An illegal working civil penalty is a fine the Home Office can issue to an employer that employs someone who is not allowed to do the work, if the employer has no statutory excuse. The starting point is £45,000 for each worker for a first breach and £60,000 for each worker for a repeat breach within three years.
Key points
- The starting amount is £45,000 per worker for a first breach and £60,000 per worker for a repeat breach within three years.
- An employer has a statutory excuse, and no liability, if it made the prescribed right to work check before employment started and did any follow-up checks.
- The penalty falls by £5,000 per worker for each of two mitigating factors: reporting the suspected illegal worker and actively co-operating.
- An employer can object in writing within 28 days of the due date in the notice, and then appeal to the County Court.
- A knowing breach can be a criminal offence with up to five years in prison and an unlimited fine.
How the civil penalty works
Section 15 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 creates the civil penalty. Where an employer employs an individual who is disqualified from the work by their immigration status, the Secretary of State will serve a notice requiring payment of a penalty.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF) GOV.UK says an employer could face one if it employs an illegal worker and has not carried out a correct right to work check.[3]Home Office, Checking a job applicant's right to work
The Home Office uses three stages. At stage 1 it asks whether the employer has a statutory excuse. If it does, the Home Office issues a No Action Notice and the case closes. If not, stage 2 asks whether the employer breached the scheme in the past three years. Stage 3 sets the amount.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
An employer has a statutory excuse if it carried out the prescribed right to work checks before employment started. Where a worker’s right to work is time-limited, the employer must also do follow-up checks to keep the excuse. The code says it is the employer’s responsibility to show it complied.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
How the amount is set
The amount depends on whether this is a first breach or a repeat breach within three years.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
| First breach | Repeat breach within three years | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point for each worker | £45,000 | £60,000 |
| Mitigating factor 1: employer reported the suspected illegal worker and received a Unique Reference Number | Less £5,000 per worker | Less £5,000 per worker |
| Mitigating factor 2: employer actively co-operated with the Home Office | Less £5,000 per worker | Less £5,000 per worker |
| Mitigating factor 3: effective right to work checking practices, together with factors 1 and 2 | Warning Notice instead of a penalty | Not available |
The code defines a repeat breach as one where the employer has been found to employ illegal workers within the previous three years. That means a penalty notice or warning notice for an earlier breach, or an offence under section 21 of the 2006 Act.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF) A cancelled notice is not counted if it was cancelled after an objection or appeal and was not replaced by a Warning Notice.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
The widened scheme applies from 1 October 2026. A civil penalty for employment under a worker’s contract, as an individual sub-contractor or through an online matching service may be imposed only where the employment began on or after that date.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
What happens after a notice
The employer receives one of three notices. A Civil Penalty Notice sets out why the Home Office thinks the employer is liable, the amount and how to pay or object. A Warning Notice is a formal warning that counts if the employer breaches the scheme again within three years. A No Action Notice closes the case.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
The employer must pay by the date in the Civil Penalty Notice unless it objects. A Faster Payment Option cuts the amount due by 30 per cent if the employer pays within 21 days. It is open only to employers in receipt of their first penalty. An employer may ask to pay by instalments and must give full reasons.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
To object, the employer writes within 28 days of the due date in the notice, with evidence for one or more of the acceptable grounds. The Home Office will tell the employer the outcome within 28 days of receiving the objection, or by the date of any extension. If the objection fails, the employer can appeal to the County Court (or the equivalent in Scotland) within 28 days of the date on the objection outcome notice or the new penalty notice.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF) An employer must object before it appeals, except where it is served with a higher penalty after an objection.[2]UK Visas and Immigration and Immigration Enforcement, Employer's guide to right to work checks, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
If the employer does not pay, object or appeal by the dates given, the penalty is registered with the civil court, and enforcement can start immediately.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
Other consequences
A civil penalty is not the only sanction. The Home Office guide lists further sanctions for an employer found to be employing someone illegally without the prescribed checks.[2]UK Visas and Immigration and Immigration Enforcement, Employer's guide to right to work checks, 1 October 2026 (PDF) They include:
- a criminal conviction in serious cases, with up to five years in prison and an unlimited fine
- closure of the business and a compliance order issued by the court
- disqualification as a director
- not being able to sponsor migrants
- seizure of earnings made as a result of illegal working
The guide says a civil penalty could affect an employer’s ability to sponsor migrants in future and may lead to the employer appearing in the published list of non-compliant employers on GOV.UK. An employer who knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, that it employs an illegal worker commits an offence under section 21 of the 2006 Act.[2]UK Visas and Immigration and Immigration Enforcement, Employer's guide to right to work checks, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
Example
A restaurant employs two workers without carrying out a right to work check. The Home Office finds no statutory excuse and no breach in the previous three years. The starting point is £45,000 for each worker. The restaurant had reported both workers and received a Unique Reference Number, and it also co-operated with the investigation. Each of those two factors reduces the penalty by £5,000 per worker, so the amount is £35,000 per worker and £70,000 in total.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
If the restaurant qualified for the Faster Payment Option and paid within 21 days of the notice, the 30 per cent reduction would take £70,000 down to £49,000.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF) This is arithmetic on the figures in the code. It is not a forecast of any case, and the Home Office decides each case on its facts.
What people get wrong
Many employers believe a check done after the worker has started protects them. The guidance says employers must carry out the check before employment begins to have a statutory excuse.
A second mistake is to stop at the first check. Where a worker’s right to work is time-limited, the employer must do follow-up checks to retain the statutory excuse.[1]Home Office and Immigration Enforcement, Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF)
The bottom line
The civil penalty is the Home Office’s main sanction against an employer that employs someone without the right to work. The starting amount is £45,000 or £60,000 for each worker, less any mitigation. The way to avoid it is a correct right to work check before the worker starts and follow-up checks afterwards. The rules are in the statutory code of practice.
Common questions
The starting point in the code of practice is £45,000 per illegal worker for a first breach and £60,000 per worker for a repeat breach within three years. Mitigating factors can reduce it by £5,000 per worker each.
By having a statutory excuse. That means carrying out the prescribed right to work check before employment starts and doing any follow-up checks while the right to work is time-limited. The employer must be able to show it did so.
Yes. The employer can object in writing within 28 days of the due date in the notice. If the objection fails it can appeal to the County Court within 28 days of the date on the objection outcome notice or new penalty notice.
Yes, for a first penalty. The Faster Payment Option reduces the amount due by 30 per cent if the employer pays within 21 days of the Civil Penalty Notice. It cannot be paid in instalments.
Sources
We cite the Immigration Rules, legislation and GOV.UK guidance directly. Rules change, so each source shows the date we last checked it.
- Home Office and Immigration Enforcement. Code of practice on preventing illegal working: Right to Work Scheme for employers, 1 October 2026 (PDF). Checked 11 November 2026. ↩
- UK Visas and Immigration and Immigration Enforcement. Employer's guide to right to work checks, 1 October 2026 (PDF). Checked 11 November 2026. ↩
- Home Office. Checking a job applicant's right to work. Checked 11 November 2026. ↩