Read James Lamont’s Explainer On Right To Work And Illegal Work Liability Changes In HR Magazine

“From 1 October 2026, UK law is treating your organisation as the employer of people you may have never met or signed up to an employment contract. If they lack the right to work, you could be landed with a civil penalty – or worse,” Senior Associate writes in the latest edition of HR Magazine.

HR practitioners are all too familiar with right to work checks, which if carried out correctly before someone starts work establish a “statutory excuse” protecting employers from civil penalties if they work illegally. Section 48 of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025, which amends the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, changes that in two ways from 1 October 2026.

• From 1 October 2026, the definition of “employment” for right to work expands to cover worker’s contracts, individual subcontractors and online matching services matching workers to clients, in addition to traditional contracts of employment.