Successful ​Case Study: Cancelling Civil Penalty Notice Issued by Home Office

Our expert immigration lawyers were recently instructed by a UK business who had been issued a Civil Penalty Notice (CPN) for allegedly employing a worker who had no legal right to work in the UK. Our client had in fact carried out the correct right to work checks and maintained a record of the same when the Home Office accused him of employing an illegal migrant. Our client had responded to correspondence from the Home Office in the hope the penalty would be cancelled but the Home Office had failed to consider the evidence until our team of business immigration lawyers responded on the client’s behalf.
Our team received news this week that the Civil Penalty had been cancelled and the client was not liable to pay a CPN in the sum of £15,000. Unfortunately, our team of lawyers are regularly instructed by businesses who are faced with severe fines and mostly this due to lack of knowledge of what is required of them as a UK employer.

Challenging the Civil Penalty Notice

Under section 15 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, an employer may be liable for a civil penalty if they employ someone who does not have the right to undertake the work in question.

The Home Office carry out spontaneous checks on organisations on a regular basis and on such visits will expect to examine those areas of Human Resources and procedures which are outlined in their guidance. They will also verify the information provided by an employer on an application to obtain a sponsorship licence.

In our client’s case above, we provided evidence to demonstrate that our client had carried out its duties as an employer and that the appropriate checks had been carried out by the Company before employing a worker.

Our experienced Solicitors raised several reasons and mitigating factors as to why the employer wished to challenge the Civil Penalty and were pleased to receive an apology from the Home Office and a decision to withdraw the £15,000 fine.

Are You a UK Business Served with a Penalty Notice from Home Office

If you are a UK employer that is found employing an illegal migrant, you would get a ‘referral notice’  from the Home Office to let you know that your case is being considered. The Home Office may also fine you  (i.e. a civil penalty) of up to £20,000 for each illegal worker.

The ‘civil penalty notice’ will give the employer payment options and tell you what do next. It will also tell you how to object to the civil penalty and how to appeal. The Home Office may also publish the employer’s details as a warning to other businesses not to employ illegal workers.

Those who are found to have ‘knowingly employed’ an illegal worker, could be sent to jail for up to 2 years and receive an unlimited fine. It is therefore, imperative that employers are aware of the current immigration rules and their duties. If you have received a civil penalty notice and would like to discuss your options, please contact us to arrange a consultation with one of our expert Immigration Solicitors.

If you are a UK business and have been affected by the Home Office’s raids, contact us to discuss this further. Business owners sponsoring migrants from outside the EEA must ensure that they are legally registered to sponsor these migrants and must have a valid Tier 2 Sponsorship Licence. If the Home Office has contacted you in relation to carrying out a compliance visit at your business premises, contact us for legal advice.

Illegal migrants with strong Human Rights arguments ought to take legal advice and regularise their stay in the UK as soon as possible and before it is too late. Contact us to discuss your immigration situation and we will assess your case and provide you with options of regularising your stay.

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