Passport for work?

Nash · 2 Oct 2008 at 15:29

Pfft that's nothing, I work for MI6 and it took SO long to get cleared and checked and stuff

arknor · 2 Oct 2008 at 15:33

all these immigration fines for companys hiring ilegals work really well for the goverment, its an extra 80quid there way everytime someone who wouldnt go abroad needs a passport to get a job.

Rich_L · 2 Oct 2008 at 15:42

I'm fairly sure it doesn't have to be a passport, just a recognised form of ID, it's due to relatively recent (2006 I believe) laws on employment eligibility.

Ah here we go http://www.na-recruitment.com/downloads/Eligibility_to_Work_in_UK.pdf

If it's just one document - it must be a passport but you can also supply 2 documents, such as birth certificate and a P45

Fothsn · 2 Oct 2008 at 15:46

Watching UK border police programme a while back and an Indian takeaway had 5 illegal workers, each worker found illegal is a £10,000 on the spot fine there were 5! 50,000 fine :eek:

I had to supply a utility bill and my passport for Royal Mail about 4 years back.

Delvis · 2 Oct 2008 at 15:49

Fothsn said:
Watching UK border police programme a while back and an Indian takeaway had 5 illegal workers, each worker found illegal is a £10,000 on the spot fine there were 5! 50,000 fine I had to supply a utility bill and my passport for Royal Mail about 4 years back.

They probably got let off and not deported, and given the chance to earn citizenship though.

Even though they broke the law....came in illegally...Yeah, makes sense

bledd · 2 Oct 2008 at 15:50

waso_dude said:
Try working in education.

2x pieces of ID
2x proofs of address.

And then a complete police check.

i needed 4/5 of them to get my parking permits this morning

Fothsn · 2 Oct 2008 at 16:06

Delvis said:
They probably got let off and not deported, and given the chance to earn citizenship though.

Even though they broke the law....came in illegally...Yeah, makes sense

From what I remember 2 were deported back to Turkey and it didn’t mention what happened to the others, they weren’t paying tax, NI or the like.

Moredhel · 2 Oct 2008 at 16:09

The passport is hardly a secure form of ID. I needed no ID at all to get my birth certificate, and that was just the start.

The surname on my birth certificate doesn't match the surname I use (long story) all it took to get the name on my Passport to differ from my birth certificate was to write (known as xxx) after the birth certificate name on the passport application.

They contacted my counter signatory (my colleagues girlfriend who is a teacher) to check she knew me as the newer name, and that was it. No further security checks as far as I'm aware. If I can do it then surely anyone could and they could change it to almost anything...

That said, apparently to get your name changed officially there's no real such thing as deed pole anymore. You just start to use the new name and that's that.

Energize · 2 Oct 2008 at 16:18

Admiral Huddy said:
The way I see it, a passports purpose is to provide identity through immigration and not as a generic identity document.

It pretty much is a generic identity document nowadays, the only other thing that is accepted everywhere for identity these days is a drivers license which many people don't have. My uni was happy to accept an expired passport though, as it has no effect on it's validity as a form of ID. There really does need to be a national identity card that you can get for free to prove your identity. £75 for a passport renewal is ridiculous as well as the signatures required.

arknor · 3 Oct 2008 at 06:52

£75 for a passport renewal is ridiculous as well as the signatures required.

its probably set up that way as a money maker for the goverment though.

80quid + 10quid to whoever signs your passport for most people isnt cheap just because you need a drivers license or i'd to open a bank etc.

if they ever roll out those national ID cards they will only be given out to people who renew/get a passport anyway :rolleyes:

i dont know why someone needs to have known you 2 years to get a counter signature either 6 months would be enough.

gillywibble · 3 Oct 2008 at 08:50

As far as I know, they can't insist on a passport but can request similar proof of ID such as a driving licence, birth certificate etc.

Freefaller · 3 Oct 2008 at 09:14

Because I hold an SIA licence and work in the security services to obtain it (as well as having a serious amount of vetting, every 6 months, a 10 year one, and all previous employers contacted as well as 4 referees of a non professional nature and an extensive CRB check including credit and fincancial checks) I did have to produce a copy of my passport. In my previous job, since I spent my life flying around the world I needed a passport anyway!

However what if you never had a passport? I've met some people who have never applied for one! :eek:

I don't see it as strange, as it's a fairly decent proof of identity. Furthermore a lot of big companies are crossing their t's and dotting their i's at this moment in time.

Emlyn_Dewar · 3 Oct 2008 at 10:26

My work asked me to bring in my passport, I don't actually have one so they didn't get very far with it...

If it was that big a deal to them, then they could pay for me to get one. I'm not too interested in travelling abroad at this moment in time, and I've got better things to throw money at than a pointless document.

I have driving license and birth certificate, if these were deemed as unacceptable then I'd maybe have to use the "do one" approach.