Right to Work Checks 2025: Fines, Audits and What Every UK Employer Must Know

It’s September 2025, and tougher Right to Work rules are no longer a distant deadline. They are here and businesses are already paying the price.

In the first half of this year, the Home Office issued fines totalling almost £70 million. In July, a Surrey fish and chip shop owner was fined £40,000 after employing a worker with false documents, despite believing he had followed the rules. His mistake? Failing to check the original passport – small administrative oversight turned into a devastating penalty.

Cases like this highlight a new reality – Right to Work checks are no longer admin tasks that you can afford to drop to the bottom of the pile. They are a frontline compliance issue, with penalties that can damage both finances and reputations.

How We Got Here

Right to Work rules have existed for years, but for a long time enforcement was sporadic. Many employers treated checks as a formality, with little expectation of audits.

That began to change in 2023, when labour market pressures and immigration debates put illegal working higher on the political agenda. The government promised to ‘get tougher’ and Right to Work enforcement became part of that narrative.

In 2023, civil penalties were capped at £20,000 per illegal worker and enforcement was relatively light.

By mid-2024, the Home Office announced it would treble fines and expand inspection teams. Between July 2024 and March 2025, more than 1,500 civil penalty notices were issued as a clear warning shot.

In April 2025, the new regime took effect. First-time breaches now carry fines of up to £45,000 per illegal worker, while repeat offences can reach £60,000.

Looking ahead, the government has proposed a digital ID scheme to be integrated into right to work checks, signalling a shift towards digital verification as the new compliance standard.

But the biggest change wasn’t financial – inspectors changed their approach. They no longer accept a ‘check was done’ as enough, they need proof that the right check was completed, on time, properly documented and backed by an audit trail strong enough to stand up in court.

What’s Required of Employers

• The Home Office’s expectations are clear. Employers must demonstrate:
• Correct checks – not all documents are valid; knowing the difference is essential.
• Timely completion – checks must be carried out before employment starts.
• Secure record keeping – documents and outcomes must be stored safely and retrievably.
• Audit readiness – processes should produce evidence instantly if inspectors arrive unannounced.

Expectations are higher than ever and employers must prove legitimacy, protect the labour market, and give regulators confidence that obligations are being met.

Who’s Under the Most Pressure

All UK employers must comply, but some industries are more exposed than others.

• Health & Social Care – This sector faces double scrutiny – safeguarding and immigration. Many providers rely heavily on overseas recruitment, which makes document verification more complex. Care homes in particular are under pressure to prove their checks are both rigorous and well-documented.
• Construction & Facilities Management – Subcontracting chains can stretch across multiple tiers. But if an illegal worker is found on site, inspectors look to the main contractor first. That means regular supply chain audits and clear compliance requirements in subcontractor agreements are now essential.
• Hospitality & Events – Restaurants, bars and venues rely on seasonal workers and high staff turnover. During peak seasons, rushed onboarding often leads to corners being cut. The Home Office has stepped up surprise visits in this sector in particular as the risks are so high. Employers need to ensure every manager understands the basics of Right to Work compliance, not just HR teams.
• Logistics & Delivery – With thousands of drivers engaged through agencies or as gig workers, liability lines often blur. Yet in the eyes of the Home Office, the hiring company remains responsible. Businesses should build compliance clauses into contracts with third parties and carry out regular audits to verify their checks.

In each of these industries, it’s not just the number of workers but the pace of hiring and complexity of employment models that create vulnerabilities.

The Pitfalls Employers Still Fall Into

Despite repeated warnings, the same mistakes keep surfacing:

• Treating Right to Work checks as a one-off paperwork – Filing documents at onboarding and forgetting about them doesn’t meet today’s standards. There are currently around 5.75 million non-UK and non-Irish nationals working in the UK. Each has a visa with a specific expiry date, and it is the employer’s responsibility to keep track of these limits and carry out follow-up checks in line with compliance requirements. Regular monitoring avoids expired permissions and helps ensure full compliance with immigration law. systems.
• Over-reliance on digital checks – Identification Document Validation Technology (IDVT) technology is useful, but it only applies to certain groups. Assuming it covers everyone leaves significant gaps.
• Outsourcing without oversight – Agencies or contractors may carry out checks, but liability never leaves the employer. Without clear agreements and audits, risk remains.

These aren’t minor slip-ups anymore – they are triggers for five and six-figure penalties and, increasingly, reputational damage when cases are publicised.

What Good Compliance Looks Like in 2025

The businesses avoiding fines share a few common traits. They train their managers and HR staff so that compliance isn’t left to chance. They embed Right to Work checks into onboarding systems so that new hires cannot proceed without checks being logged. They store records securely, with dates, names and outcomes all easy to retrieve. And they monitor their third-party partners, ensuring that agencies and subcontractors meet the same standards.

In practice, good compliance doesn’t slow hiring down, it allows businesses to scale confidently, knowing that processes can withstand scrutiny if the Home Office knocks on the door.

Six months into the new regime, the enforcement pattern is only intensifying. Inspectors are targeting the gig economy, where worker status often blurs lines of responsibility. Repeat offenders are being referred more quickly for potential criminal charges, and public naming of fined businesses is becoming more common, turning compliance failures into headline stories.

Looking further ahead, there are signs that digital identity systems will face tighter regulation. Employers should expect clearer rules on when IDVT is acceptable and more penalties when it’s misapplied. While the Home Office has not yet announced AI-based compliance monitoring tools for Right to Work, the broader regulatory trend suggests increased use of algorithms and automation in workplace oversight.

For businesses, the direction is clear – enforcement will only become sharper, and the companies that treat compliance as a core part of governance (not an afterthought) will be the ones who stay resilient.

How CBS Helps Employers Stay Defensible

At CBS, we help organisations make compliance clear, practical and defensible.

We advise on when digital checks are valid and when manual checks are required. We provide secure systems for capturing, storing and auditing records, so evidence is always ready. And we offer sector-specific guidance, recognising that challenges in care or hospitality look very different from those in logistics or construction for example.

Our role is simple: to help employers embed Right to Work checks into their operations in a way that keeps them compliant, protects their reputation, and ensures hiring stays efficient and safe.

Need help making your Right to Work checks watertight?

Our compliance specialists can review your current process, highlight risks, and guide you on the steps to stay compliant, safe, and audit-ready.

Call us on: 01443 799 900 or make an enquiry here to speak to one of our screening specialists.

Your Questions Answered: Right to Work Checks in 2025

What is the fine for illegal working in 2025?

Since April 2025, first-time breaches can attract fines of up to £45,000 per illegal worker. Repeat offences can reach £60,000.

Who is responsible for Right to Work checks?

The employer always retains responsibility, even if checks are completed by an agency or contractor.

Can all checks be done digitally?

No. Digital checks are only valid for specific groups (such as British or Irish citizens with valid passports). Many workers still require manual checks.

How long must records be kept?

Employers must retain Right to Work records for the duration of employment and for two years after the worker leaves.

What if I discover a worker doesn’t have the right to work?

Employment must end immediately, and the case reported to the Home Office. Continuing knowingly can escalate the penalty to a criminal offence.

What’s the difference between civil and criminal penalties?

Civil penalties apply when checks weren’t done correctly. Criminal penalties apply if the employer knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, a worker does not have the right to work.

What documents are acceptable in 2025?

The Home Office maintains an official list of acceptable documents. These include valid passports, biometric residence permits, and immigration status checks via the Home Office online service. Expired documents or uncertified copies are not acceptable.

How do Right to Work checks link to DBS checks?

They are separate processes. Right to Work checks confirm legal eligibility to work in the UK, while DBS checks confirm criminal record information. Both may be required for roles in sensitive sectors such as care or education.

How can employers prove a ‘statutory excuse’?

A statutory excuse protects employers from liability if they can show they carried out the correct Right to Work check. This requires keeping records of documents, dates and outcomes in line with Home Office guidance.