The duty on businesses and organisations to prevent illegal working will soon expand, perhaps more broadly than many might anticipate.

The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 is set to expand this duty beyond traditional employment relationships. With a commencement date of 1 October 2026, businesses and organisations should consider what lies ahead.  

Current position 

At present, an organisation’s duty to prevent illegal working applies to individuals employed under a contract of employment (including apprenticeship). Many, however, increasingly engage workers in a variety of other ways including contractors, consultants, freelancers or through third-party platforms. Although recommended, the obligation to conduct a check does not extend to these arrangements (barring sponsor licence holders sponsoring under these arrangements). 

Forthcoming changes 

The duty to prevent illegal working will be extended beyond traditional employment relationships. Broadly, the changes capture two broad categories:

1. Worker's contracts, individual sub-contractors and similar arrangements: These individuals perform work for a business but do not hold employee status. This is a key category in scope, especially for those sectors which rely heavily on this class of workers – including Financial and Insurance Services, Professional Services, Consulting, Technology, Film and TV, Engineering, Construction. 
   1. Individuals who are genuinely self-employed, operating in business on their own account, trading in their own name or as part of their own business, who contract directly with clients or customers for the provision of work or services, are not in scope.
   2. However, this does not include individuals who obtain work through an intermediary, platform, or similar arrangement where the individual is not operating an independent business in their own right – those workers remain in scope.
2. Online matching services: Covering platforms and services that: (a) maintain a register of service providers for the purpose of matching them with potential clients or customers; (b) provide an online service by which potential clients or customers can submit enquiries to be matched with suitable service providers; and (c) charge a fee or commission in return.

Extended liability

Businesses further up the contracting chain should be aware that, in certain circumstances, civil penalty liability may extend beyond the party with the direct contractual relationship with the worker, particularly where prescribed contractual requirements have not been met.

Steps organisations should take to prepare

HR and People Operations should now consider whether their workforce will be in scope. We recommend an audit of the workforce, internal practices and policies, including: 

1. Workforce mapping: Consider the population your business engages as contractors, consultants (or other categories covered by the Act). 
2. Review contracts and onboarding: For categories in scope, consider whether contracts have provisions on right to work in the UK. Consider verification steps during onboarding. Ensure third-party terms of service address right to work compliance.
3. Policies on right to work checks: There may be individuals who have limited contact with the business. Establish a process, to include checking and retaining evidence. Depending on size consider responsibility and accountability within the team.

Although this is not an exhaustive list, and we await further Home Office guidance, it should be used as an opportunity to get ahead of the changes. With the wider changes in employment law landscape, organisations that take stock now will be better placed to weather the expected turbulence ahead.

If you’d like to discuss how the changes may impact your organisation, please contact Yawar Abbas, Head of our specialist Immigration law team to discuss further.