UK Right to Work checks

Before employing anyone in the UK, you're legally required to check that they have the right to work — and to keep evidence of that check on file. Pinpoint's background checks cover most of this work for you, but the exact route your candidate takes depends on their citizenship and the documents they can provide.

This guide explains the four possible routes and which Pinpoint check to use for each.

Every candidate falls into one of four routes. Two questions determine which:

Order our UK Digital Right to Work (IDSP) check. This is included in both UK Basic and Enhanced Screening bundles. The candidate completes an online identity verification via our background check partner, Certn — a certified Identity Service Provider (IDSP) approved by the UK Government.

The candidate will be asked to provide:

The check typically completes within 30 seconds of successful submission. You'll receive a report showing the candidate's ID and selfie, plus a right to work certificate confirming their eligibility.

After the check, you still need to conduct an imposter check — confirming that the person in the ID photo visibly matches the person turning up to work — before employment begins.

Order our UK Right to Work (Alternative) check. Your candidate provides their share code (generated at gov.uk) and date of birth. Pinpoint automatically checks the share code against the Home Office online service and returns an indicative result, including a PDF of the Home Office result page for your records.

Read more about the UK Right to Work (Alternative) check (this should be a link to the new support page)

Share codes are the standard route for candidates with a UK visa, EU Settlement Scheme status (pre-settled or settled), a Biometric Residence Permit, or an eVisa. Right to work share codes always start with the letter W — codes starting with R or S are for other services and won't work for right to work checks.

There is no digital route for this candidate — you'll need to conduct a manual right to work check and see original documents in person (or via live video call, with the physical documents in your hands beforehand).

Accepted documents may include:

See the Employers' right to work checklist for official guidance.

Our UK Right to Work (Alternative) check will allow candidates to indicate which documents they can provide if this scenario applies to them. You'll then need to review the originals yourself and record the check on file.

Some candidates can't generate a share code — for example, if they're waiting on a visa application decision or hold specific paper-only immigration documents. This route also needs a manual check.

Accepted documents may include:

See the Employers' right to work checklist for more guidance.

Where a candidate has an outstanding application, appeal, or administrative review with the Home Office, you may need to request a Positive Verification Notice from the Home Office Employer Checking Service before employment can begin.

Our UK Right to Work (Alternative) check will allow candidates to indicate which documents they can provide if this scenario applies to them. You'll then need to review the originals yourself and record the check on file.

Regardless of route, 3 things remain your responsibility:

If you know your candidate has a valid UK or Irish passport, order the UK Digital Right to Work (IDSP) check. For everyone else, order the UK Right to Work (Alternative) check.

If you're not sure which one applies to a particular candidate, order the UK Digital Right to Work (IDSP) check. If candidates are unable to complete the right to work check using this method, the check will be cancelled, and you should then order the UK Right to Work (Alternative) check as a fallback, or complete the check manually.

A share code is a 9-character alphanumeric code beginning with the letter W that non-UK/Irish citizens can generate at gov.uk/prove-right-to-work. It's valid for 90 days from the point it's issued.

Candidates will need one of the following to generate their code: their Biometric Residence Permit number, their passport, or their national identity card. They'll also need a UKVI account — automatically available to anyone who's applied for a visa, applied to the EU Settlement Scheme, or used the "UK Immigration: ID Check" app.

Pinpoint's share code check returns an indicative result — meaning we've checked the share code on the Home Office website and can tell you whether the candidate appears to have the right to work. This isn't the same as you checking the share code yourself, which is what the Home Office requires to establish a statutory excuse.

They can still have the right to work in the UK if they hold other acceptable documents (see Routes 3 and 4 above) — but the check must be done manually.

For the duration of employment, plus a further 2 years after the employee leaves. This is the retention period required by the Home Office. It is recommended to copy and store check evidence and documentation in your HRIS or other employee system of record for this purpose.

If your candidate can't complete the digital check for any reason — for example, if they don't have their passport ready or the IDSP can't verify their identity — the check is cancelled. You can then order the UK Right to Work (Alternative) check to capture the manual route instead.