A person’s right to work in the UK is dependent on what immigration status they possess. Certain groups of people such as British Citizens, those who have the right of abode, and those who are settled will usually have the right to work.
Categories of people with the right to work include:
Some examples of categories of limited leave to remain which provide permission to work include:
Some people will also have their right to work restricted to specific roles and conditions:
A person whose visa allows them to work will continue to have permission to work whilst an application for further leave is pending with the Home Office (providing they made it before their previous leave expired. This provision is commonly referred to as ‘section 3C leave’. When a person has section 3C leave, they will be lawfully present and any entitlements attached to their previous leave, such as permission to work or access to public funds, will continue to apply.
For more information see our page on section 3C leave.
People on a visitor visa or people who are non-visa nationals and who visiting the UK for up to six months do not have permission to work. People seeking asylum also generally do not have permission to work unless they have been granted permission or have section 3C leave.
Anyone who is not lawfully present in the UK will not have the right to work in the UK. This means anyone who does not have leave to remain or enter to live in the UK and is not exempt from immigration control cannot legally undertake employment.
Under the Immigration Act 2016, it is a criminal offence for a person who is disqualified from working because of their immigration status, to undertake employment. While the Immigration Act 2014 makes it illegal for employers to employ someone who is disqualified from work and requires employers to carry out employment eligibility checks on any prospective employee by checking their immigration status.
It is an employer’s responsibility to undertake right to work checks but the employee must also be able to evidence their right to work.
The following physical documents can be used to evidence a person's right to work:
Employers can check an applicant’s right to work via the government’s online right to work portal, but also through checking someone’s immigration status documents. Where someone has a UKVI account, they can access their ‘digital status’ and prove their right to work through generating a shared code on the government’s website.
The Home Office is implementing plans to remove physical immigration status documents and fully transition to eVisas by the end of 2024. There is some guidance from the government on this transition process. See more information on digital status and confirming immigration status.
