Published July 2021 and kept as a record. The figures and the law have moved on since it was written. For the current position see the right to work checklist for recruitment agencies after 1 October 2026. Note added 21 October 2026.
(Author: Lisa Pilkington, CDD Services).
Are you ready for the changes to RTW on September 1st? As the end of lockdown measures are in sight, the Home Office has extended the temporary adjustments to the right to work check, introduced due to COVID-19, until 31st August and they are coming under increasing pressure to embrace the digital change as a permanent solution.
In-Person checks would be a step backwards
This unpopular decision has been pushed back twice following industry and political lobbying.
To follow the prescribed checks from 1st September, as set out in the Home Office guidance, means that a scanned copy or a photo of an original document will no longer provide a defence against liability for a civil penalty. You need to return to seeing original versions. This now seems completely out of step with the digital advances made by the economy due to the pandemic. In addition, the risk of employment fraud is rarely mitigated by in-person checks but those companies who have adopted new digital anti-impersonation and fraud technology have added a higher level of deterrence.
As our businesses and employees have adapted to working from home, we have piloted technological advancements to digitally complete right to work checks, and the system works. The digital checks have been hugely successful allowing us to maintain safety, speed up outdated methods, enhance both our client and candidate experience whilst evidencing better regulatory control and audit trails.
This does not appear to be a winning strategy
With furlough layoffs looming we will see a rise in the numbers of talented unemployed and underemployed workers whilst other key sectors will be desperately short of staff. Hybrid working means many living in the North can now access jobs headquartered in the South. That means greater recruitment flexibility, rapidity and remote digital RTW services will be needed, well beyond September, to help drive any economic recovery strategy.
Placing logistical and administrative hurdles in front of UK workers and adding cost and delay to recruiters seems illogical for numerous reasons:
-
Many businesses are not planning an immediate or full return to the office and are instead adopting a hybrid approach, which lends itself to safe, remote RTW checking.
-
Digital checks will continue for foreign nationals, meaning UK citizens are being disadvantaged when available technology can offer the same rigour and safety.
-
Many recruiters cover industries over wide regions obligating excessive travel, multiple journeys and costs for in-person meetings that can be remedied by digital.
-
Most Government Departments are embracing digital transformation programs for identity and safeguarding and looking to the DCMS review of Trust Frameworks to drive policy guidelines. It seems reasonable to expect the Home Office to align to this.
Helping businesses be more productive quicker, whilst getting UK citizens back into work more rapidly, has to be the better strategy.
Recruitment professional bodies oppose the change
When organisations such as the BIOR are uniting with the growing number of business leaders and parliamentary voices calling for the Home Office to think again about reinstating these practices, we hope the wisdom is recognised and not ignored.
Is your compliance strategy flexible enough?
Technology solutions are safer, quicker, and more robust than photocopying and placing copies in files. Given the fluidity of regulation and policy this really needs serious consideration when choosing a tech partner: Ensure that they are compliance experts and that the tech is agile enough to rapidly adapt to any further regulation changes.
Future proof your screening compliance
The right tools may be the key to successfully navigating the challenges ahead. Some businesses will continue to struggle while others may come out of this stronger, more agile, and ready to face the future. In response to this, the CDD Services Spotlite app enables Agencies to complete RTW checks from your mobile phone, wherever you are and have the results in 60 seconds. Built by compliance experts, the Spotlite mobile RTW app and compliance platform are designed with no need for IT installation. It is already helping numerous Agencies across the UK to be future-focused… for whatever changes are ahead.
Hopefully, it won’t take too long for the government to join up its own dots. In the meantime, you have to wonder how the Home Office can enforce a failure to implement manual RTW Checks when recruiters are using accepted technology comparable to the government’s own check standards.
Register your interest or see a video demo here: https://cddmanagement.services
Contact us for a free trial:
Email: hello@cdd.services
Further information on RTW guidelines is available on GOV.UK