• Right to Work in the UK and the Republic of Ireland

    We aim to make applying to roles across The Open University as easy as possible.​

    We welcome all applicants, regardless of nationality, however we have a legal responsibility to ensure that all our workers and employees have the legal right to live and work in the UK and Republic of Ireland (RoI).

Obtaining a visa

If you are subject to UK immigration control, you will require a visa to work in the UK. Obtaining an appropriate visa will provide you with the time-limited right to work in the UK. With sponsorship from a UK employer and a granted permission to stay in the UK by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), you can have peace of mind during your employment with the OU - Check if you need a visa to work in the UK >

If you are successful in your application and need a visa to support your employment with the university, full instructions will be provided in supporting your sponsored employment under the Skilled Worker or Temporary Worker route.

The People Services Immigration Compliance Team will provide a Certificate of Sponsorship with support on how to apply for a visa under Skilled Worker or Temporary Worker routes.  The Open University holds the Highly Trusted ‘A’ rated status with the UKVI so you will not be required to certify the maintenance requirement for your sponsored visa application.

Proof of UK or Republic of Ireland residency and right to work​

The Open University is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all backgrounds and nationalities. Our work is carried out across the UK and the Republic of Ireland, so you’ll need to be a resident of Wales, Scotland, England, Northern Ireland, or the Republic of Ireland in order to work with us. ​

​Each employee or worker has a contractual place of work and would be expected to travel to that location to meet business needs. Travel expense to your contractual place of work would not be reimbursed.  Applications from overseas candidates are therefore permitted provided the candidate intends to relocate. Any offer of employment will be made subject to proof of UK or Republic of Ireland residency.​

​If you are offered a role with the university, you will be asked to provide evidence of your right to work in the UK, as part of the pre-employment screening process. This check must take place before you are permitted to start your employment with us. ​

There are three options available:​

Option A – A manual check of your original documentation if you hold British/Irish nationality​

Option B -  An online check using an identity service provider if you hold British/Irish nationality​

Option C - You will be asked to provide a Home Office share code for an online check if you’re a non-British/Irish national​

If you are a British or Irish citizen you will be asked to bring with you an original document that provides evidence of your right to work in the UK, such as a passport (Option A).​

For those who hold a physical document that can only be checked manually, this must be one or a combination of original documents from the list of acceptable documents produced by the Home Office.Please note, a UK driving licence is not a valid document for a right to work check. A copy of the original document will be taken, checked, signed and dated by the member of staff.​

If you hold a UK immigration status by visa status (settled or pre-settled), gained through the EU Settlement Scheme, or you hold Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), you will be asked to provide us with a share code so that we can review your right to work status using the UKVI online portal. You can obtain a share code by visiting the GOV.UK webpage Prove your right to work to an employer: Overview - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).