ILR, newly expired passport, and rights to work

[Darcy3133]

Hello,

Long time lurker of this forum (which was invaluable when I first applied for ILR many years ago).

I've been in the UK for over a decade, granted ILR for well over five years. Recently my foreign passport expired. I had just started a new contract with a new employer, which was agreed upon before the passport expiration date, and paid work commenced the day after the passport expired. I worked for a month before the employer contacted me with 'a doubt' regarding my right to work. The home office basically said if they did the checks before the passport expired, I was fine to work for them for a year. If they did the checks after, I could not supply them with sufficient proof of my right to work. The home office seemed to maintain that I have the right to work, the right to remain, and the right to claim public funds, I just don't have the correct proof to support right to work for a new employer given that I now need a BRP. The employer err'd on the side of caution and severed the employment, then promptly withheld all pay they still owed me. I'm currently sitting in a bit of a grey area on that one.

Learning about the 2015 legislation change was obviously a surprise, and now needing a BRP is a big expense, on top of the price of having just renewed my passport. The home office have said I have a right to claim, but I think I'm guaranteed to be waiting a while for a benefit decision AND unable to afford the BRP if I go down that route.

So my question is this: my old employer contacted me asking if I wanted to work for them again. I previously gave them my in-date passport which showed my ILR stamp, and worked quite successfully for them for a long while. I happen to know that they rechecked my ILR stamp in March of this year. Can I still work for them? The home office tell me once my proof has been checked and accepted prior to my passport expiring, the employer no longer need to check it for a year. There's been a gap in employment with this employer for just over a month. Would I be committing a crime if I accepted paid work? Is the onus on the employer to recheck my details if I restart work for them after a gap? Is the employer covered from the time they checked my proof in March?

Thanks in advance for your help!

[CR001]

For any new employment (even going back to your old employer) you are required to hold a BRP card, no way of getting around this.

[vinny]

If an employer had checked the valid documents from List A, then there's no requirement to recheck, even after a year.

[Darcy3133]

If an employer had checked the valid documents from List A, then there's no requirement to recheck, even after a year.

Thanks very much for the reply.

As I understand it: if I can prove continuous employment AND the employer has checked my documents when they were in-date, I'm cleared to work? I'm trying to ascertain whether the gap of just over a month will render any work I may complete for my old employer illegal. Am I correct in my understanding?