Checking documents
Managers must take all reasonable steps to check that employee documents are valid. They must be sure that the prospective or current employee is the person named them. They must check that the documents allow them to do the work in question.
For each document presented, managers must:
- check any photographs are consistent with the appearance of the employee. This means the manager must see them in person
- check that dates of birth listed are consistent across documents. The manager must check that these correspond with the appearance of the person
- check the expiry dates of any limited leave for the person to enter or remain in the UK have not passed
- check any UK Government endorsements, such as stamps, visas, to see if the prospective or current employee is able to do the type of work we are offering
- satisfy themselves that the documents are valid and genuine. They must not have been tampered with and must belong to the holder
- if two documents have different names, the manager must ask for a further document to explain the reason. The further document can be a:
- marriage certificate
- divorce decree
- deed poll
- statutory declaration
Copying documents
Managers must make a copy of the relevant page or pages of any documents. They must be in a format which cannot be later altered (for example, a photocopy or scan), and it must be clear enough to read.
In the case of a passport or other travel document, we need the following parts:
- the page containing the holder's personal details, such as:
- details of nationality
- photograph
- date of birth
- signature
- date of expiry
- any page containing UK Government endorsements indicating that the holder:
- has an entitlement to be in the UK
- is entitled to undertake the work in question
Managers should copy other documents in their entirety.