You are going to hear a lot about right to work checks for freelancers over the next few weeks, and some of it will come from very confused people. Some clients will ignore the changes completely. Others will decide that the safest answer is to check every freelancer, subcontractor and substitute—and ask them to email a passport, Unique Taxpayer Reference or anything else that looks official.
Neither approach is sensible. Extended liability through a contractual chain does not mean that an end client must automatically carry out right to work checks on every freelancer, associate and substitute in that chain. The rules change on 1 October 2026. The legislation is in place, but the detailed Home Office guidance is still in draft. Marvellous.
Here is what we know.
What changes on 1 October 2026?
Right to work checks currently apply mainly to employees. From 1 October 2026, the rules extend to some other working arrangements, including:
- workers who are not employees;
- some individual subcontractors;
- people obtaining work through certain online matching services or platforms; and
- some arrangements involving substitutes.
This does not mean that every self-employed freelancer must suddenly prove their right to work to every client.
The draft Home Office guidance says the new rules will not generally apply where you operate an independent business and contract directly with your client to supply services.
The important question is not simply what your contract calls you. It is how your arrangement works in practice.
Do right to work checks apply to all freelancers?
A freelancer operating an independent business should remain outside the new right-to-work checking requirements when contracting directly with a client.
That is more likely to be the position where:
- your client is buying a service rather than hiring you personally as part of their workforce;
- you control how you provide that service;
- you work with other clients;
- you use your own business systems and equipment;
- you are responsible for running your business; and
- you have a genuine ability to use your team, an associate or a substitute where appropriate.
No single point decides the answer. Your contract and what actually happens must tell the same story. Simply adding the word “freelancer” or “self-employed” to an agreement will not rescue an arrangement that is operated like employment.
We looked at the wider changes earlier this year in Freelancer vs Employee UK: What’s Changing in April—and What Isn’t.
What does this mean if you use KoffeeKlatch Terms of Business?
KoffeeKlatch Terms of Business are designed to create a genuine agreement between your business and your client for the supply of services. That is why the Terms refer to “we” rather than “I”, even when you operate as a sole trader: your client is contracting with your business.
The Terms also allow your business to delegate work to your team, associates or substitutes. They are not designed around your client hiring you personally and controlling you like an employee.
If you use your KoffeeKlatch Terms and Booking as written, and operate your business consistently with them, your client should not ordinarily need to carry out a right-to-work check on you. However, the contract cannot do all the work.
If your client refuses to allow delegation, controls how and when you work, prevents you from working with other clients or otherwise treats you like a member of staff, the reality may no longer match the agreement. That matters for much more than right-to-work checks.
What about associates and substitutes?
The same basic point applies when you hire an associate. KoffeeKlatch Hiring Agreements are designed to create a genuine self-employed business arrangement, but they must be completed and operated as written.
If you insist that your associate must provide the services personally, control how they work or otherwise treat them as a member of your staff, calling them an associate will not settle their status.
The new rules also create particular complications around substitution. Unfortunately, this may encourage some clients to refuse substitutes simply because they do not understand the rules. The fact that a freelance supply chain includes associates or substitutes does not mean that the end client must carry out right to work checks on everyone in that chain. You first need to establish whether the particular arrangement is within the Scheme and who is responsible for any check. That refusal can cause a different problem because a genuine and workable right to provide a substitute is important evidence that your relationship is one of self-employment.
You can read more about why this matters in Why You Should Let Your VA Send a Substitute to Cover Holidays.
What about zero-hours workers?
Zero-hours workers are workers, so the new rules will apply to relevant zero-hours arrangements starting on or after 1 October 2026.
A zero-hours contract and a freelance agreement are not interchangeable. If you are unsure whether someone you work with is genuinely self-employed or is really a worker, now is a good time to understand the difference and check that your contract matches what actually happens.
Does the change apply to an existing arrangement?
The changes apply to relevant engagements starting on or after 1 October 2026.
With KoffeeKlatch Terms, the date you bought or downloaded the Terms is not usually the important date. Your Terms create the framework, but each accepted Booking creates the agreement for the work.
A new Booking accepted on or after 1 October may therefore need to be considered under the new rules. A continuing arrangement under an existing Booking may sit on the other side of the transitional boundary.
There will be more detail about this in our customer session because the answer can depend on how your particular Booking and working arrangement operate.
Your UTR is not proof of your right to work
Freelancers are already being asked to provide their Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) as supposed proof that they are self-employed or entitled to work in the UK.
Your UTR is not evidence of your right to work. Furthermore, it is a reference number that can be used for identity theft, so it should not be collected or shared without a proper reason.
If your client asks for it as evidence of your right to work, the request is already based on a misunderstanding.
Most freelancers do not question a request for their UTR, passport or other personal information. They assume their client needs it and send it—often by ordinary email—without asking why it is required, how it will be stored, who will see it or when it will be deleted.
If your client asks for evidence, your first question is not, “Which document shall I send?” It is, “Why does this arrangement require a right to work check?”
If a check is genuinely required, your client must use one of the checking methods prescribed by the Home Office. Depending on your circumstances, that means using the Home Office online service, carrying out a compliant manual document check or using an approved digital identity provider.
It does not mean asking for a UTR or accepting any document that happens to look official. Collecting extra personal information “just in case” does not amount to a valid right to work check and creates data protection responsibilities your client cannot ignore.
What should you do now?
Start with your working arrangement and check that:
- your contract accurately describes your relationship;
- you and your client operate it as written;
- your Booking clearly identifies the service being supplied;
- any right to delegate work or use an associate is genuine; and
- you are not being managed like an employee while being described as self-employed.
If your client asks you for right to work evidence when you believe your arrangement is outside the rules, do not immediately email personal documents to them. Ask why they believe a check is required.
KoffeeKlatch customers will find a gentle pushback response in the customer support group. That wording is for customers using our agreements because we know how those agreements are structured. It is not intended for someone using a different contract that we have not reviewed.
Customer-only live sessions
We will run two separate customer-only live sessions in September and October.
Our Terms and Hiring session will cover:
- how the changes apply to KoffeeKlatch Terms and Hiring Agreements;
- new and continuing Bookings;
- associates and substitutes;
- how to operate your agreement properly;
- when you may need to carry out a check; and
- how to respond when your client asks for one unnecessarily.
We will also provide a document checklist and download for customers who genuinely need to complete a check.
Our separate data protection session will cover:
- what right to work information belongs in your ROPA;
- whether your Data Privacy Policy needs updating;
- how evidence should be transmitted and stored securely;
- who should have access to it; and
- how long it should be retained and when it should be deleted.
Watch for announcements by email and in your customer support group. We will share the dates, joining links and accompanying downloads there.
The final Home Office guidance may clarify some of the remaining questions, and we will update our customer materials when it does. For now, remember the central point: the introduction of right to work checks for freelancers does not turn every genuine freelancer into a worker, and it does not justify collecting personal information from everyone just to be safe.
