Do Psychology Practices Need to Carry Out Right to Work Checks on Associates?

Many psychology practices and consultancies build their business around a trusted network of associate psychologists, therapists and coaches. It is a flexible model that allows organisations to scale services, access specialist expertise and respond to client demand without employing a large team directly. However, a recent change in immigration law means that some of these arrangements may now require greater scrutiny.

From 1 October 2026, the UK's illegal working regime was expanded by section 48 of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025. The change extends the scope of the existing rules beyond traditional employment relationships to include certain worker, subcontracting and service delivery arrangements, as well as certain online matching services that connect service providers with clients.

For psychology practices, therapy businesses and coaching consultancies, this raises an important question: do you need to carry out Right to Work checks on your associates?

First things first: don't panic

The good news is that these changes do not mean every self-employed associate automatically needs a Right to Work check.

A lot of the commentary surrounding these changes has suggested that businesses now need to check every contractor, freelancer or associate they work with. That is an oversimplification. The legislation is more nuanced than that.

The starting point is to understand that the law is concerned with the reality of the working arrangement, not simply the label attached to it. Calling somebody an "associate" or "self-employed" does not automatically place them inside or outside the regime.

Instead, businesses need to look at how services are actually delivered in practice. The expanded rules cover certain worker arrangements and individual subcontractors, as well as specified online matching services. This means that being genuinely self-employed does not, by itself, take an associate outside the regime. The contractual arrangements and how the services are delivered need to be considered against the statutory definitions.

Why psychology practices should pay attention

This issue is particularly relevant in the psychology sector because associate models are so common.

A typical arrangement might involve a practice securing work from a client and then allocating that work to one of its associates. The associate conducts the assessment, provides therapy, delivers coaching or undertakes another piece of client work on behalf of the practice.

In many cases, the end client may see the associate as simply being part of the practice's wider team. The practice remains responsible for the contract, invoices the client and oversees delivery of the service.

It is these types of arrangements that are most likely to warrant review under the new rules.

How can you tell whether you might be affected?

There is no single question that provides the answer.

Instead, consider the overall picture. Ask yourself:

• Does my practice win the work and then allocate it to individual practitioners?

• Are my associates providing services personally under contracts that I have secured?

• Do clients view those associates as part of my delivery team?

• Could the associate freely send another suitably qualified person in their place?

• Am I exercising a significant degree of control over how the work is delivered?

Where your practice has contracted to provide services to a client and engages an individual associate to deliver them, the arrangement should be assessed against the individual subcontractor provisions, regardless of whether the associate is described as self-employed.

This is particularly worth reviewing if you operate a large associate network or regularly provide services through public sector contracts, occupational health programmes, employee assistance programmes or local authority frameworks.

What about therapy matching services and directories?

Some businesses in the sector operate differently. Rather than securing contracts and allocating work, they match members of the public or organisations with independent therapists, who then contract with the client directly. These arrangements are addressed separately under the new rules.

The legislation brings “online matching services” within the illegal working regime. Broadly, a business will be an online matching service if, in the course of its business, it keeps a register of service providers for the purpose of matching them with potential clients, provides an online service through which clients can submit enquiries to be matched with a suitable provider, and charges a fee or commission for making those matches. Where a therapist enters into a contract with a client as a result of being matched, the matching service can be treated as the employer of that therapist for illegal working purposes, even though it is not a party to the therapy contract.

All three elements need to be present. A simple directory that publishes practitioner profiles without an enquiry and matching function, or that does not charge for making matches, may fall outside the definition. However, the position will depend on how the platform actually operates, including how it is paid, so businesses should not assume they are out of scope without reviewing their model.

If you operate a platform that refers clients to therapists, psychologists or coaches and earns a fee or commission from those referrals, you should consider whether Right to Work checks are needed when practitioners join your register. Practices that both deliver services through associates and run a referral or matching service may need to consider both sets of rules.

What should you do if the rules apply?

If, having reviewed your arrangements, you conclude that an associate falls within the expanded regime, the focus shifts to compliance. This matters: civil penalties for illegal working can reach £60,000 per illegal worker.

The first step is to ensure that an appropriate Right to Work check is completed before work begins. The Home Office recognises a number of methods, including online checks using a Home Office share code, manual document checks and digital identity checks carried out through a certified identity service provider (IDSP).

In some circumstances, the Home Office Employer Checking Service may also be required, for example where an individual has an outstanding immigration application and cannot demonstrate their right to work using the usual checking methods.

However, carrying out the check is only part of the process.

You will also need to maintain sufficient records to demonstrate that the check was completed correctly. If your business is ever challenged by the Home Office, you may be required to show what was checked, when it was checked and the evidence that was relied upon. The purpose of retaining these records is to establish what is known as a "statutory excuse", which can provide protection against civil penalties where checks have been undertaken correctly.

For individuals who have time-limited immigration permission, you may also need a process for conducting follow-up checks before that permission expires. A one-off check at the start of the relationship may not always be sufficient.

This is about more than just Right to Work checks

For many psychology practices, the bigger issue is not the check itself but the surrounding processes.

Now is a sensible time to review associate agreements, onboarding procedures and compliance documentation.

For example, do your contracts clearly explain whether associates can appoint substitutes? If they can, who is responsible for checking the substitute's right to work? What evidence must be provided before that person can begin working?

Similarly, does your onboarding process capture the information you need to make an informed assessment about compliance obligations? Is there a clear process for documenting decisions and retaining evidence?

Many practices will find they already have most of the building blocks in place. The challenge is ensuring that those systems are updated to reflect the new requirements.

Don't forget about data protection

Where Right to Work checks are required, organisations will inevitably process additional personal data.

This may include passports, immigration documents, visa information and online verification records. As with any other personal data, these records need to be collected lawfully, stored securely and retained only for as long as necessary.

Practices should therefore ensure that their privacy information, retention schedules and internal procedures adequately cover this processing activity.

To maintain a statutory excuse, businesses must generally retain the required right to work check evidence for the duration of the working relationship and for two years afterwards, before securely destroying it.

Practices should also ensure that checks are carried out consistently and without discrimination based on nationality, ethnicity or assumptions about immigration status.

The bottom line

The October 2026 changes do not mean that every associate psychologist, therapist or coach requires a Right to Work check. However, they do mean that psychology practices can no longer assume that Right to Work obligations are relevant only to employees.

If your organisation engages individuals to personally deliver services under contracts that you have secured, now is the time to review your arrangements. Understanding how your associate model operates in practice, updating contracts where necessary and putting appropriate onboarding processes in place will help ensure you remain compliant while continuing to benefit from the flexibility that associate delivery models can offer.

For most practices, this should be viewed as a governance and risk-management exercise rather than a cause for alarm. Taking the time to review your arrangements now is likely to be far easier than dealing with compliance questions after the event.

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