How do I get a share code to prove my right to work?

Sign in to your UKVI account through the free GOV.UK service 'Prove your right to work to an employer' (gov.uk/prove-right-to-work), choose to prove a right to work, and the service generates a 9-character share code — right-to-work codes begin with the letter W. Give the code and your date of birth to the employer, who checks it on GOV.UK. It takes minutes, it is completely free, and the code is valid for 90 days and can be used by more than one employer within that time.

Do British and Irish citizens need a share code?

No — and they cannot get one. British and Irish citizens prove their right to work with a passport or Irish passport card, which can be current or expired for a manual check. Employers can alternatively use a certified digital identity service provider (IDSP) to check a British or Irish passport, but only while the passport is valid. The online share code service is for people whose immigration status is held digitally as an eVisa.

How long is a right to work share code valid?

90 days from the day it is generated. Within that window it can be used as many times as needed — including by more than one employer. Once it expires you simply generate a new one, free, in minutes, from your UKVI account. Getting a code costs nothing: any website charging a fee for a share code is not the government service.

My BRP card has expired — can I still prove my right to work?

Almost certainly yes. Physical biometric residence permits (BRPs) were phased out and most expired on 31 December 2024, but the card expiring did not change anyone's immigration status — your permission continues as an eVisa in your UKVI account. An expired BRP cannot be handed over as proof on its own, but under current Home Office guidance you can still use it to create or access your UKVI account and generate a share code. If you have lost access to the phone or email on your account, use the UKVI account recovery process — contact routes are on GOV.UK.

Can an employer check only people who seem foreign?

No. The Home Office code of practice for employers is clear that right-to-work checks must be carried out on all prospective employees in the same way, regardless of nationality, race or accent. Checking only the people an employer assumes are not British is unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act 2010. The check itself must also be free to you — a worker can never be charged for a right-to-work check, and there is no fee for a share code.

Proving your right to work: share codes, checks & your rights

How you prove it — two routes, both free

Which route you use depends only on citizenship — not on how long you’ve lived here or what the job is:

Who you are	How you prove your right to work
British or Irish citizen	A passport or Irish passport card — current or expired — shown to the employer for a manual check (they take a copy). Employers can instead use a certified digital identity service provider (IDSP) to verify a passport digitally — but only while the passport is valid; an expired one means a manual check. No passport at all? Other document combinations are accepted (for example a birth certificate plus an official letter with your National Insurance number) — the full list is on GOV.UK. You cannot get a share code and never need one.
Everyone else	The free online share code, generated from the eVisa in your UKVI account at gov.uk/prove-right-to-work. You give the employer the code plus your date of birth; they check it free at GOV.UK’s “View a job applicant’s right to work details” service. Physical documents like BRP cards are no longer stand-alone proof.

Who you are

How you prove your right to work

British or Irish citizen

A passport or Irish passport card — current or expired — shown to the employer for a manual check (they take a copy). Employers can instead use a certified digital identity service provider (IDSP) to verify a passport digitally — but only while the passport is valid; an expired one means a manual check. No passport at all? Other document combinations are accepted (for example a birth certificate plus an official letter with your National Insurance number) — the full list is on GOV.UK. You cannot get a share code and never need one.

Everyone else

The free online share code, generated from the eVisa in your UKVI account at gov.uk/prove-right-to-work. You give the employer the code plus your date of birth; they check it free at GOV.UK’s “View a job applicant’s right to work details” service. Physical documents like BRP cards are no longer stand-alone proof.

Free, online, minutes — not a hurdleGetting a share code takes a few minutes on a phone. It costs nothing, the employer’s check costs nothing, and you can generate a fresh code whenever you like. An employer can never charge you for a right-to-work check — there is no such fee anywhere in the system.

The share code — step by step

Sign in to your UKVI account via gov.uk/prove-right-to-work — the same account that holds your eVisa. You’ll confirm your identity with the phone or email on the account.
Choose to prove a right to work and the service generates a 9-character share code. Right-to-work codes begin with the letter W — a right-to-rent code (different service, different letter) will not work for a job, so generate the right kind.
Give the employer the code and your date of birth. Email is fine. That’s everything they need.
They check it online at GOV.UK — it shows your photo and confirms what work you’re allowed to do. The code lasts 90 days and can be used by more than one employer within that window; after it expires, a new one is free and instant.

Get the code before the offer stageRecruitment moves fast, and a role can drift to the next candidate while someone struggles with account access. Don’t lose a job to a 10-minute task: check you can sign in to your UKVI account today, and when you start applying for work, generate a code and keep it with your CV. It’s valid for 90 days — one code can cover a whole job search.

Never pay a website for a share codeShare codes come from one place: GOV.UK — free, always. Copycat sites charge £20–£60+ for the same free code, and some exist mainly to harvest identity details. Type gov.uk/prove-right-to-work directly rather than clicking ads. Already paid or handed over details? Contact your bank, and run the site through Scam Check — report it to Action Fraud.

What the employer must do — and may not do

Check before you start. The check happens before your first day of work — a job offer can lawfully be made “subject to right-to-work checks”, but you shouldn’t be working before one is done.
Check everyone the same way. The Home Office code of practice requires checks on all prospective employees, regardless of nationality, name, accent or appearance. Singling out the people an employer assumes are “not British” is unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act 2010 — and so is refusing to consider you because your status is digital or your permission is time-limited when it allows the work.
Keep the evidence. Employers keep a copy of the check for the length of your employment plus 2 years after you leave — that’s their duty, not yours.
Never charge you. The check and the share code are free. Any “admin fee” for checking your right to work is not a real thing.

Why employers take this seriously: employing someone without a correct check can cost them a civil penalty of up to £60,000 per worker (raised sharply in 2024). A properly done check gives them a “statutory excuse” — which is why a careful employer insists on the process, and why having your code ready makes you the easy hire.

Time-limited permission — follow-up checksIf your permission to stay has an end date, the employer will diary a follow-up check before it expires. That’s normal and lawful — it is not them doubting you. What they cannot do is treat you worse in the meantime because a follow-up will one day be needed.

eVisas — the BRP card is gone, your status isn’t

Physical biometric residence permits (BRPs) were phased out — most cards carried an expiry date of 31 December 2024 even where the person’s actual permission ran far beyond it. Your immigration status now lives digitally as an eVisa inside your UKVI account, and the card expiring changed nothing about your right to be here or to work.

An expired BRP is not stand-alone proof of a right to work any more — the share code is.
But under current Home Office guidance you can still use an expired BRP to create or access your UKVI account, view your eVisa and generate share codes — a transitional easement, so don’t bin the card.
Never had a UKVI account? Create one free on GOV.UK (“Get access to your eVisa”) — do it before a job application forces the issue.

Can’t prove it — but you have the right? The fix-it routes

Locked out of your UKVI account

Lost the phone number or email the account uses for security codes? Use UKVI account recovery on GOV.UK to update your sign-in details, and if you’re stuck the UKVI resolution centre helps with eVisa and account problems — current contact routes and phone lines are listed on GOV.UK. Tell the employer plainly: “my status is fine, I’m recovering account access — it’s a known process.”

The system can’t show your status — or your application is pending

If you have an in-time application, appeal or review outstanding (you applied before your old permission ran out), or your status genuinely can’t be displayed online, the employer uses the free Home Office Employer Checking Service (ECS). If the ECS confirms your right, it issues a Positive Verification Notice — which protects the employer for 6 months, after which they re-check. You can lawfully be employed while an in-time application is pending; a flat “no code, no job” from an employer who won’t use the ECS is them getting the process wrong, and it’s reasonable to point them to the employer’s guide on GOV.UK.

A withdrawn offer isn’t always the endIf an offer wobbles because you couldn’t produce a code on the spot, remember the code takes minutes — generate it in the interview if you have to. If the barrier is deeper (account locked, status not showing), name the fix and a date: employers mostly just need certainty that the check will complete.

Get job-ready — what to do now

British or Irish? Know where your passport is — even expired, it works for a manual check. No passport? Look up the accepted-documents list on GOV.UK before you need it.
Everyone else: sign in to your UKVI account today and confirm the phone and email on it are ones you still control. Fix access now, calmly — not during a job offer.
Applying for jobs? Generate a share code and keep it with your CV — it covers 90 days of applications.
Hit a wall? Account recovery, the UKVI resolution centre, or the Employer Checking Service — there is a route for every stuck case.

Do this now

Open gov.uk/prove-right-to-work and make sure you can sign in. That single 5-minute check — done today, before any employer asks — is the whole game. The code is free, lasts 90 days, and turns the scariest-sounding part of a job application into an email.

Got a letter about your status or a job you don’t understand? Put it through Decode. This is general information, not legal or immigration advice — for advice on your own situation, contact Citizens Advice (free), and note that personal immigration advice may only be given by OISC-registered advisers or qualified lawyers — see Find a professional for the official registers.

England, Scotland, Wales & Northern Ireland

Immigration is reserved to the UK Government, so right-to-work checks work the same way across the whole UK — the same share codes, the same employer duties, the same free services. (That’s different from Right to Rent, which applies in England only.)

Related guides — work & rights

Right to Rent National Insurance number Your rights at work Zero-hours contracts Scam Check

Source verification Primary sources: GOV.UK — Prove your right to work to an employer (gov.uk/prove-right-to-work), Checking a job applicant’s right to work (gov.uk) and the Home Office Employer’s guide to right to work checks. Last verified 3 July 2026 — share codes are free, generated from the UKVI account/eVisa, valid 90 days, reusable within that period, checked by employers with the code plus date of birth; right-to-work share codes are 9 characters beginning with W (format per established employment-law summaries of the Home Office scheme — the letter distinguishes them from right-to-rent codes). British and Irish citizens: passport or Irish passport card, current or expired, for a manual check; certified IDSP/digital identity checks available only for valid British/Irish passports (route live since 6 April 2022); alternative document combinations listed on GOV.UK. Employer duties: check before employment starts; check all applicants the same way (Home Office code of practice on avoiding unlawful discrimination; Equality Act 2010); retain evidence for the employment plus 2 years; the check is free to the worker. Civil penalty context: up to £60,000 per worker for repeat breaches (£45,000 first breach) since the February 2024 uplift — stated as employer context, not worker risk. eVisa transition: BRPs phased out with most cards expiring 31 December 2024, status unaffected and held digitally in the UKVI account; expired BRPs remain usable to access/create the UKVI account under current transitional Home Office guidance (an easement with its own end date — check GOV.UK if reading much later); UKVI account recovery and the UKVI resolution centre stated qualitatively with contact routes deferred to GOV.UK (phone numbers deliberately not printed — they change). Employer Checking Service: free, used for in-time outstanding applications or status the online system cannot show; a Positive Verification Notice gives the employer a 6-month statutory excuse, then a follow-up check. Confidence: High on the share-code mechanics, 90-day validity, free-to-worker, equal-checking duty, retention period and ECS/PVN 6 months (GOV.UK + Home Office employer guide); Medium on the W-prefix (consistent secondary sources, not stated on the public GOV.UK start page). Scope: UK-wide — immigration is reserved. Not legal or immigration advice; personal immigration advice is regulated (OISC / qualified lawyers).

Right to work — common questions

How do I get a share code for a job?

Sign in to your UKVI account at gov.uk/prove-right-to-work, choose to prove your right to work, and the service generates a 9-character code starting with W. Give it to the employer with your date of birth. Free, takes minutes, valid 90 days.

I’m British — do I need a share code?

No, and you can’t get one. Show your passport — current or expired both work for a manual check. Employers can also verify a valid British or Irish passport digitally through a certified identity service provider. No passport? GOV.UK lists accepted alternatives, such as a birth certificate plus an official letter showing your National Insurance number.

Can the same share code be used for more than one job application?

Yes. Within its 90 days a code can be checked by any number of employers. When it expires, generating a new one is free and instant — many people keep a fresh code alongside their CV during a job search.

My BRP expired — has my right to work gone?

No. Most BRP cards expired on 31 December 2024 because the cards themselves were withdrawn, not because anyone’s permission ended. Your status continues as an eVisa in your UKVI account, and you prove it with a share code. You can still use the expired card to access or create your UKVI account under current guidance.

An employer says they’ll only check people who aren’t British — is that allowed?

No. The Home Office code of practice requires the same check for every prospective employee, and selecting people by nationality, race or accent is unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act 2010. If it happens to you, keep the evidence in writing and get free advice from Citizens Advice or ACAS.

Sources: Share codes, checks, eVisas & employer duties · GOV.UK — Prove your right to work · GOV.UK — Check a job applicant’s right to work · Home Office — Employer’s guide to right to work checks. SortedUK is not a law firm or an immigration adviser and this is general information, not advice. Last reviewed: 3 July 2026.

Proving your right to work — share codes, eVisas & your rights