The purpose of the Act is to tackle illegal immigration by making it harder to live and work illegally in the United Kingdom. The intention behind the Act is that without access to work, illegal migrants will depart voluntarily, but where they do not, the Act contains other measures to support enforced removals. Therefore, the Act contains measures to tackle illegal working, enhance the enforcement of labour market rules, deny illegal migrants access to services including housing and banking, provide new powers for immigration officers, as well as other measures to improve the security and operation of the immigration system.
It is important to note that the Immigration Act 2016 replaces and amends several existing UK immigration legislation, such as the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 and the Immigration Act 1971.
The UK is one of the most successful multiracial democracies in the world; because of that, more people want to come over than ever before. With increased demand comes a growing number of people willing to disobey UK immigration controls and others who take advantage of vulnerable migrants by promising a better life but delivering the opposite. The Act establishes a immigration skills charge that certain employers will have to pay if they wish to bring certain workers into the country. The funds raised will be used to develop skills in the resident labour market. The Act will also ensure that all front-line, public-sector workers can speak fluent English.
The Act further restricts the support the UK gives to people whose claims for asylum have been unconfirmed, and their dependants, to those who are poor and face a genuine problem in leaving the UK. HM Government also simplified the basis on which local authorities in England can support migrants without immigration status, and will continue to meet all obligations towards asylum seekers, refugees and children.
The Act also makes it easier to remove people who shouldn’t be in the UK by introducing powers to tag foreign national offenders released on bail, and extending ‘deport now, appeal later’ certification powers to more immigration cases. The Act also commits the Government to place new limitations on the detention of pregnant women and introduces regular bail hearings to ensure those entering detention stay there for the shortest period possible.The Immigration Act 2014 put in place many effective measures intended to reduce illegal immigration and making it more difficult for illegal migrants to live and work in the UK. This Act builds on those measures. For example, the 2014 Act right to rent scheme requires landlords to check the immigration status of their tenants.
This new act provides landlords with additional routes to evict illegal migrants as well as creating new offences for corrupt landlords who continuously rent to illegal migrants. This act also incorporates a number of new measures not covered under the 2014 act, for example, a raft of new measures to deny illegal migrants access to the labour market.
