Landlords and employers risk higher penalties for failing to check for illegal migrants



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Charles Hymas
Fri, August 4, 2023 at 3:51 PM EDT










Dozens of migrants reached the UK by small boat on Friday, the first to arrive in August after bad weather halted Channel crossings for more than a week - Gareth Fuller/PA



Landlords and employers face a huge increase in fines for failing to check for illegal migrants as part of a series of announcements next week to tackle the small boats crisis.

The penalties for landlords could increase five-fold to a maximum of £15,000 per migrant under the plans being considered by Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, and Robert Jenrick, the Immigration Minister.

Fines for employers may increase two-fold to £40,000.

The moves are part of a toughening in enforcement against illegal migrants in the black economy which is seen as a key “pull factor” in the surge in Channel crossings.

The number of raids on illegal workers has increased by 50 per cent this year in key sectors such as construction, car washes and gig economy businesses.

Recent estimates suggest there are between 800,000 and 1.2 million illegal migrants in the UK, a larger proportion of the population than in comparable countries such as France, Spain, Switzerland and Portugal, where there are more routes to regularisation.

Next week’s focus by ministers on illegal migration will also seek to exploit the issue as a dividing line between Tories and Labour, even if the Government fails to get flights to Rwanda going. The Supreme Court is set to rule by the end of the year on whether the policy of deporting asylum seekers is lawful.

The government’s efforts are expected to include a pledge to crack down on corrupt lawyers who exploit asylum seekers to make bogus claims in exchange for thousands of pounds.

Alex Chalk, the Justice Secretary, is expected to unveil proposals to tackle the problem after an expose uncovered lawyers faking applications in exchange for £10,000.

Last week the Prime Minister politicised the revelations, accusing Labour of being on “the same side” as “deceptive lawyers” because the party opposed the Illegal Migration Act - his flagship legislation to tackle the small boats crisis.

On Friday regulators launched a review that could increase the financial penalties for corrupt lawyers from the current maximum of five per cent of a legal company’s turnover. The Legal Services Board said the current fines “may be insufficient to deter wilful and serious misconduct in some areas”.

Landlords can currently be liable for a fine of up to £3,000 if they or their letting agents fail to make adequate checks on the immigration status of tenants before they rent out a property. It is thought ministers are considering a five-fold increase.

Under current laws, companies found guilty of employing anyone who they knew or “had reasonable cause to believe” did not have a right to work in the UK can be jailed for up to five years and pay an unlimited fine.

Businesses can also face financial civil penalties of up to £20,000 per person they employed who did not have the right to work in the UK and they did not do the correct checks or did not do them properly. It is understood ministers are looking at a doubling in the fines.

Ministers want to ensure that bosses are maintaining rigorous checks on the immigration status of their staff, many of whom are self-employed.

The Home Office has said it will use “every available power” to ensure “only those eligible can work, receive benefits or access public services”.

A taskforce - involving ministers and officials from the Home Office and departments of work and pensions, transport, education and health - has been set up to investigate how to update the right to work regulations to tackle the issue in the gig economy.

Dozens of migrants reached the UK by small boat on Friday - the first to arrive in August after bad weather halted Channel crossings for more than a week. A total of 14,782 people have crossed to the UK in 320 boats so far this year.


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