All UK employers have a duty to prevent illegal migrants working in the UK. Sections 15–25 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 (the `2006 Act´) set out the law on the prevention of illegal migrant working.

Therefore, it is our statutory duty to check that a prospective employee has the correct eligibility to work in the UK in place BEFORE (i) the appointee commences employment or (ii) an extension to an existing appointment is issued. Failure to do so can lead to civil and criminal penalties for non-compliance.

Eligibility to work checks – Recruitment

In order to ensure that the University complies with its obligations under the 2006 Act, recruiting managers are required to undertake the following:


1. At invite to invite/selection action stage, request all invited candidates to provide suitable documentation confirming their eligibility to work in the UK

This ensures that we meet our statutory requirements by having seen evidence of all candidates´ eligibility to work in the UK prior to the successful candidate commencing employment at the University.

Ask candidates to confirm which documentation they intend to bring with them when confirming their attendance at interview. This allows you to have the correct eligibility checklist in place and to flag any concerns with your customary HR contact regarding the proposed documentation in advance eg if you wanted further guidance regarding a visa, or if the candidate would required migrant worker approval if appointed etc.


2. Identify a member of staff to undertake the checks and ensure that s/he is fully briefed in the action required

Within the recruiting department, a member of staff should be designated with this specific responsibility as part of the action planning for the day of selection tests/interviews. It is advisable that each department trains sufficient numbers of staff to accommodate the department´s recruitment activity. A powerpoint briefing programme is available to download from this site and/or discuss your training needs with your customary HR contact.


3. On the day of the interview/selection action, check that the presented documentation is the original version and is acceptable evidence of eligibility in line with UK Border Agency (UKBA) guidelines

Under the 2006 Act, an employer may have an excuse against liability for payment of a civil penalty by checking and copying original documents presented by a prospective or existing employee. If you are presented with a false travel document or visa, you will only be subject to legal action if it is reasonably apparent that the document is false, or if you knew that the document, or documents, were false and/or did not rightfully belong to the holder. If you are not certain that the documentation presented meets these criteria, then raise it with the candidate and seek advice from your customary HR contact.


4. Carefully photocopy the required information

When the candidate arrives for interview a member of the recruiting department must take copies of the outside cover of the passport the page containing the applicants personal details and, if relevant the applicant´s current UK visa. Full guidance on what to copy is within Checklist A and B.

The UKBA are rolling out more biometric information as proof of eligibility to work. It will appear in ID card format and should be copied in the same way as other identity cards and passports. Further information from the UKBA is available from the right hand links.


5. Ensure that you undertake eligibility to work checks for ALL invited candidates

In line with our commitment to equal opportunities, we check the eligibility of all shortlisted candidates. It would be inappropriate to presume that certain candidates may or may not have eligibility to work in the UK, eg due to appearance or name. Therefore, to ensure that we undertake our legislative requirements, and treat all candidates equally, recruiting departments must undertake checks for each candidate.

For further information on the Universities policy on Equal Opportunities and diversity action, see right hand link.

The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has also produced guidance on avoiding discrimination when performing checks, see right hand link.


6. If you have identified a non-European Economic Area (EEA) candidate who will require migrant approval to work in the UK, DO NOT commit to securing this approval on behalf of the candidate.

If a candidate requires migrant worker approval to work in the UK, you must liaise with your customary HR contact as early as possible in the process to consider this. The employment of non-EEA nationals is a tightly legislated area enforced by the UK Border Agency (UKBA) and subject to stringent control and measurement.

On 6 April 2011 the government introduced an annual limit on the number of non-EEA migrant workers who may enter the UK to work in skilled professions under Tier 2 (General) of the points-based system. In line with the government´s approach to limiting the entry of new migrant workers into the UK, to recruit from outside of the EEA we will now have to apply to the UKBA for a restricted certificate of sponsorship (CoS). It should be noted that applying for a restricted CoS may delay recruitment and selection timelines and that the success of an application cannot be guaranteed as the UKBA has final approval.


For further information see right hand link – Statutory restrictions on the recruitment of a non-EEA national


7. Retain and dispose of all copies of documentation securely

Treat the contents of all copies of documents in the strictest confidence and store them securely. Once an offer of appointment has been achieved, dispose of the documents securely eg shredding and disposing as confidential waste.