The one step that invalidated this employer’s right to work check

You can do everything you think is right and still get hit with a massive fine. That’s exactly what happened to a fish and chip shop owner in Surrey.

They thought they’d covered all the bases. The person they hired had a National Insurance number, benefit paperwork and was already on PAYE with another employer. Everything looked legitimate.

But the Home Office disagreed and the business was fined £40,000.

Where it went wrong

The employee had presented forged documents. The business owner never physically saw the original passport, which would have revealed the forgery.

That single missed step invalidated their entire right to work check. All the other paperwork meant nothing.

It’s easy to assume that having a National Insurance number or P45 proves that someone can work legally in the UK. It doesn’t.

What you actually need to do

The rules are stricter than most people realise:

• You must physically inspect original documents (or use approved digital services)
• Take copies and record the date you checked them
• Complete everything before the person starts work
• Keep records for the whole employment period plus two years

Miss any of these steps and you lose your legal protection.

Sadly, the Home Office doesn’t care if you acted in good faith or if your business only has 3 employees… they are treating businesses of all sizes equally.

The reality of enforcement

Right to work checks aren’t just paperwork exercises anymore. The Home Office is actively targeting businesses and the fines keep getting bigger.

It can be £60,000 per illegal worker if you’re a repeat offender. For most businesses, that’s enough to cause serious financial damage.

The Surrey case shows that it can happen to anyone. The business owner had no idea they were hiring someone illegally, but that didn’t matter when the fine arrived.

Protecting yourself

Right to work checks aren’t bureaucracy for the sake of it. They’re protection for your business.

Take an honest look at your current process.

1. Are you physically checking original documents for every new employee?
2. Are you keeping proper records?
3. Does everyone involved in your hiring process know these rules?

If you’re not confident about any part of your right to work process, get it sorted now. It’s a lot easier to put a system in place now than try to fix things after the damage is done.

Get in touch if you want help with setting up a system that actually works. It’s better to get this right from the start than learn the hard way like the Surrey chippy owner did.