There is no written constitutional right to freedom of movement in the UK for citizens although this right is protected by common law. Migrants, such as persons with refugee status and other long term forms of status such as exceptional leave to remain and indefinite leave to remain, are able to freely the move within the country, as this right is not restricted to them by law.

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There is no written constitutional right to freedom of movement in the UK for citizens although this right is protected by common law. Migrants, such as persons with refugee status and other long term forms of status such as exceptional leave to remain and indefinite leave to remain, are able to freely the move within the country, as this right is not restricted to them by law. The free movement of other persons who do not have long-term legal status in the UK may in practice be restricted. For example migrant workers may to some extent be restricted in their movement by the necessity to be sponsored by an employer, each work permit granted to them is non-transferable and specific to a particular employer, changing jobs, and consequently their area of residence may therefore be made difficult by this condition although workers may easily be transferred within firms to other UK locations. In order for migrant workers with work permits to move to different areas of the country they would have to first seek new employment and sponsorship from an employer in the new area. Individuals who are taking part in the Highly Skilled Migrant Workers Programme are allowed more flexibility as to their place of employment, they make their application for entry independently and for the purposes of renewal need only provide evidence of earnings and economic activity.

Asylum seekers are restricted in their movements by the dispersal system whereby people are dispersed to areas of the country to reside where housing and other facilities are provided for them. Persons are provided with accommodation on a no-choice basis by the National Asylum Support Service (NASS). Criteria considered when allocating housing include the ‘cluster policy’ that is the presence of community from the same country of origin. Asylum seekers may also be housed in accommodation centres by NASS, they are expected to stay in the accommodation provided during the processing of their claim. They will also be required to report to the Immigration and Nationality Directorate throughout the processing of their application, which may further restrict their movement. The Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002, under section 43 allows the Home Secretary to limit the provision of support outside allocated accommodation. Therefore for those provided with accommodation, for example in accommodation centres (see 8.2 – Immigration law and policy) it may be difficult to access support if they do not reside in their allocated place of residence. The 2002 Act also allows residence restrictions, under section 23(1) to be imposed on asylum seekers requiring them to reside in accommodation centres.

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

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