The latest Government announcements on digital ID indicate that a true overhaul of the Right to Work regime may now be on ice.
At our Immigration Update Webinar in November 2025, we briefly covered the UK Government’s digital ID plans, and the impact that this might have on the Right to Work regime.
To summarise, earlier in 2025 the UK Government set out their plans to introduce a new form of digital ID by 2029, stating that this would only be mandatory as part of the new Right to Work regime – with employers being required to check digital ID when a new employee starts working for them.
It was hoped that, by standardising Right to Work checks in this way, employer’s obligations would be greatly simplified when compared to the current regime. As it stands, there are three different types of check, each of which can only be used in certain circumstances, with checks having to be carried out in accordance with complex guidance if employers wish to avoid illegal working penalties.
By mandating the use of digital ID for Right to Work checks, the Government would have standardised checks across the board, streamlining the process for employers and reducing the risks of the wrong checks being carried out or checks being carried out incorrectly.
After vocal opposition to the proposal, the Government have now announced that the new digital ID will not be mandatory for Right to Work checks. However, some of the reporting on this decision would appear to have misunderstood or misrepresented the Government’s new position, with some articles indicating that digital ID is being scrapped entirely or will not be used for Right to Work checks whatsoever.
To be clear, while the Government have now said that it will not be mandatory to use the Government digital ID to check Right to Work, have said that it will still be mandatory for Right to Work checks to be carried out digitally.
That may sound a little confusing. To clarify, while employers will not be required to check the new digital ID which is being introduced by the Government (although they can do, if the employee has this digital ID), it is expected that they will need to check a digital form of identification which confirms Right to Work status.
This would suggest that merely looking at a British passport will no longer be a valid Right to Work check – although it has been posited that employers might be able to scan the biometric chip in an employee’s passport, to verify that the passport is valid, that the employee is British, and therefore that they have the Right to Work.
For those with a visa, Indefinite Leave to Remain or similar statuses, we expect that the current online check system will remain in place, perhaps being integrated into the new digital ID.
While some will be pleased to hear that digital ID will not be made mandatory, the amended position means that there will not be a one-size-fits-all approach to Right to Work, as employers might have hoped. Instead, the Right to Work regime will remain muddled and disparate, with varying requirements depending on what form of ID is being checked, generating additional complexity for employers. We therefore anticipate that there will remain a significant risk of employers getting Right to Work checks wrong and incurring illegal working penalties as a result.
For the time being, the current Right to Work regime continues to represent an area of difficulty for many employers. If you would like training on this complex area, our immigration team are hosting an in-person Right to Work Master Class at our offices in Reading. This will cover acceptable documentation and step-by-step check procedures, to help employers comply with their Right to Work obligations and avoid illegal working penalties.
Spaces for this session are limited to 10 places, so please do get in touch for more details and to reserve your place at [email protected]
