Checking nanny's identity/right to work etc

[patriciawentworthheroine]

I presume that if you recruit a nanny direct (rather than via an agency) you're responsible for checking they are who they say they are and have the right to work in this country?

So how do you do this? I have been trawling the internet looking for instructions from the government, but thought someone on here might already know the answer!

What forms of ID do you need to see? Is it okay, or rude, to ask if an applicant is a British citizen? Etc.

I'm concerned about this due to the recent thread about the nanny who wouldn't let her employer see her passport - I think it subsequently emerged that she had no right of residency.

So what precautions are reasonable/unduly paranoid?

As always, any advice very gratefully received by stressed mum preparing to go back to work!

Not rude at all - I always offer to show my birth certificate, passport and driving license at interview. Remember that you don't know this person from Eve and you're possibly going to employ them.

I wouldn't say British citizen but I'd just ask to see the passport and any appropriate residency/work permits. If it's an EU passport (unless it's Romania or Bulgaria) then you'll be fine. I think R & B used to have restrictions about working in the UK.

Also they'd have to show that kind of thing to an agency and checking a form of photo ID is the only way you can be sure that the person you're interviewing is the person that all the bits of paper (certs, refs, CRB etc) relate too.

Thank you. So if one of my candidates says (ahead of interview) that her passport expired some time ago but she has a provisional driving licence, should I be concerned? You have to show a birth certificate to get a driving licence, don't you. And it has a photo on it.

I wouldn't ever need her to travel overseas in my employ, so maybe it's none of my business if she doesn't have a passport?

Maybe you could ask her to bring it along anyway - if she still has it, even if it has expired its still ID? If she is British and not planning to leave the country any time soon then i guess it isnt an issue (some people have NEVER had one!), if she is from overseas then she will need a replacement eventually, I would assume, to return home if she is planning on doing so? Its just occurred to me that i started my current nanny job I didnt have a passport or visa to show my employers: Im a New Zealander and my bag was stolen with my pp in it, and it took forever to get a replacement with a duplicate visa. Thankfully i had already registered with an agency who had taken a photocopy of it, but i think theres lots of legitimate reasons why someone WOULDNT have a passport... (tho maybe lots of dodgy ones too!).

She should still have her expired passport so I second MissGT asking her to bring it along.

I'd ask to see her driving license or passport(ie. some form of photo ID), birth certificate, proof of address and possibly NI card. Those are some of the documents that you can show to get a CRB so you wouldn't be unreasonable to ask for them as proof of identity, and therefore be able to verify their right to work.

I think you have both a right and a responsibility (duty) to require to see papers that confirm your potential employee's right to reside and take up paid employment in the country you are in.

Birth certificate/passport/social security number etc. Driving licence no use (unless you want her to drive, of course).

We have always asked to see their passports, and then taken a copy for our records (with their permission of course). I think anyone who DOESN'T want to show you their passport is being unreasonable...

None of our nannies have had any problem with our request...

Thank you, everyone. So essentially I need ID with a photo on to check she is who she says she is (which could be a driving licence) and evidence of her right to reside and work here, which can't.

Good idea about asking to see the expired passport - will phrase it tactfully.

Hi Patricia, i don't think the expired passport is good enough, and if you rely on it and the person doesn't have the right to work in the UK, then you risk a £10,000 fine. Here is a link to a tool that should guide you what documents you need to ask for:

www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/logicToolStart?type=BLTTOOL&itemId=1078638405

Hope that helps.

Thanks, noviceoftheday. I am worried about being over-paranoid rather than over-trusting - hence am relieved by your advice and that of businesslink.

At least now I have a solid methodology to proceed on.