Right-to-work checks confirm a worker is legally permitted to work in the UK, and they apply whether someone is placed directly or through an agency. This is general background information, not tailored legal advice — always confirm current requirements against official Home Office guidance for your specific situation.
Why this check exists
Employers and agencies are responsible for confirming a worker's right to work before they start, and for keeping evidence of that check. The rules exist to prevent illegal working and to protect both the worker and the organisation placing them.
What's typically checked
This generally includes verifying identity documents, confirming immigration status where relevant (including any time limits on that status), and using accepted verification methods — which can include digital right-to-work checking services alongside physical documents, depending on the case.
Common mistakes
Common issues include not checking before the worker's first day, not tracking expiry dates on time-limited permissions, and accepting documents without following the correct verification steps. Any of these can leave an employer or agency exposed even if the failure was accidental.
Expiry tracking matters as much as the initial check
A right-to-work check that was valid on day one isn't necessarily valid indefinitely — some permissions have expiry dates, and ongoing employment requires re-checking before that date passes, not after.
Who's responsible when an agency is involved
Responsibility can sit with the agency, the end hirer, or both depending on the arrangement — this is worth confirming explicitly in any agency-hirer relationship, rather than assuming it's automatically covered by someone else.
How Meet Resources supports this
Meet Resources tracks right-to-work status and expiry as part of a worker's profile, visible to agencies and hirers before a placement is confirmed, with reminders as an expiry date approaches — reducing the chance of a check lapsing unnoticed.