All BRP cards are approaching their expiry date on 31st December 2024. After this date, the Home Office will transition to a fully digital immigration system. The government have published guidance on how employers can assist sponsored workers during the transition to eVisas.
This change is applicable to all BRP card holders – including Skilled Workers, PBS Dependents, Graduates and those with ILR.
Employers who are sponsoring migrant workers who hold a BRP card should ensure individuals have created a UKVI account. Individuals will need to have created this account to be able to access to their eVisa. It is important that individuals add their passports as an ID document to their UKVI account. This will ensure seamless travel between borders, as it will link their visa permission to their travel document.
The transition to eVisas should not mean that employers need new Right to Work share codes for these employees. However, employers who completed the Right to Work check manually using a BRP card, should now need to complete an Online check. This will ensure they hold a correct record of employee’s visa end dates. After December 31st, employers can no longer accept BRP cards and paper documents as proof of immigration status. Use the online service below to do this:
https://www.gov.uk/view-right-to-work
For any employees which have a paper document (i.e. passport containing ink stamps) rather than a BRP card, they will need to apply to switch to a BRP card before they can transition to an eVisa. Please note, the Home Office have advised visa holders to retain their BRP cards after 31st December in case these are needed as evidence for any future visa applications.