Migrants have differing rights to residency or indefinite leave to remain, depending on their immigration status in the UK. Migrant workers are entitled under immigration policy to apply for indefinite leave to remain after four years of work permit status, or if they have joined the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP).

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Migrants have differing rights to residency or indefinite leave to remain, depending on their immigration status in the UK. Migrant workers are entitled under immigration policy to apply for indefinite leave to remain after four years of work permit status, or if they have joined the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP). The four years may be calculated by adding leave to remain on work permits, to time spent on permits under the HSMP, so two years spent with each type of status would qualify them for indefinite leave to remain.[1] Refugees are entitled to indefinite leave to remain on recognition of Refugee status. Persons with discretionary protection statuses are not entitled to indefinite leave to remain when such status is granted: people with humanitarian protection (HP) may apply for indefinite leave to remain after three years, whereas those with discretionary leave (DL) may only apply after six years with this type of status. Migrant workers and their families will normally be given leave to enter the UK on the condition that they will maintain and accommodate themselves without recourse to public funds. Public funds include: income support; job seekers allowance; council tax benefit and child benefit.

Local authorities do not have a duty to house migrants who may be excluded from this duty if considered to be ‘subject to immigration control’ defined in section 13(2) of the Asylum and Immigration Act (1996) as a person who requires leave to enter or remain in the UK. The 1996 Act, under section 11, also allows the Secretary of State to exclude asylum seekers from a number of welfare benefits. Asylum seekers are subject to separate provision of support, provided by vouchers redeemable for cash. Prior to this asylum seekers were only entitled to vouchers which could be spent in specified supermarkets and shops. They must register with NASS to receive such benefits, when they make their application the Immigration Officer refers their case to NASS. Section 55, of the 2002 Act states that if the claim is not made ‘as soon as reasonably practicable’ the Immigration Officer may refuse support. Although the operation of the provision was successfully challenged in the Courts (see 8.1 – Fundamental rights).

The Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act (2002), under section 16, put in place a system of accommodation and detention centres. The accommodation centres are to provide housing and support to the destitute, defined under the act as those without accommodation or food and other essential items. Insufficient places in accommodation centres exist for all asylum seekers to be housed in this manner, a number of others may be disbursed by the NASS to accommodation anywhere in the country on a no-choice basis.

Refugees are entitled to the same benefits, and education as nationals of the UK. However for asylum seekers the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act (2002) provides in section 36, that children resident in accommodation centres will not be admitted to local schools, they will instead be educated in the accommodation centres themselves.

[1] These policies are published on the Home Office UK Border Agency

Analysis provided by: Anisa Niaz LLM (Public Law), United Kingdom.

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