List A documents give the holder an unlimited right to work in the UK — check once, no follow-up required. List B documents show a time-limited right to work — you must conduct a follow-up check before the document expires. Getting the two lists confused is one of the most common right-to-work compliance errors UK employers make.
What are List A and List B?
The Home Office divides right-to-work documents into two groups:
- List A — documents that demonstrate an unrestricted, permanent right to work. No expiry, no follow-up check required.
- List B — documents that demonstrate a time-limited right to work. You must conduct a repeat check before the expiry date shown on the document.
The distinction matters because it determines whether you need to set a future calendar reminder. Miss a List B follow-up check and you lose your statutory excuse — exposing the business to a civil penalty of up to £60,000 per worker.
List A — Permanent right to work
Acceptable List A documents include:
| Document | Notes | |---|---| | UK passport (current or expired) | Any passport confirming UK nationality | | Irish passport or Irish passport card | Current only | | UK birth or adoption certificate + NI number evidence | Birth certificate must be accompanied by NI number proof (payslip, P45, NI card) | | UK certificate of naturalisation or registration | Confirms British citizenship | | EU Settlement Scheme — settled status (confirmed via share code) | No paper document — must be checked online at gov.uk/view-right-to-work | | Permanent residence card | Pre-Brexit document — check via online service if issued under EUSS |
Key point on EU nationals: Since 6 April 2022, you cannot accept an EU passport or national ID card for an EU/EEA/Swiss national. You must use the online share code service at gov.uk/view-right-to-work — even if the worker has settled status, which is a List A entitlement.
List B — Time-limited right to work
List B documents show a right to work that expires on a specific date. They are divided into two sub-groups:
List B Group 1 — employer can check directly
| Document | Notes | |---|---| | Non-UK passport with valid leave to enter/remain | Visa stamp or vignette visible in passport | | Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) | Check expiry date on the card | | EU Settlement Scheme — pre-settled status (via share code) | Online check required; result shows expiry date | | Share code result showing time-limited permission | Any Home Office online check showing a future expiry | | Certificate of Application (EU/EEA nationals) | Issued to those who applied to EUSS — must be verified via Employer Checking Service | | Frontier Worker permit | Check expiry date |
For all List B Group 1 documents, you check the document yourself and note the expiry date.
List B Group 2 — requires Employer Checking Service
Some workers have an ongoing application or appeal that gives them temporary permission to work. In these cases, you cannot verify status directly — you must contact the Employer Checking Service (ECS).
The ECS issues a Positive Verification Notice (PVN), which gives you a 6-month statutory excuse. You must conduct a follow-up check when the PVN expires.
What to do after a List B check
When you accept a List B document:
- Note the expiry date — record when the worker's permission to work expires
- Set a reminder — you must complete the follow-up check before that expiry date
- Conduct the follow-up check — ask the worker for a new share code or updated document before the current one expires
- Keep all records — retain copies of every check conducted, for the duration of employment plus two years
The fatal mistake: Many employers complete the initial right-to-work check correctly but miss the follow-up because no one tracked the expiry date. A missed follow-up removes your statutory excuse just as surely as never checking at all.
List A vs List B — at a glance
| | List A | List B | |---|---|---| | Right to work | Unlimited / permanent | Time-limited | | Follow-up check needed | No | Yes — before expiry | | Examples | UK passport, settled status, birth certificate | Visa, BRP, pre-settled status | | EU nationals | Share code confirming settled status | Share code confirming pre-settled status |
When you must use the online service instead of a paper document
Since 6 April 2022, certain workers cannot prove their right to work with a physical document at all — the online service is mandatory:
- EU, EEA and Swiss nationals with settled or pre-settled status
- Workers with a Biometric Residence Permit, Biometric Residence Card or Frontier Worker permit
- Workers with permission to work granted via the UK Visa and Immigration online service
For all of these workers, ask them to generate a share code at gov.uk/view-prove-immigration-status and check it at gov.uk/view-right-to-work.
Frequently asked questions
What happens if I accept a List A document from a worker who actually had time-limited status? If you accepted a document in good faith and the worker provided false information, you may still have a statutory excuse — but only if the document appeared genuine, belonged to the holder, and you followed the correct checking procedure.
Can I accept a driving licence as a right-to-work document? No. A UK driving licence does not appear on either List A or List B. It cannot be used as evidence of right to work.
What if a worker's BRP card has expired but they have a pending visa application? If the worker has an outstanding application or appeal, they may have a right to work under Section 3C leave. You must use the Employer Checking Service to verify this — you cannot verify it yourself from a document.
How long do I keep right-to-work check records? Keep records for the full duration of employment plus two years after it ends. Store them securely in line with UK GDPR — they are personal data.
KornerIQ records every right-to-work check against the employee's profile, captures whether the document was List A (no follow-up) or List B (follow-up needed), and sends automatic alerts before any expiry date. Every check is timestamped and stored for audit trail purposes.