The UK government plans to introduce mandatory digital IDs to Right to Work checks by the end of the current parliament, it announced on Friday (26 August).
The ID will be app-based and stored on smartphones, similar to the NHS App or digital bank cards, and will display details such as the holder’s residency status, name, date of birth, nationality and photograph.
The scheme is set to apply to all UK citizens and legal residents, replacing existing paper-based identity checks. Officials say that the new system will save time, reduce errors and make it harder for people to work illegally.
Digital IDs will not need to be carried or shown on demand, the government has stated, but it must be used to prove eligibility for employment. Employers are to be required to use the system, but details about the scheme's rollout and compliance have not yet been published.
Talking to HR magazine about the impact of digital IDs, Ruth Cornish, founder of HR consultancy, Amelore, suggested that onboarding could become more streamlined for HR departments and employers.
She suggested that HR systems will need to be upgraded and adapted to interface with digital IDs, and that HR administrators may have fewer onboarding and right-to-work checks.
Kate Palmer, employment services director for the HR and employment law consultancy Peninsula, told HR magazine: "Right to work checks are required for every employee in every business in the UK, meaning that there is not one employer across the...
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