FAILED ASYLUM SEEKERS TO BE ALLOWED TO WORK IN THE UK

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As a result of the Supreme Court's judgment of 28 July in the case of ZO (Somalia), the Home ofice is obliged to allow failed asylum seekers who have made further submissions asserting a fresh claim for asylum to apply for permission to work if:

their further submissions have been outstanding for 12 months or more; and

the delay is not their fault.

This is in response to the recent decision in the Supreme Court's judgment of 28 July in the case of ZO (Somalia),

This judgment was laid o 19th August 2010, and will come into force on 9 September 2010. The Home Office will begin considering applications from eligible failed asylum seekers under the amended Immigration Rules from that date.

This judgment will primarily affect failed asylum seekers who:

initially claimed asylum before 5 March 2007 (which means that their cases are managed by our case resolution directorate); and

have already made further submissions.

It is the aim of the Home office to conclude all of these cases by the summer of 2011, . This policy will therefore only have a short-term effect, and anyone making a further submission now is unlikely to be affected by the judgment.

The changes to the Immigration Rules will restrict the type of work that can be done by asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers who are granted permission to work. They will only be entitled to take up a job which is included on the list of shortage occupations published by the UK Border Agency. Asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers will not be allowed to be self-employed or engaged in setting up a business.

These restrictions will ensure that, like other foreign workers, eligible asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers are diverted to occupations where a national shortage of skilled labour has been identified and thereby do work which benefits the UK economy.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 01 September 2010 19:52

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