eVisas – important information on your right to work
Dear Colleague
Subject: eVisas and proving your ongoing right to work in the UK beyond 31 December 2024
As you may be aware, the Home Office is in the process of implementing a UK border and immigration system that is digital by default, replacing physical visa documents with a system of digital immigration status (eVisas).
The Home Office is aiming to complete this transition by 31 December 2024.
The stated benefits of eVisas are that:
- They are secure and cannot be lost, stolen or tampered with, unlike a physical document.
- Applicants will not need to wait for, or collect, a physical document after their immigration application is decided.
- It will be quicker and easier to prove status at the UK border and to share status with third parties like employers and landlords.
We understand that you may be confused by these changes. You may be wondering how this will impact you or your immigration status and whether you need to take any action to obtain an eVisa. We are writing this letter to clarify these changes and direct you as to any actions that you may need to take. Of course, if you have questions on an individual basis, please contact your Home Manager/Home Administrator in the first instance.
British and Irish passport holders
If you hold a British or Irish passport you do not need to take any action. You can continue to rely on your passport to prove your status in the UK, as currently. No further action is necessary.
eVisa holders
If you currently hold an eVisa and have previously provided us with a share code to confirm your right to work in the UK, you do not need to do anything further now.
If you have recently obtained an eVisa and have not provided us with a share code yet to confirm your ongoing right to work in the UK, please send your share code to your Home Manager/Home Administrator on receipt of this letter.
Holders of physical visa documents
You may currently have one of the following to prove your immigration status in the UK:
- Biometric Residence Permit (BRP).
- Biometric Residence Card (BRC).
- Vignette stickers in your passport, such as entry clearance or visa vignettes.
- Passport endorsements, such as indefinite leave to enter wet ink stamps.
All these, and any other physical immigration documents, are now being phased out and you (and any dependants in the UK) will need to obtain an eVisa instead.
How to get an eVisa
To get an eVisa, you will need to create an online UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account.
If you have a BRP that expires on 31 December 2024, you can now create a UKVI account and access your eVisa via GOV.UK: Get access to your eVisa.
- You should apply before the expiry date of your BRP.
- There is no fee to create a UKVI account and, once set up, you will be able to sign in to the Home Office “view and prove service” to access your eVisa (see below).
If you have applied to extend your visa from within the UK previously, you may already have a UKVI account which you should be able to access with your previous login details.
If you have a BRC based on status granted under the EU Settlement Scheme, you will already have an eVisa and you do not need to take any further action to obtain one. You should continue to carry your BRC with you when you travel internationally until it expires.
If you have a BRC and you have not been granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme, obtained another form of immigration leave or become a British citizen, then your BRC is no longer valid, even if it appears to still be in date (this is because the UK has left the EU, and the EU free movement law no longer applies).
- It cannot be used to confirm your right to live, work or rent in the UK and you should apply for settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement scheme (or another form of UK immigration permission) as soon as possible.
- You should not travel internationally until you have obtained alternative proof of your UK immigration status.
If you currently prove your immigration status in the UK using a sticker or stamp in your passport, you will need to make a “No Time Limit” application to obtain a BRP as soon as possible. Once you have a BRP, you can then create an online account to generatean eVisa (as above).
Sharing your immigration status with us
Once you have created a UKVI account, you will be able to share details of your immigration status with third parties such as landlords and employers.
To do this, you will need to create a share code using the “view and prove service”, via this link https://www.gov.uk/view-prove-immigration-status
The share code will enable us to access your immigration status information to conduct a right to work check.
Importantly, if you proved your right to work for us based on your physical BRP (rather than providing us with a share code), we will need to undertake a new right to work check in advance of 31 December 2024 to meet our legal obligations to prevent illegal working.
Please provide your Home Manager/Home Administrator with your share code as soon as possible when you have it so that we can do this.
Do eVisas affect your current immigration status?
No. Updating physical documents to an eVisa does not affect your immigration status or the conditions associated with you entering or remaining in the UK.
However, you will not be able to prove your immigration status, right to work or right to rent in the UK after 31 December 2024 unless you have an eVisa by that time.
- You may also face issues when travelling in or out of the UK after 31 December 2024 if you do not have an eVisa by that time.
- You should continue to carry your in-date physical immigration document with you when you travel internationally, until it expires, and retain it even after it expires.
Next steps
The Home Office page sets out further details on the process to follow:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/online-immigration-status-evisa
Please ensure that you set up your Home Office online account as soon as possible and provide your Home Manager/Home Administrator with a share code if you have not done so before.
Yours sincerely
Lynne Fraser, HR Director
