Civil Penalty Under UK Immigration Act

Under Section 15 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, all organisations in the UK must carry out Right to Work checks on employees to ensure that they have permission to work in the UK. Immigration Enforcement also have the power to publish your business details to deter other businesses from employing illegal workers. At Sky Solicitors our expert team will assist you to minimise the damage caused by a Civil Penalty Notice.

Civil Penalty Notices are designed to protect the UK’s labour market by penalising those employers who contravene UK immigration laws by employing illegal migrants. Employers exploit illegal workers, by paying them poorly. The Civil Penalty regime is also in place to penalise those employers who have failed to carry out right to work checks on employees, thereby inadvertently employing illegal worker.

Business owners who receive a Civil Penalty Notice, are given a period of 28 days to respond to the Notice. You have three options: Make representations against the Civil Penalty; You can accept the fine and we can request the Home Office to set up an instalment plan, allowing you to pay the fees in full; Or you can accept the penalty and pay the fine in full A notice can be challenged on several grounds: Employer has a ‘statutory excuse’- i.e. the employer carried out Right to Work checks on the employee; The employer reported the illegal workers in the Notice to the Home Office; Mitigating factors were not considered by the Home Office, such as no previous breach of sponsor licence; The people named in the notice do not work for the employer; The Home Office acted outside its powers; To find out more about how we can assist you with the Civil Penalty Notice, please contact our offices on 0044 (0) 208 555 8288 or complete our Online enquiry form to make an appointment.

Your UK Citizenship application must be duly certified by at least two referees, undersigning to validate that you have provided the correct details. Your referees must be one with professional background. The referees must be well acquainted with you for at least three years, but they must not be related to you in any way. Moreover, your referees should also satisfy the good character requirements and not have violated any law in the last ten years. One of the referees must be a British citizen.

In both cases, you reserve the right to work, study and live in the United Kingdom without any immigration restrictions. Nevertheless, you should know the significant differences between naturalisation UK and ILR mentioned herein. British Citizenship With British Citizenship / Nationality, you can enjoy the full rights of a UK citizen. You can leave and enter the UK without any immigration restrictions or control. Moreover, you don’t have to abide by the 180-day absence rule, which implies that your period of absence from the UK will not affect your immigration status. Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) You are granted Indefinite Leave to Remain after your qualifying period under strict Home Office rules and regulations. With ILR, you can access public funds, including government bursaries, state pensions, etc. Likewise, you can enter and return to the UK without needing to apply for any immigration visa. ILR grant is a penultimate step towards getting naturalisation as a UK citizen. Nonetheless, you are not allowed to remain absent from the UK for more than 2-years or else your ILR status will lapse.

If you are a holder of dual nationality (citizen of another country), you can renounce your UK citizenship by naturalisation status. Nonetheless, you may not need to give up your British nationality if you wish to register as a citizen of another country that allows dual Citizenship. However, if you are willing to give up your British citizenship, for instance, to become national of any other country that does not allow British Citizenship. You will receive a ‘declaration of renunciation’ once your request is approved. While this may affect your UK naturalisation, other family members can retain their UK citizenship as British nationals. Please keep in mind, that you must be: at least 18 years old meet the ‘sound mind’ requirements (be legally considered to make your own decisions) Apply for resumption if you have changed your mind and want to resume your British nationality status. It is crucial to keep in mind while ‘resuming’ your Citizenship in the UK that you continue to satisfy the good character requirements per Home office Policy to reclaim your citizenship status in the UK.

You may apply for UK citizenship/naturalisation by descent if: You were born (outside the UK/ abroad). Your grandfather was a British born employed in crown service. Please bear in mind that you will not ‘automatically’ acquire nationality by descent in the UK if your parents were British Citizens.

Stages to apply for UK Citizenship by refugee status With the announcement of Borders, Citizenship and Immigration act 2009, there are three stages for refugees to acquire permanent residence and UK naturalisation (Citizenship), and these include: Stage-1: Securing Temporary residence status (five years). Stage-2: Probationary Citizenship (One to three years). This stage requires: passing the UK Citizenship Test/Life in the UK. satisfying ‘good character’ requirements. Stage-3: Getting full Citizenship (naturalisation) or Indefinite status.

Generally, the average processing time for a UK Citizenship application is within three to six weeks or even longer, depending on the complexity of your case. Interestingly, you are free to travel abroad while your UK Citizenship application is still in the process. Although the online tracking system is not available, you may stay in contact with the UKVI via email or a call to inquire about your status.

Citizenship UK by Birth You would be British by birth if you were born in the United Kingdom prior to 1 January 1983, however if you were born after 1 January 1983, you would only be British if one of your parents was British or hold an Indefinite Leave to remain at the time of your Birth. Citizenship UK by Descent If you are born outside the UK to a British parent you will be British by descent but will require registration as a British Citizen.