What's Happening In Immigration Law? Q&A – March 2026

This Q&A pulls together questions asked at our recent webinar, which provided a general update on recent and upcoming UK immigration law changes.

The information provided is correct at 26 March 2026. It provides general guidance only: expert advice should be sought in relation to particular circumstances. In relation to earned settlement, the final policies will only be determined following consultation.

Right to work

On compliance, with right to work checks, we currently use a third-party provider to do all our background checks. They will do the RTW check through a government approved system and then provide us with a summary of the output. They have a disclaimer which states we cannot rely on their reports / their reports from third party providers. I worry this means we, as employer, are not getting the statutory excuse through outsourcing this check. Is this concern valid?

Third-party Digital Verification Service (DVS) providers may only assist with completing the digital identity verification element of a right to work check for British and Irish citizens who hold a valid British/Irish passport (or valid Irish passport card). You as the employer must still complete the visual check to confirm the person presenting for work is the person described in the output provided by the DVS.

For any other type of right to work check, you as the employer must complete all elements for a statutory excuse to become available. You can't outsource this to a third-party. However, it is open to you to use one as an additional level of assurance, e.g. as a technology-assisted check on whether a document presented as part of a right to work check may be a forgery or may not match the biometric features of the person seeking to rely on it.

If someone has a share code should you also check the passport?

It is not a requirement to also check a person's passport for a digital right to work check. This is because the person's biographic details and image are available via the Home Office's system here.

Is there any further information available regarding right to work check responsibilities within a firms' supplier chain? e.g. outsourced services?

The Home Office is currently considering the responses to their public consultation on extending the right to work scheme, which closed on 10 December 2025. Updated information is expected to be released once this process is completed.

Is there a deadline to complete the RTW 'face check' after a person receives a new visa (ie extension/ILR)?

A repeat right to work check should be completed in full before the expiry of the existing statutory excuse. We would suggest completing all elements of the right to work check at the same time to minimise the risk of an element being left incomplete.

What about sub-consultants – those engaging in a business-to-business way – do right to work checks apply to them at all?

Right to work checks are only currently required for direct employees, including apprentices. Under the expanded right to work regime individuals in a chain of contracts may need to have their right to work checked, however we are currently awaiting guidance to be published by the Home Office confirming their revised requirements for right to work checking.

If someone updates their documents, is it ok to just update the system with the new details or do you need to keep all history of expired documents?

If the documents are ones that form part of a right to work check, they should be retained for the duration of the employment and for 2 years afterwards.

For TUPE transfers - do you do rechecks?

The Home Office recommends this and provides a grace period of 60 calendar days from the date of the transfer of the business for fresh checks to be completed.

Just rechecking. We use an IDSP that verifies during background check screening. Are we still expected to check ID docs and verify on day 1 of employment so that we're not liable for an illegal working civil penalty?

We would suggest completing right to work checks before the first day of employment to make it clear the check was concluded before the commencement of employment, and to minimise the risk of a delayed start date if right to work can't immediately be established.

Regarding the use of Digital Verification Service (DVS) providers, see Question 13.

Do we anticipate it being implemented forward looking or will there be a retrospective check requirement on contractors?

The new requirements will be forward-looking. This is because the legislation authorising the expansion of the illegal working regime will only apply after the relevant provision is brought into force (it is now on the statute book but not yet in force).

Skilled worker

How does the new 'pay per period' Immigration Rule work for self-employed sponsored workers? By the nature of being self-employed, this doesn't appear to work.

Some aspects of the new Immigration Rule require clarification by the Home Office. This may be forthcoming when Home Office guidance is updated on 8 April 2026.
We anticipate the Home Office intends self-employed workers to be covered under the provision for irregular work patterns (new para SW 14.3B.(c)), i.e. hours and payment of 'salary' will be assessed over a 17-week period and be equal to 17/52 of the required annual salary for sponsorship.

For further information, see our article, Analysis of Spring 2026 UK Immigration Rule changes for employers under the heading 'New requirement for payment of Skilled Workers'. Note that the Home Office has recently confirmed to the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (see their Fifty Sixth Report, para 64) that there is a typographical error in the new Rule, which will need to be corrected in a future Statement of Changes.

Pay per period checks - what about employees who take unpaid leave for a day or two, or take Statutory Paternity Leave? Are there exemptions in these cases?

We anticipate reductions in salary due to unpaid leave (up to a maximum of 4 weeks per calendar year according to their normal working pattern) and for a valid exception reason (e.g. statutory paternity leave) should be ignored. This may be covered in updated sponsor guidance from 8 April 2026 and/or may need to be queried with the Home Office. As mentioned above, there are various aspects of this Rule that require clarification.

Can a sponsored person take advantage of salary exchange schemes, (e.g. salary sacrifice for pension contributions) if they take them below the sponsorship salary level?

Yes. Salary sacrifice is considered 'an additional benefit offer which the applicant has a genuine choice whether to take up'. Benefits of this type are not required to be subtracted from gross salary for the purpose of meeting Skilled Worker route salary threshold requirements.

Sponsored work routes

Do you think the minimum salary thresholds on the skilled occupation list are likely to increase/decrease during 2026?

It is possible, especially since the Migration Advisory Committee delivered a report on 17 December 2025 making recommendations for changes to the general salary thresholds and occupation-specific salary thresholds across various work routes. The Home Office is yet to respond to this report.

For a high-level summary of the recommendations relating to the Skilled Worker route only, see our article, What's happening in UK immigration law in 2026? under the heading 'Skilled Worker route amendments'.

Would currently sponsored employees have to re-do the English language test to CEFR level B2 on visa renewals after March 2027?

Re-testing will not be required for extensions, however may be required for settlement. For more information, see our article, Analysis of Spring 2026 UK Immigration Rule changes for employers under the heading 'Higher English language requirement for settlement'.

Can you share a link to guidance on what documentation is to be kept on file regarding notifying sponsored workers of their employment rights?

The Home Office's guidance at Appendix D is not prescriptive regarding what documentation is required. This is because how each organisation communicates information about employment rights may differ. We would suggest reviewing your current arrangements including (but not limited to) the areas mentioned in our article, Stricter sponsor guidance: updates in Spring 2026 under the heading 'New worker welfare obligations'. The Home Office has recently confirmed to the Immigration Law Practitioners' Association that sponsors are expected to comply with notification requirements under general employment law and should be able to demonstrate the systems, processes and documentation they have in place for doing this. However, as the specific Appendix D requirement is new, Home Office compliance officers will only require you to retain evidence of how you have communicated information on these for each worker you sponsor on or after 6 March 2026.

If you would like us to review your arrangements and make recommendations on any changes to minimise the risk of non-compliance, please get in touch with one of our team.

How should we approach the employment rights obligations for those on Global Mobility Business visas under the Appendix D compliance piece, where many of those detailed may not apply to those seconded temporarily to the UK? Is it the governments expectation we still disclose those details even if they don't apply to those, and are we in breach of our obligations if we deem them not applicable and don't disclose?

The purpose of the requirement is to emphasise that sponsors must comply with all UK laws, including employment laws. If you have sponsored workers to whom some employment laws aren't applicable, you should ensure the evidence you keep on file for those workers demonstrates that you've communicated with them on the matters that are relevant.
We would also suggest you consider putting a policy or other documentation in place that outlines which laws are not applicable for temporarily seconded workers, so that this can be viewed by the Home Office in the event of an audit.

All of the references to 'eligible role' in the sponsor guidance point to a glossary hyperlink but the link points to a page where I cannot see a Glossary. Has this been published and how do we find it?

The glossary can be found here.

With regards to the eligible role requirements, how do we prove we have advertised a role, is it enough to have the advert text, plus knowing we have overall reports via our recruitment system e.g. when role was advertised, when it closed, how many people applied, how many were shortlisted etc. Or should we be keeping screenshots of placed adverts as well?

If the role is one for which a formal resident labour market test isn't required, provided you have a record of the text of the advertisement you are not required to also retain a screenshot. See Appendix D para 2.2.(a)(i) for further information. Note that for some routes, a formal resident labour market test is required, and screenshots are required for those cases.

Sponsorship

Have you seen/is there any data on the sectors or length of time the sponsor licence was held or other such variables in the increase in revocations?

There have been a large number of sponsor licence revocations in the adult social care sector. The Home Office doesn't publish revocation statistics by sector, however from time-to-time issues press releases on sponsor compliance action. This press release from September 2025 mentions adult social care, hospitality, retail and construction as being 'among the sectors with the highest level of abuse'.

If a licence gets revoked, does that affect the current sponsored employees, or only new applications?

If a sponsor licence is revoked, the immigration permission of workers sponsored under it will ordinarily be curtailed (cancelled).

Do you need to report a new CEO, even if the sponsoring business continues to have the same owners?

No, unless the previous CEO held a key personnel role on the sponsor licence.

Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA)

If you are an EU citizen registered in UK and have a Settled Status, do you need to get an ETA or is your status on your passport?

A person with status under the EU Settlement Scheme will have an eVisa. This provides the basis of eligibility to travel to the UK (i.e. they are not required to apply for an ETA). The status holder should ensure their eVisa is linked to the travel document they intend to travel to the UK on. For information on maintaining UKVI account details, see our recent article - Reminder to keep UKVI account details updated.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.