On New Year's Eve, transitional controls restricting the right to work in the UK expired for Romanian and Bulgarian nationals and from 1 January 2014 Romanian and Bulgarian nationals have the same access to the UK labour market as any other European Economic Area ("EEA") national (aside from Croatian nationals who require authorisation to work in the UK).
However, like any other EEA national, those from Romania and Bulgaria can only stay in the UK for more than three months if they are exercising their European treaty rights which means that they must be either working in the UK or self-employed, studying in the UK, or are considered self-sufficient. Self-sufficient persons – those not working or seeking work – must be able to support themselves and their families and must also have comprehensive medical insurance.
Although Romanian and Bulgarian nationals no longer need an accession worker card or registration certificate as evidence of permission to work or of their right to reside as a worker, it is vital that all employers comply with their duty to prevent illegal working and complete their document checks to ensure that any prospective employee is able to work in the UK. It is imperative that documents are validated, copied and certified on the employee's first day of work.
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