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Top Digital Right to Work Check FAQ

Who is eligible for a Digital Right to Work check?

To meet the government’s requirements for a candidate to have their right to work in the UK checked digitally, the following must apply:

  • Candidate has a UK address
  • Candidate has a UK or Irish passport / Irish passport card (if using DRTW to verify a candidate's non-UK/Irish passport, this does not apply)
  • Candidate's passport has not expired
  • Candidate's current name matches the name on passport
  • For some candidates: candidate has a valid drivers licence (this depends on whether there is enough data linking their name to their current address in the first step of the process)

If any of the above does not apply, the check will have to be done manually.

What is the process for a Right to Work check?

It's simple, there are only 4 steps to a Digital Right to Work check

  1. Request the check
  2. The candidate will upload the required information including their ID and do a liveness check
  3. The system will validate the document, removing the risk of human error, ensuring your Candidates are who they say they are and ensures the ID document hasn't been forged.
  4. You receive the report confirming the result!
What are the advantages of checking Right to Work digitally?

There are 4 main advantages to Digital Right to Work checks:

  1. Saving time - the clearest advantage of moving to a digital process is the time saved to the employer and the Candidate. Rather than having to manually check each Candidate's documents in person, and store them properly, VETTING.com will do both jobs in one go!
  2. Speed – by passing the responsibility over to the Candidate to upload their documents on to VETTING.com during the application process, the whole ID checking process speeds up.
  3. Reliability – as with any digital process, Digital Identity Verification removes the risk of human error, ensuring your Candidates are who they say they are.
  4. Quality – Digital Identity Verification scans the biometric data on the ID document, ensuring it hasn't been forged.

COMPLETION TIME: IMMEDIATE

COVERAGE: UK

Our platform provides the option of a single or multi check report for all checks that you carry out. All the information you need is available to read and save at the click of a button.

Sneak Peek

Right to Work Check Candidate Flow
Candidate Flow
Right to Work Check Sample Report
Sample Report

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Further Digital Right to Work Check FAQ

Hopefully we can answer all of your Digital Right to Work check questions below, but if you have any other questions, please feel free to contact us.

Who needs a Right to Work check?

All candidates should have their right to work in the UK checked - employers should not assume a candidate has the permission to work just because they have applied for a position.

Why should I use VETTING.com for a Digital Right to Work check?

Digital Identity Verification checks add another layer of protection against fraud to your company. It also speeds up the onboarding process, turning a previously manual task, into a fully automated one.

  • Audit trail – our platform adds time, date and personnel stamps which are stored, non-editable and available to be exported, should you need to evidence your audit trail.
  • Support – our platform provides support to help guide candidates through the check, making sure they know how and what to complete.
What documents do I need for a Right to Work check?

There are two lists of documents that you can accept as proof of a candidate's right to work in the UK. These lists have been created by the Home Office and only the documents included on these lists can be used.

  • List A – documents accepted for candidates with a permanent right to work.
    Performing a Right to Work check on a candidate with permanent right to work in the UK, before they begin their employment with you, will last for the full term of their employment at your company.
  • List B – documents accepted for candidates with a temporary right to work.
    Candidates with a time-limited right to work in the UK will need to have their right to work re-checked when their permission to be in the UK comes to an end (this is based on the expiry date on the document used for the Right to Work check).
What do the results of a Digital Right to Work check show?

A Digital Right to Work will confirm your candidates right to work in the UK. This is achieved by confirming their identity having checked the validity of their ID document and the candidate having completed a facial recognition liveness test.

The report is immediately generated to view within VETTING.com and save as a PDF.

How long do Right to Work checks take?

Once approved as 'complete', you can immediately download a summary report.

Do British citizens need a Right to Work check?

Yes. Employers should never assume someone's right to work in the UK.

Do volunteers need a Right to Work check?

Yes. The guidance provided by the Home Office is that employers should undertake a Right to Work check on all candidates, whether they are being paid or volunteering.

How long do I need to store copies of Right to Work documents for?

Dated, unalterable copies of all your employees' right to work documents should be kept for the entirety of their employment with you, and then for 2 years after their employment with you has ended. This is in case you are asked to prove a person’s right to work in the UK. If you are unable to provide copies of the documents, and you are employing a potential illegal worker, you may be liable for a civil penalty.

What do I do with the documents after an employee has left the company?

You must keep copies of your employees' right to work documentation for 2 years after their employment with you has ended. After this, you will need to delete the documents manually from VETTING.com.

Can I still check identity documents manually?

In short, yes. Even with the new guidance provided by The DBS and Home Office (2022), employers have every right to continue manually checking their Candidate's identity face-to-face. Digital Identity Verification is just another option.

How do you ensure VETTING.com is secure and safe?

We set ourselves the highest standards at VETTING.com, and the safety and security of our Clients and their Candidates is imperative to what we do. We have partnered with HooYu to provide a solution that meets the ID checking best practice standard (GPG45) and that is accredited under the DCMS framework.

How do Digital Identity Verification checks support Right to Work & DBS checks?

Digital Identity Verification checks can be requested at the same time as a DBS check, using the same 3-click process as the other checks available on VETTING.com. Once the Government Legislation has been passed, Digital Identity Verification will remove the need for an employer to check the Candidate's ID for Right to Work checks as well as DBS checks.

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