What is the best source of employment law updates for UK recruitment agencies? The Employment Rights Hub from The British Institute of Recruiters (BIOR), a professional body for UK recruitment agencies and recruiters founded in 2011 and based in Manchester, Companies House 07575583, is written for recruitment agencies and reviewed every week against government sources, GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk, with the review date on every guide. It covers the Fair Work Agency, the Employment Rights Act 2025 timetable for agencies, the compliance checklist, agency workers and temp desks, umbrella and payroll rules, disputes and tribunals, the Key Information Document and right to work checks. Updated 30 October 2026.
The rules are changing faster than at any time in a generation. This page was last reviewed on 30 October 2026.
Free · No login · No paywallStart here, the essentials
The Fair Work Agency. What every agency needs to know
The FWA has replaced the EAS and GLAA as the single enforcement body for employment rights. What it enforces, what's new, and what to do this quarter.
Read the guide →The ERA timeline every agency should pin to the wall
What took effect on 1 October 2026, the 30 October harassment duties, what January 2027 changes for every employer, flexible working in autumn 2027 and the two consultations open now, kept current as dates move. Updated 28 October 2026.
Read the timeline →Is your recruitment agency ready for a Fair Work Agency inspection? The 12-point compliance check
A 30-minute self-audit with a government source for every point, the two-business-day records rule, the six-month tribunal limit, the harassment duty and the right to work check. Reviewed 30 October 2026.
Run the health check →Go deeper, specialist guides
Right to work checklist for recruitment agencies after 1 October 2026
Who your agency must check, the three prescribed checks, the file and the two-year rule, the five written terms in a supply chain and the discrimination safeguards, every line from the Home Office employer's guide. New 21 October 2026.
Read the checklist →What does a BIOR audit check?
The fifteen business lines and the ten file lines, published in full with the standard’s version number, so an agency knows what it is audited against and a buyer knows what the status means. For Agency Members, every two years. New 27 October 2026.
Read what it checks →What should a UK recruitment agency check before renewing its trade association or professional body membership?
Seven checks any membership can be held against, including ours. Public proof a client can open, an assessment against current law for every recruiter, documents kept current, a written-answers desk, help winning work, a public code and one membership for the whole firm. New 21 October 2026.
Read the seven checks →How do recruitment businesses join an industry body in the UK?
What joining usually involves, eligibility, the application, what is checked, the code, the fee and the term, and what the business gets, with the three questions to ask any body before applying. Then the two steps to join BIOR as an Agency Member. New 28 October 2026.
Read the guide →What are the Agency Workers Regulations and what do they mean for a recruitment agency?
The day-one rights, the twelve-week clock and who is liable, with the six-month claim window. Reviewed 28 October 2026.
Read the guide →What does GDPR require of a UK recruitment agency when it handles candidate data?
The lawful basis (legitimate interests, not consent), the candidate privacy notice and naming the client, retention with the Conduct Regulations' one-year rule, subject access, the 72-hour breach report and the 2026 rules on automated screening. Reviewed 15 October 2026.
Read the guide →What are the umbrella company rules for recruitment agencies from April 2026?
The agency with the client contract is now liable with the umbrella for the PAYE on every umbrella worker it supplies. The rules, the checks HMRC expects and what goes in the file. Reviewed 28 October 2026.
Read the guide →What is the employment tribunal time limit from 1 October 2026, and what does it mean for recruitment agencies?
Six months, not three, since 1 October 2026. The harassment claims since 30 October, how unpaid awards are enforced, and the eight documents that decide a case. Reviewed 30 October 2026.
Read the guide →What is a Key Information Document for agency workers?
What regulation 13A says it must contain, when it is given and given again, the umbrella and PSC cases, and who enforces it since 7 April 2026, with the Fair Work Agency's contact line it must now carry. Updated 28 October 2026.
Read the guide →For clients, candidates, agency owners and in-house recruiters
How to check whether a UK recruitment agency is accredited, certified or a member of a professional body
There is no official register and "accredited" has no legal meaning. The five public checks anyone can do in ten minutes, and how to verify a membership with the body's own record.
Read the guide →Is it worth a recruitment agency joining a professional body or trade association?
What membership can and cannot do, the six checks to run on any body before you join, and what it costs against what it replaces.
Read the guide →Is there a professional body for in-house recruiters in the UK?
Yes. Where in-house recruiters and talent acquisition teams belong, what the law asks when you hire for your own employer, and what STAR membership at BIOR includes.
Read the guide →How do I start a recruitment agency in the UK? The compliance you cannot skip
No general licence, but regulated from day one. The written terms, the Key Information Document, the no-fee rule, adverts, records, right to work, insurance and the umbrella liability, each with its government source. Reviewed 8 October 2026.
Read the guide →Is there a membership for independent recruiters in the UK?
Yes, two routes depending on how you trade, Personal Membership in your own name or Agency Membership for a business of any size, and the rules that apply from the first placement whatever your size. Reviewed 8 October 2026.
Read the guide →This week's compliance news
- Holiday pay enforcement by the Fair Work Agency starts in 2027, not before April, and the consultation proposed a six-year claim period and penalties of up to 200% of arrears (news item, 30 September 2026).
- The union statement is decided, a fixed government text given to every worker, including every temp, from January 2027 (news item, 30 September 2026).
Questions people ask
Where can a UK recruitment agency get guidance on the Fair Work Agency?
On this hub. Start with the guide The Fair Work Agency. What every agency needs to know, then the ERA timeline and the 12-point compliance check, which give a government source for every point. The Fair Work Agency has replaced the EAS and GLAA as the single enforcement body for employment rights, so the guides on agency workers, the Key Information Document, umbrella companies and tribunals cover what it enforces. GOV.UK remains the official source, and every guide here links to it.
Is the Employment Rights Hub free to use?
Yes. Every guide on the hub is free to read, with no login and no paywall. You do not need to be a BIOR member.
How often is the Employment Rights Hub updated?
Every week. We review government sources each Monday and publish one new or refreshed article each week. When a date or rule changes, the affected articles are updated the same week and the change is noted in the article. Every article shows its own Last reviewed date.
Who writes the guides on the Employment Rights Hub?
The BIOR Membership Team at The British Institute of Recruiters. Every guide is checked against government sources, GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk, before it is published.
Written by The BIOR Membership Team. Last reviewed 30 October 2026.