The UK’s membership of the EU and the rules on freedom of movement mean that people from the EU, EEA and Switzerland have had the right to work in the UK with minimal checks required. UK employers only need to check for valid identification proving the worker is a citizen of the UK or an EU/EEA country, meaning they have the right to work in the UK.
Now that the UK has left the EU, this will all be up in the air once the current transition period ends. The government has indicated it intends to implement a new points based immigration system which will apply from 1st January 2021, meaning EU citizens may be subject to greater requirements to work in the UK. Given the duties upon employers to ensure their employees and workers are legally permitted to work in the UK – it being an offence to employ someone who is not – it will be important to ensure that any new requirements are being complied with. However, there are many obvious questions which arise in the meantime. What happens to EU citizens who already work in the UK? Are there any steps which need to be taken now?
A mere three and a half years after the 2016 referendum on membership of the European Union, the UK looks set to “leave” the EU on 31 January 2020. Instead of exiting without a deal (which at one stage looked distinctly possible), the UK’s departure will be pursuant to the New Withdrawal Agreement. Under this deal – which is currently being enshrined into UK law – 31 January 2020 will mark the beginning of an 11 month transition period, with the true exit date currently set as 31 December 2020 (Exit Day).