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Immigration

Answer

Prior to the implementation of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, legislation to prevent illegal migrant working was in place in the form of Section 8 of the Asylum and Nationality Act 1996. This placeda requirement on employers to check and record certain specified documents before a potential employee is employed, if the employer wanted to establish a statutory defence from prosecution for employing an illegal migrant worker. The Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 has, since it came into force on 29 February 2008, allowed the UK Border Agency to instead issue civil penalties of up to £10,000 per worker to employers who are found to be liable for employing illegal migrant workers. This is combined with the introduction of a new criminal offence of knowingly employing an illegal migrant worker (under Section 21 of the 2006 Act). This will help in the more serious cases where rogue employers knowingly and deliberately use illegal migrant workers, often for personal financial gain. This will carry a maximum two year custodial sentence and/or an unlimited fine. The Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 does not apply retrospectively; therefore, any employer who is found to have been employing a person illegally prior to 29 February 2008 (when the 2006 Act came into force) may still risk prosecution under Section 8 of the 1996 Act. To comply with the requirements of the 2006 Act, which would apply to employees who started work since 29 February 2008, an employer would have to satisfy themselves of the entitlement of prospective employees to work in the UK to ensure they are not employing an illegal migrant worker before the employment begins.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

712 c136-7WA; 4356

Session

2008-09

Subjects

Employment Undocumented migrants Migrants

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk