Hire temporary staff? They’ll need Right to Work checks from October

From 1 October 2026, the Right to Work scheme expands, going beyond just employees to also cover temporary workers and those in non-traditional employment relationships.

This includes gig-economy workers, contractors, and those paired through online matching services. With costs of non-compliance reaching £60,000+, now’s the time to prepare.

We’re here to take you through a summary of the key changes, but you can check out our sister company, TrustID’s, blog to find out more!

Key takeaways

• Date: 1 October 2026.
• What’s changing: The Right to Work scheme extends beyond direct employees to cover worker’s contracts, individual subcontractors, and platform or gig-economy arrangements.
• New risk: “Extended liability” – civil penalty exposure can reach further along a supply chain than before.
• The penalty: Up to £45,000 per worker for a first breach, £60,000 for a repeat one, or unlimited fines and prison time for knowingly hiring an illegal worker.

Why this matters for your business

If you run a business, manage a team, or sit anywhere in HR, compliance or procurement, these changes affect you. The expanding scope will bring millions of workers into the spotlight across every industry – and a particular emphasis has been placed on sectors like construction, care, and hospitality, and who rely on flexible working structures.

Working arrangements now in scope include:

• Contract of employment (traditional employee relationships)
• Non-employees engaged under a worker’s contract, such as casual and zero-hours workers
• Individual contractors
• Agency workers and labour supplied through contractual chains
• Gig economy workers and platform-based service providers

Additionally, ‘extended liability’ now puts pressure on employers further down the chain of contracts if a Right to Work check has not been completed earlier in the process. But you can protect your business from civil penalties by meeting prescribed requirements and establishing a statutory excuse. You can do this through:

• Developing a written statement
• Establishing substitution controls
• Setting up identity verification systems

What to do now

• Map everyone who does work for you – employees, contractors, agency staff, platform workers.
• Check each arrangement against the new rules, not against what the contract calls it.
• Make sure the people doing your checks understand what’s changed, as this is where most gaps appear.
• Don’t leave it until October. Compliance built early is far easier than compliance fixed under pressure.

More information can be found on TrustID’s blog, and via the official Home Office guidance.