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Mid-year fee increases for immigration and nationality |
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09 September 2010
The UK Border Agency has today announced proposals to increase immigration and nationality application fees for all those applying to visit, study, work or stay in the UK from autumn 2010.
In line with broader announcements about reductions to public spending, the agency has considered how best to meet budgetary pressures, and the proposals for in-year fees increase will help to offset some of these pressures (alongside efficiency savings).
Regulations to set application fees at or below the cost of processing are subject to the negative parliamentary procedure, and these fees will increase from 1 October 2010. Where a fee is charged that is set above the cost of processing, the regulations are subject to the affirmative parliamentary process; these fees are due to come into effect in November, subject to parliamentary timetabling.
The date when the increased fees will come into effect will be published on the UKBA website nearer the time.
The UK Border Agency believes that the proposals to increase fees continue to strike the right balance between maintaining secure and effective border controls and ensuring that our fees structure does not inhibit the UK's ability to attract migrants and visitors who make a valued contribution. This will help to support the immigration system, maintain public confidence and ensure that migration is managed for the benefit of the UK.
Details of the proposed fees are set out in a written ministerial statement by Immigration Minister Damian Green. You can find the statement, and assessments of the new fees' likely impact, in UKBA's Fees for our services section. |
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Immigration crime team in Scotland marks out some important changes |
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The regional director in Scotland and Northern Ireland Phil Taylor has been explaining how changes to the organisation of the immigration crime team at Stranraer will mean work to uncover illegal immigrants at the port will continue to be carried out.
Phil Taylor said:
'The UK Border Agency will continue to support Dumfries & Galloway Police in immigration-related crime investigations, with UK Border Agency officers working at the Galloway ports to assist in appropriate operations.
'The identification of any illegal immigrants using the Galloway ports will move to Northern Ireland, where UK Border Agency staff will replicate the work that they already do at the airports in Northern Ireland. We have a more substantial resource there which is more conveniently located to service the ports and enable the agency to be more operationally effective |
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Bhutanese refugees arrive in UK |
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11 August 2010
The UK Border Agency is today welcoming 37 Bhutanese refugees into the UK.
The move follows the agreement under the Gateway Protection Programme for the UK to take 750 refugees from a number of different locations in 2010-11. This includes an eventual total of 100 Bhutanese refugees who have been living in Nepalese refugee camps since 1992 or 1993, with no prospect of local integration in Nepal or repatriation to Bhutan. It is the first time that the UK has resettled Bhutanese refugees.
The UK Border Agency sent a resettlement mission team to Nepal in May to interview refugees. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has also assessed the refugees' needs and the most appropriate country for their resettlement. So far, 32,000 Bhutanese refugees have left the camps for eight Western countries, with most going to the USA.
The Gateway Protection Programme is operated by the UK Border Agency in partnership with UNHCR. The programme is a legal route for particularly vulnerable refugees to reach safety without being driven into the hands of people traffickers, and shows the UK's commitment to providing a safe haven for people escaping torture or death. Our Gateway Protection Programme page contains more information.
The UK has resettled 2,690 refugees since the programme began in 2004, including Liberian refugees from Sierra Leone, Congolese refugees from Tanzania, Zambia and Uganda, and Iraqi refugees from Jordan. |
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Illegal immigrant crackdown |
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A Chinese man who tried to avoid arrest by running into the sea in Torquay last week was deported on Wednesday 18 August.
The 39-year-old was attending Torquay police station last week as part of his immigration bail conditions. When he realised he was about to be detained by officers from the UK Border Agency he made a dash for freedom.
He ran through the streets of the city pursued by police officers before entering the sea fully clothed.
He was later hauled on to a boat, arrested and put in immigration detention, while a seat on a flight to Shanghai could be booked.
The man, who was refused asylum in the UK, put in a last ditch legal challenge to avoid removal which was rejected by the courts.
Richard Taylor, Chief Immigration Officer for the UK Border Agency in Plymouth said:
'I want the thousands of holidaymakers who witnessed this incident to know what happened next.
'It can sometimes be quite challenging to deport illegal foreign nationals from the UK but, as this case shows, we are determined to remove people who are not entitled to be here.
'This man abused our hospitality by failing to leave the country after his claim for protection was rejected by the Home Office and by the independent courts. He also worked here without permission. It's only right that he should be returned to China.'
The individual was caught working illegally at the Golden Kitchen on Preston Down in Paignton in August 2008.
Damian Green, the Immigration Minister, said:
'The government has tasked the UK Border Agency with carrying out an intense period of enforcement activity over the summer. We are determined to make it harder than ever for illegal immigrants to come to the UK.
'Illegal immigration puts pressure on public services, local communities and legitimate businesses at a time when this country cannot afford it.
'That's why the UK Border Agency is working to put a stop to illegal employment, sham marriages, bogus colleges and organised traffickers, being used by foreign nationals to try and stay in the UK illegally.' |
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Government's response to media reports on immigration hearings |
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02 August 2010
Following the recent media reports on Immigration hearings, Immigration Minister Damian Green has made the following statement.
Immigration Minister Damian Green said:
'Public protection and harm reduction will remain the UK Border Agency's primary consideration when deciding on operational issues.
'Our appeal process is designed so that many appeals should be and are determined on the documentary evidence without a need for representation.
'I made clear when I launched the Asylum Improvement Project today, the Government is committed to improving the immigration system so we target our resources more effectively - including in court.
'As part of this, we must focus our resources on defending the right cases in court. This is why we represent in over 90% of asylum, bail, deportations and high harm cases and why Team Managers carefully scrutinise and identify suitable cases to proceed without representation.' |
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