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FRESH RULES: New right-to-work Home Office guidance tells councils when taxi and PHV licences must be refused
The Home Office has updated its guidance on preventing illegal working in the UK taxi and private hire sector, setting out how licensing authorities must check whether individual applicants are eligible to hold driver and operator licences. The revised guidance applies to checks carried out from 1 October 2026 and replaces the previous version, published in August 2025.
The rules place a legal duty on licensing authorities not to issue, renew or extend a taxi, private hire vehicle or operator licence to an individual who is disqualified because of their immigration status. The applicant must be lawfully present and permitted to work, with no immigration condition preventing them from doing the work associated with the licence. The check must be completed before the licensing decision is made.
The document is written for licensing authorities, rather than serving as a standalone operational manual for every taxi or private hire business. It also notes that the Right to Work Scheme changes taking effect from 1 October 2026 create a separate legal duty to prevent illegal working for some businesses in the sector. Those business responsibilities are distinct from a council’s duty to conduct a right-to-a-licence check.
A licensing authority’s check is about whether an individual can hold the relevant licence, while a business’s Right to Work Scheme obligations are separate. The new guidance says the licensing provisions apply where the licence applicant is an individual. They do not apply where the applicant is a separate legal entity, such as a limited company or limited liability partnership.
Authorities must ask applicants to demonstrate their eligibility, but they cannot insist on a single checking method. They must offer a reasonable opportunity to use an available prescribed route: a manual check of original documents, a Home Office online check, or a digital check using a registered Right to Work digital verification service provider, known as an RtW DVSP.
Where an applicant holds an eVisa, the authority must use the Home Office online service and a share code to check their status. The code must be generated for the right-to-work purpose, begins with “W” and remains valid for 90 days. Codes beginning with “R” or “S” are for other services and cannot be used for a licensing check. Authorities must enter the applicant’s date of birth and record their own full name correctly when conducting the check.
An online check must confirm that the applicant can do the work associated with the licence. Authorities must compare the profile photograph with the person being checked, either in person, by video call or, where applicable, with facial recognition carried out by a registered provider. They must retain a secure copy of the profile page showing the result and check date. A printout or screenshot supplied by the applicant is not a substitute for carrying out the check through the Home Office service.
For manual checks, authorities must inspect original documents from the accepted lists, verify that they are genuine and belong to the applicant, check any work restrictions and make clear copies. They must record the date the check was actually conducted and keep the evidence securely for only as long as necessary, in line with data protection requirements. Digital versions of official evidence of a person’s name and National Insurance number may be accepted alongside the appropriate original document; authorities must not ask applicants for their device password.
The guidance tightens the conditions for digital verification. If an authority chooses to use a digital verification service provider, the provider must be registered with the Office for Digital Identities and Attributes and able to provide right-to-work checks. The licensing authority remains responsible for ensuring that the check meets the prescribed requirements, including when the service is procured through an intermediary.
Licence duration must reflect the applicant’s immigration permission. Where that permission is time limited, the licence cannot run beyond its expiry or the statutory maximum licence period, whichever comes first. In specified cases involving outstanding applications, appeals or administrative reviews, an authority may need to seek verification from the Home Office’s Status Verification, Enquiries and Checking Service. A licence granted following positive verification in those circumstances is limited to six months, with another check required before a subsequent grant, renewal or extension.
The guidance also warns that permission to work does not automatically mean an applicant can hold a taxi or private hire licence. Skilled Worker visa holders are tied to a sponsoring employer and specified role; the guidance says taxi or private hire driving or operating will not normally meet the rules for supplementary employment. Student visa holders may face restrictions too, including a general prohibition on self-employment unless a specific exception applies. Authorities must assess the individual’s conditions before granting a licence.
The Home Office says a licence lapses if its holder becomes disqualified because of their immigration status, for example if permission to stay expires, is curtailed, revoked or cancelled. Authorities are not required to conduct ongoing checks solely to monitor time-limited permission, but should consider the relevant suspension, revocation or lapse provisions if they receive information that a holder may no longer qualify. A person whose licence has expired, lapsed, been suspended or revoked on immigration grounds must return the licence, badge and other issued identification; failure to do so without reasonable excuse within seven working days may be an offence.
The updated guidance consolidates rules on eVisas, share codes, outstanding applications, identity checks and suspected document fraud. It also clarifies that authorities should contact the Home Office’s SVEC service in specified cases, including certain EUSS applications, technical problems preventing an online check and some applicants with long residence in the UK who arrived before 1988.
