Written question asked by Andrew Rosindell (Conservative) on Wednesday, 15 February 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 27 February 2006. It was answered by Tony McNulty (Labour) on Monday, 27 February 2006 on behalf of the Home Office.

Illegal Workers

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what penalties are available against businesses which hire illegal workers; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: It is a criminal offence under section eight of the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 to employ someone over the age of 16 who is subject to immigration control and who has not been granted leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom or whose leave is not valid or subsisting or is subject to a condition precluding the employment. The sanction on conviction is a fine; the maximum penalty is £5,000 following summary conviction and an unlimited fine following conviction on indictment. In more serious cases involving the employment of illegal migrant workers, offences relating to the law on trafficking and facilitation which carry a maximum custodial sentence of 14 years imprisonment may also be relevant.Provisions in the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Bill, which is currently before Parliament, will replace section eight with a system of civil penalties for employers who employ illegal workers as a consequence of slipshod employment practices, and a more serious offence of knowingly employing an illegal worker, which carries a maximum custodial penalty of two years' imprisonment following conviction on indictment.

Secondary information