Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an assessment of a) the levels of incorrect Negative Verification Notices being issued in cases where the Employer Checking Service database has not updated in time to reflect an applicant's Section 3C status and b) the potential impact of this on employees.

All requests made to the Employer Checking Service (ECS) that could result in a Negative Verification Notice are checked and approved before issue. Where an employer believes that a Negative Verification Notice has been incorrectly issued, they should contact ECS to challenge the decision and a Positive Verification Notice will be issued if appropriate.