Glossary · UK
What is Key Information Document (KID)?
A document agencies must give temporary workers before agreeing terms, showing pay, deductions and take-home pay.
Full Definition
A Key Information Document (KID) is a document that UK employment businesses and recruitment agencies have been legally required to provide to work-seekers since 6 April 2020, before agreeing terms for a temporary assignment. It sets out, in a single standardised format, the type of contract the worker will be engaged under (contract for services, umbrella contract of employment, or a pay-as-you-earn contract of employment via the agency itself), the minimum expected rate of pay, who will actually pay the worker (which matters when an umbrella company sits between the agency and the worker), and an illustrative example of take-home pay after any deductions -- including the umbrella company's margin, employer National Insurance, and the Apprenticeship Levy where relevant, all of which are deducted from the assignment rate before the worker's taxable pay is calculated. The aim of the KID is to make the true cost of using an intermediary and the real take-home pay transparent before a worker commits to an assignment, since pay slips alone historically made it difficult for agency and umbrella workers to see how the headline "rate to the agency" turned into the wage that actually reached their bank account. A KID is required for every work-seeker registering with an employment business, is specific to the individual (not a generic template), and must be reissued if the terms materially change. Failure to provide a compliant KID is a breach of the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 (as amended), enforceable by the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate, and from the launch of the Fair Work Agency, by that body as well.