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Checks for staff who have lived or worked overseas

You must make 'appropriate' further checks on staff who have lived or worked outside the UK. Find out how to mitigate risk early on in the process, assess risks with your candidates and what 'appropriate' further checks you can carry out.

Last reviewed on 21 May 2026See updates
School types: All•School phases: All•Ref: 4729
Contents
  1. Make 'appropriate' further checks
  2. Before you decide on additional checks, make sure your recruitment process is robust
  3. How to decide whether you need additional checks
  4. What additional checks could be appropriate (and how to do them)
  5. If you're still not confident after additional checks ...

Make 'appropriate' further checks

You must carry out the typical required pre-employment checks for all candidates, including an enhanced DBS certificate and separate barred list check if they'll be engaging in regulated activity, even if the individual has never been to the UK.

If the candidate has lived or worked outside the UK, you must also make any further checks that you consider 'appropriate'.

These checks can help you consider any relevant events outside of the UK that would affect their suitability for employment.

Follow the same approach no matter which country the applicant has lived or worked in. It doesn't matter if they're from a country in the European Economic Area (EEA) or the rest of the world.

Below, we explain how to decide whether you need to conduct additional checks. The guidance below is based on advice from safeguarding experts