New Starter Checklist for UK Employers: What to Collect and Give
Before a new employee's first payday, you need a few things from them and they need a few things from you. Most of it is the same across the UK. A few points, such as criminal record checks and the written statement, differ between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or between England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Here is the list, split into what you collect and what you hand over. It covers employees. For contractors and freelancers, see our contractor onboarding checklist and the guide to IR35 and off-payroll working.
Collect from them
Proof of the right to work, before day one
You must check that someone is allowed to work in the UK before you employ them. This is UK-wide. There are three ways to do it:
- an online check with the share code they get from GOV.UK
- a manual check of their original documents, with them present
- a check through an identity service provider using identity document validation technology
British and Irish citizens can't get a share code, so you check their original passport or passport card, or use an identity service provider. Record the date of the check, and keep copies during the employment and for 2 years after it ends.
If you employ someone who isn't allowed to work and you didn't do a correct check, the civil penalty is up to £60,000 for each illegal worker. More in our guide to right to work checks in the UK.
P45 or starter checklist
You need their tax details to set them up on payroll. HMRC asks for their date of birth, gender, full address and start date, plus the details on their P45 from their last job: leaving date, pay and tax to date this tax year, tax code, National Insurance number and whether they repay a student loan.
If they don't have a P45, they fill in HMRC's starter checklist instead. It replaced the P46. You can ask for it even if they have a P45, for example when they have a second job or a student loan. Keep this information for the current tax year and the 3 tax years after it.
National Insurance number
Usually it is on the P45 or the starter checklist. Someone who doesn't have one yet can still start work if they can prove their right to work in the UK.
Bank details
To pay into their account, you need the account name, the 6-digit sort code and the 8-digit account number.
Emergency contact
No law requires one, but you want a name, how they are related, and a phone number before anything happens at work.
A criminal record check, where the role needs one
Most roles don't need one. Where a role does, such as healthcare or work with children, the check depends on where you are:
| Where | Who runs it |
|---|---|
| England and Wales | The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) |
| Scotland | Disclosure Scotland |
| Northern Ireland | AccessNI |
A DBS check comes at four levels: basic, standard, enhanced, and enhanced with barred lists. A basic check shows unspent convictions. The more detailed checks are only for certain roles. A DBS certificate has no official expiry date: you decide when a new check is needed. Our guide to DBS checks for employers covers which level fits which role.
Give to them
Written statement of employment particulars
In Great Britain, employees and workers get a written statement in two parts:
| Part | When | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Principal statement | On the first day of employment | Your name, their name, job title, start date, pay and how often, hours and days, holiday, where they work, how long the job lasts, probation, other benefits, required training |
| Sick pay, other paid leave and notice | Also on day one | Can be in the principal statement or a separate document they can reasonably get to |
| Wider written statement | Within 2 months of starting | Pensions, collective agreements, other training, disciplinary and grievance procedures |
Northern Ireland has its own employment law. There, an employee employed for more than one month is entitled to a written statement within two months of starting work.
Payslips
Employees and workers get a payslip on or before payday. It shows pay before and after deductions, the amount of each deduction that changes from one payday to the next, and the hours worked if their pay varies with time worked.
Workplace pension and the enrolment letter
Automatic enrolment applies across the UK. You assess each new starter's age and pay. Anyone aged 22 up to State Pension age who earns over £10,000 a year (£833 a month or £192 a week) must be put into a pension, and you and they both contribute.
You enrol them and write to them within six weeks of the day they meet the age and earnings criteria. The letter tells them how automatic enrolment applies to them. Staff aged 16 to 74 who earn at least £520 a month (£120 a week) and ask to join must be enrolled within a month of asking.
Health and safety information
If you employ anyone in Great Britain, you either display the health and safety law poster where workers can easily read it, or give each worker the equivalent leaflet. Northern Ireland has its own version of the poster and pocket card.
Beyond the poster, HSE asks you to give new starters an induction and the information, instruction and training they need for the risks of the job. HSE notes that workers are as likely to have an accident in their first 6 months at work as during the rest of their working life.
Employer's liability insurance
You need employer's liability insurance from the moment you become an employer, with cover of at least £5 million from an authorised insurer. Display the certificate where employees can get to it, which can be on your intranet or website. The fine is £2,500 for every day you aren't properly insured, and £1,000 for not displaying the certificate. There is an exemption if you only employ close family members.
Tell HMRC
You must tell HMRC about a new employee on or before their first payday, by including them on a Full Payment Submission from your payroll software. Your payroll provider usually does this.
The Employment Rights Act 2025
The Employment Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025. Its changes come in over several years, through separate regulations. As of November 2026, two points matter for onboarding:
- Statutory Sick Pay. Since 6 April 2026, SSP is payable from the first day of sickness, with no waiting days and no lower earnings limit. A new starter who is off sick in their first week can be due it.
- A statement of the right to join a trade union. This new duty is intended to come into force on 1 January 2027. New workers will get a standard government statement at the same time as their written statement. It is not in force yet.
Other changes in the Act have later dates or are still to be set. Check the current position before you rewrite your contracts.
Not legal advice
This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change and some differ between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, so check GOV.UK, Acas or nidirect for your situation.
What WorkZerk does and doesn't do
WorkZerk gets the paperwork to you. Each new starter opens one private link on their phone, with no account or password, and fills in what you ask for.
The Staff onboarding (United Kingdom) starter pack asks for:
- Proof of your right to work, uploaded, with a link to GOV.UK's prove your right to work page.
- Emergency contact, saved to their contact record.
- DBS certificate, optional, for roles that need one.
- P45 or starter checklist, uploaded, with a link to HMRC's starter checklist.
- National Insurance number, saved to their contact record.
- Bank account for your pay: account name, sort code and account number.
Right to work documents, DBS certificates, the P45 or starter checklist, the National Insurance number and the account number arrive marked sensitive: stored encrypted, masked for your team, viewable only by admins, and every view is logged.
What it does not do: WorkZerk doesn't run payroll, report to HMRC, enrol anyone in a pension, or apply for DBS checks. It doesn't do the Home Office right to work check either. A photo of a passport is not a right to work check. You still do the online share code check, check the original documents with the person present, or use an identity service provider, and record the date.
Setting it up in WorkZerk
1. Turn on two-factor authentication
Asking people to upload documents needs two-factor authentication on your account. Set it up under Account, then Two-factor authentication (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab).
2. Add the UK staff pack
Open Requests (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab), click Request packs, and open Start from a template. Pick United Kingdom and click Add this pack on Staff onboarding (United Kingdom). It becomes an ordinary pack of your own that you can edit.
If none of your roles needs a criminal record check, delete the DBS certificate ask.
3. Add the written statement
If the written statement is a PDF, add a Sign PDF request so they sign it in their portal. For a handbook or policy they need to accept, add it to your Terms library and add a Terms request to the pack. Each acceptance records the exact version and the time.
4. Hand over the health and safety information
Attach the HSE leaflet, your induction notes or a safety video to a request, and ask them to confirm they have read or watched it. Files everyone on the portal should have, such as your employer's liability certificate, can go in Portal files.
5. Limit role-specific asks
Put asks that only some roles need in a section limited to those people, so everyone else never sees them. The staff onboarding walkthrough shows how.
6. Create a portal and add your starters
Open Portals (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab), click New portal, and add your pack to its Requests panel. Add each new starter and send them their link. Send it early enough to finish the right to work check before their first day.
7. Review and approve
Uploads wait under Needs review on Requests (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab). Check each one, approve it, and copy what payroll needs into your payroll software. See Reviewing uploads.
8. Set a retention period
Sensitive answers are kept until you delete them. In Profile (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab), the Sensitive information card can delete them automatically 30 days to 7 years after a portal closes. Keep the 2-year right to work rule and HMRC's record rules in mind before you choose.
9. Track who is cleared
The Document compliance report shows who has sent their DBS certificate and other documents across every portal.
Getting started
Start a free WorkZerk trial at workzerk.com, then work through the steps above. The getting started guide walks through a first portal end to end, or email us at [email protected].