Section 24B: Illegal working, Immigration Act 1971

A person ("P") who is subject to immigration control commits an offence if—

P works at a time when P is disqualified from working by reason of P's immigration status, and

at that time P knows or has reasonable cause to believe that P is disqualified from working by reason of P's immigration status.

For the purposes of subsection (1) a person is disqualified from working by reason of the person's immigration status if—

the person has not been granted leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom, or

the person's leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom—

is invalid,

has ceased to have effect (whether by reason of curtailment, revocation, cancellation, passage of time or otherwise), or

is subject to a condition preventing the person from doing work of that kind.

A person who is guilty of an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction—

in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 51 weeks or a fine, or both,

in Scotland or Northern Ireland, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, or both.

In relation to an offence committed before section 281(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 comes into force, the reference in subsection (3)(a) to 51 weeks is to be read as a reference to 6 months.

If a person is convicted of an offence under subsection (1) in England and Wales, the prosecutor must consider whether to ask the court to commit the person to the Crown Court under section 70 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (committal with view to confiscation order being considered).

If a person is convicted of an offence under subsection (1) in Scotland, the prosecutor must consider whether to ask the court to act under section 92 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (making of confiscation order).

If a person is convicted of an offence under subsection (1) in Northern Ireland, the prosecutor must consider whether to ask the court to commit the person to the Crown Court under section 218 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (committal with view to confiscation order being considered).

The reference in subsection (1) to a person who is subject to immigration control is to a person who under this Act requires leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom.

Where a person is on immigration bail within the meaning of Part 1 of Schedule 10 to the Immigration Act 2016—

the person is to be treated for the purposes of subsection (2) as if the person had been granted leave to enter the United Kingdom, but

any condition as to the person's work in the United Kingdom to which the person's immigration bail is subject is to be treated for those purposes as a condition of leave.

The reference in subsection (1) to a person working is to that person working—

under a contract of employment,

under a contract of apprenticeship,

under a contract personally to do work,

under or for the purposes of a contract for services,

for a purpose related to a contract to sell goods,

as a constable,

in the course of Crown employment,

as a relevant member of the House of Commons staff, or

as a relevant member of the House of Lords staff.

In subsection (10)—

"contract to sell goods" means a contract by which a person acting in the course of a trade, business, craft or profession transfers or agrees to transfer the property in goods to another person (and for this purpose "goods" means any tangible moveable items);
"Crown employment"—
(a)in relation to England and Wales and Scotland, has the meaning given by section 191(3) of the Employment Rights Act 1996;
(b)in relation to Northern Ireland, has the meaning given by Article 236(3) of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 (SI 1996/1919 (NI 16));
"relevant member of the House of Commons staff" has the meaning given by section 195(5) of the Employment Rights Act 1996;
"relevant member of the House of Lords staff" has the meaning given by section 194(6) of the Employment Rights Act 1996.

Subsection (1) does not apply to—

service as a member of the naval, military or air forces of the Crown, or

employment by an association established for the purposes of Part 11 of the Reserve Forces Act 1996.

In this section "contract" means a contract whether express or implied and, if express, whether oral or in writing.

Section 24B: Illegal working

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