Significant Increase in Civil Penalties Announced for Employing Illegal Workers

The UK government recently announced plans to triple the civil penalties for employers that are found to be employing workers illegally. While the penalties will not come into force until 2024, employers should review their practices now to ensure compliance.

The key changes for employers are as follows: (1) the penalty for first-time breaches will increase from £15,000 to up to £45,000 per worker and (2) the penalty for repeat breaches will increase from £20,000 to up to £60,000 per worker.

While this change will come into force in early 2024, currently no set date has been announced.

The Home Office is increasing enforcement efforts, with civil penalties being only one of several actions that the department can take in the event an employer is found to be employing workers illegally. Other penalties include licence downgrading, suspension and revocation in cases where the employer is also a licenced sponsor.

These considerable increases highlight the importance of businesses continuing to ensure they are conducting compliant right to work checks for all employees. Conducting a compliant right to work check prior to an employee starting work provides the employer with a statutory excuse against a civil penalty in the event that an employee is found to be illegally working in the UK.

Employers should therefore review their current right to work practices to ensure they are compliant to avoid civil penalties and establish a statutory excuse.