SME Business News

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has hit out at the government over the complexity of the legislation on employing foreign workers in the UK.

Parts of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act, which come into force tomorrow (Friday February 29), will require small employers to understand and verify up to thirteen different forms of identification when employing foreign workers, including recognising the passports of 27 EU member states. Small businesses face fines of £10,000 if they employ people illegally, even if they do so without knowing it.

Alan Tyrrell, FSB Employment Chairman, said:

“It is totally unfair to expect small business owners to act as immigration officers and then threaten them with huge fines if they slip up. It is doubly unfair when the Government then fails to adequately publicise the new rules.

“Immigration policy and the implementation of it is a matter for the Government, not for small business owners.

“Expecting small employers to understand and implement complicated immigration rules is ludicrous. The guidance notes alone for this piece of legislation run to nearly thirty pages.”

In a joint survey conducted by BusinessZone.co.uk and HRZone.co.uk, it was found that 34% of small business owners have no process in place to verify the legality of workers.