSONS WHO ARE NOT A BRITISH OR IRISH CITIZEN

Those persons who are not British or Irish citizens will be able to prove that they have a right to work with either a share code, which can be obtained online, or with their eligible immigration documents.

It should also be noted that persons can choose which option they use. For example, the employer cannot reject an application because they were given an eligible immigration document instead of a share code.

Please be aware that those persons who cannot prove their right to work and if they are not British or Irish citizens, their employer can still check if they can work with the employer checking service.

Also, if they are Commonwealth citizens, they may be able to get documents to show that they can work in the UK through the Windrush Scheme.

OBTAINING A SHARE CODE ONLINE

Persons can obtain a share code to prove their right to work in the UK if they are not a British or Irish citizen. Please note that the employer can use the share code to check the types of job that the person is allowed to do in the UK, and how long they can work for in the UK.

WHO CAN GET A SHARE CODE

Persons can use this service to get a share code if they have a biometric residence permit (BRP) – this can be expired; a biometric residence card (BRC); or a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account.

A person will have a UKVI account if he/she has ever applied to the EU Settlement Scheme; used the ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ app to prove their identity when applying for a visa; created one when applying for a visa (he/she would have received a UKVI account confirmation email); or created one to get access to an eVisa (an online record of their immigration status).

Please note that an employer will have a different way to view a job applicant’s details after they have been given a share code. To get a share code to prove their right to work online, a person will need one of the following: their BRP number; their BRC number; or their passport or national identity card.

I hope this helps.

John S. Bassie is a barrister/attorney-at-law who practises law in Jamaica. He is a justice of the peace, a Supreme Court-appointed mediator, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, a chartered arbitrator, the past global president of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, and a member of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association (UK). Email: lawbassie@yahoo.com