The Illegal Migration Act 2023 came into force on 20th July 2023, it sets out to punish certain people depending on the manner of entry into the United Kingdom. New legislation aims to discourage people from arriving in the UK by small boat to claim asylum. However there are ways in which it impacts on non-asylum cases, for example where a person is found to have entered the UK using deception and is then left without leave. This can have serious consequences including a possible lifetime ban on leave or citizenship.
The Law Society commented that although the Illegal Migration Act 2023 has now become law, the Society will be continuing to campaign against it, due to its unworkability and incompatibility with the UK’s international obligations.
The Law Society president, Lubna Shuja, has provided: ‘We have been clear from the start that this legislation threatens to undermine the rule of law and access to justice. Whilst the Act will soon come into force on paper, it will be unworkable in practice because it doesn’t provide solutions to the asylum backlog, and there isn’t capacity in the legal aid sector to provide the immigration advice needed.’
If you feel that the new legislation will affect your immigration case, please call us to discuss your case further.
