How to prove your right to work in the UK: passport or a share code

By law a UK employer must make sure a new employee has the right to work in the country — before they start. This applies to everyone who is hired. What you have to show depends on your status.

British and Irish citizens

The simplest route is a British passport, or an Irish passport or passport card — current or expired both work. If you have no passport, you can show a UK or Irish birth or adoption certificate (or a certificate of registration or naturalisation) together with an official letter from a previous employer or a government agency (such as HMRC or DWP) showing your name and National Insurance number. If you have a passport, many employers accept a check through an online identity service provider (IDSP) — ask whether your employer offers one.

ONLYWAY NEWSLIVEHousing · 30.10Council Tax discounts: who pays less and who is not counted at allJobs & Business · 30.10How to prove your right to work in the UK: passport or a share codeMoney · 30.10Child Trust Fund: how to find a child's account and claim the money at 18Law · 29.10Help with Fees: how to reduce or avoid a court fee in the UKHousing · 29.10Repairs in a rented home: what your landlord must fix and where to complainBooks · 29.10The Picture of Dorian Gray: a bedtime book and a walk through Oscar Wilde's LondonTravel · 29.10Clean Air Zones in England: where you pay to drive and how to check your carMoney · 29.10ISAs in the UK: £20,000 tax-free a year and the 25% Lifetime ISA bonusLaw · 29.10How to make a legally valid will in England and WalesTax · 29.10Capital Gains Tax on selling property in the UK: rates and the 60-day deadlineONLYWAY NEWS · appInstall the ONLYWAY NEWS appFresh UK news, classifieds, key dates and exchange rates on your home screen, one tap away. Free.NewsClassifiedsCalendarRates

Everyone else: an online share code

If you are not a British or Irish citizen, you prove your status online. You sign in to the GOV.UK "View and prove your immigration status" service, generate a share code, and give it to your employer with your date of birth. The employer checks the code on the government service and sees your status and conditions. Instead of a code you may present an eligible immigration document — an employer cannot reject you just for choosing a document over a code.

What if you cannot prove it?

If you do not have documents to hand but do have the right to work, your employer can use the Employer Checking Service to ask the Home Office to confirm. Commonwealth citizens affected by the Windrush situation can get help through the Windrush Scheme.

What to remember

The check is done before your first day, and repeated if your permission has a time limit. Keep access to your UKVI account and your sign-in details — without them you cannot quickly generate a share code. Biometric residence permits (BRPs) are being replaced by a digital status (an eVisa), so make sure you have set up access to your online status. Always check the current process on GOV.UK.