Right to Work in the UK

The University is obliged to perform checks on all employees to ensure they can work lawfully in the UK. This obligation is set out in the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.

Documentation can either provide an ongoing statutory excuse, for the entire duration of employment or for a limited period. Where time limited documents have been provided as evidence of right to work in the UK, mainly work visas issued by the Home Office, further evidence must be provided to Human Resources in advance of the expiry date of the initial documents. Employees and workers will not be permitted to continue working for the university without the timely provision of evidence of ongoing right to work in the UK.

The obligation is to check, copy and retain certain original documents before an individual commences employment.

Further Guidance from the Home Office is available on what types of document and document combinations can be used. There is also a useful online tool available that demonstrates the process the University is required to complete, prior to employees or workers commencing work. The online tool provides information on which types of document give someone the right to work in the UK and what a right to work check involves for each of them.

Individuals will normally be eligible to work in the UK if they are in one of the following categories:

A legal national of the UK or Irish Citizen
A dependent, husband, wife or civil partner of a UK national or an individual who has an existing right to work in the UK and who holds a dependent visa
Indefinite Leave to Remain or a UK ancestry visa
An EU, EEA or Swiss citizen (or a Dependent of) who has pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme
Global Talent visa
Youth Mobility Scheme visa
Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent)
Graduate visa (opens Summer 2021)

Further information on the EU Settlement Scheme is available on the Human Resources Website.

The relevant categories of sponsorship by the university under the UK Points Based Immigration (PBS) system are:

Skilled Worker visa
Temporary Worker - Government Authorised Exchange visa (T5)
Tier 4/Student visa
Doctorate Extension Scheme (DES) visa

Further details are available on the International Recruitment webpage

Student Visa Working Permissions

If you have a Student visa (formerly Tier 4), you must be aware that there are strict rules governing the total number of hours that you may work in any given week. This covers all of the jobs that you have. The limits are determined, among other factors, by your level of study and whether or not your work is undertaken during term-time.

Please ensure that you read the full guidance note on Student Visa Work Permissions and Routes to Employment and refer to the online timetable for the academic session. Detailed guidance is available on the UK Government website.

Departmental users of the Supplementary Payments System can find more information on evidencing Right to Work checks on SharePoint.

Hourly Paid Workers - Checks Made by the Work Requestor

Further information is contained in the document, Supplementary Payments and Guaranteed-hours Assignment.

Guidance on the requirements of Permitted Paid Engagements from outwith European Economic Area (EEA) is also available.

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Further Guidance

Guidance Summary Document: Home Office Issues (Head of Department)

Guidance Summary Document: Home Office Issues (Staff & Visitors)

Guidance Document for Key Contacts

Home Office PBS Policy

Home Office PBS Procedure