What is an ARC card?
The application registration card (ARC) is a card issued by the Home Office to individuals who claim asylum in the UK. It certifies that an asylum seeker can remain in the UK while awaiting the outcome of their asylum claim.
For the full picture on right to work checks, including share code checks, the Employer Checking Service and follow-up checks, see our guidance on Right to Work Checks.
Can ARC card holders work?
Normally, individuals who seek asylum in the UK are not permitted to work whilst their claim is being considered. However, if they have been waiting for more than 12 months and they are not considered responsible for the delay, they can apply for permission to work.
If the Home Office grants permission to work, it is restricted to particular jobs, and which jobs depends on when the application for permission to work was made. Under the Immigration Rules, permission applied for on or after 26 March 2026 allows jobs in occupations listed in Appendix Skilled Occupations as skilled to RQF level 6 or above on the Skilled Worker route. Permission applied for from 4 April 2024 until then allows jobs on the Immigration Salary List. Permission applied for before 4 April 2024 was restricted to the shortage occupation list, which no longer exists. Self-employment and setting up a business are not allowed in any case.
The same applies to people whose protection-based further submissions have been outstanding for more than 12 months through no fault of their own.
If an asylum claim is rejected and all appeal rights are exhausted, any granted permission to work will come to an end, as individuals in such circumstances are expected to depart from the UK.
Asylum seekers without permission to work may still volunteer for a charity or public sector organisation, but they may not take paid work, or unpaid work in a role an employee would normally fill.
What should Employers pay attention to when hiring someone with an ARC card?
As an employer in the UK, you have a legal responsibility to check the right to work of all your employees. You must check every worker before they start, whatever their nationality, and carry out follow-up checks where their right to work is time-limited.
If you have a candidate currently holding an ARC card, you must ask the Home Office to check their right to work status. Employing someone without the right to work, without having carried out the correct check, can lead to a civil penalty of up to £45,000 per worker for a first breach, or £60,000 per worker for a repeat breach within three years.
How to check a Job Applicant’s right to work?
To check someone’s right to work, you’ll need to contact the Home Office via the Employer Checking Service (ECS) to confirm any right to work. To do this, you’ll need the candidate’s full name, date of birth, nationality, job title, hours worked per week, home address in the UK and Home Office reference number or case ID (if they have). Don’t forget that you’ll need to get the candidate’s permission to make the check.
If you’re checking an ARC card holder’s right to work status, you’ll need to see their original ARC card.
An ARC holder's work permission is shown in the remarks on the card. A card marked "NO WORK" means the holder cannot work. Cards issued to people with permission may show a restriction, such as "work permitted shortage OCC" on older grants. Whatever the card says, it is the Positive Verification Notice from the Employer Checking Service that confirms exactly what work the person may do, so check the job against the notice as well as the card. It is the employer's responsibility, as well as the applicant's, to make sure the job is on the relevant list, meets the salary threshold and that the person is qualified for it.
You can also use the Employer Checking Service (ECS) to check their immigration status with the Home Office. Once you have submitted the information through ECS, the Home Office aims to respond within five working days. If it confirms the right to work, it issues a Positive Verification Notice, which gives you a statutory excuse for six months. You will receive a notification message whether the candidate does or does not have the right to work.
When do you need to conduct right to work checks?
As an employer, you need to check your employee’s right to work before they start work in your company. You’ll also need to conduct follow up checks if someone has time-limited permission to stay in the UK.
For an ARC holder, the follow-up is another request to the Employer Checking Service, made before the six-month Positive Verification Notice runs out.
It is important to note that the ECS is only a check of the employee's immigration status at the time of the check. If the employee's immigration status changes after the check, you can still be fined if they are found to be working illegally.
To avoid being fined, it is important to keep your records of right to work checks up to date. Seek professional advice and implement a robust HR system in place to keep compliant with the Home Office guidelines.
Need assistance?
WorkPermitCloud understands how right to work checks can get a little complicated at times, which is why we offer a bespoke HRMS platform to make this process easier and more efficient for you. Let us help you to manage a compliant HR process and you focus on your core business.
Contact us today to find out more.
Reference:
https://www.gov.uk/employee-immigration-employment-status
