Immigration Detention, Bail, Removal

If you have been detained, require bail, are currently on immigration bail or are facing removal, OTS Solicitors will be there to assist you.  We understand that you and your family will be frightened and distressed.  You can count on us to work with the Home Office on your behalf, ensuring your case is heard and any issues properly addressed.

Our Immigration team, led by Teni Shahiean, whose knowledge of Immigration law spans over 10 years, have an excellent reputation for obtaining release from detention, organising bail and successfully halting Home Office deportations. We can answer all your questions such as 'what is immigration bail?' and 'how long does immigration bail last for'?.

Based in the City of London, OTS Solicitors is fully regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.  We are known for fighting hard for our clients and ensuring that their legal and Human Rights are protected at all times.

Immigration detention

The Home Office has the power to detain individuals when exercising Immigration control. However, this is highly discretionary, the Home Office also has the power not to detain and to allow the individual to be in the UK on a temporary basis.

Detailed guidelines on how the power to detain is to be exercised provide that:

• there is a presumption in favour of release
• special consideration must be given to families and unaccompanied children
• there must be strong grounds for believing that a person will not comply with conditions of release for detention to be justified
• all reasonable alternatives to detention must be considered before detention is authorised
• each case must be considered on its merits, including consideration of the duty to have regard to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of any children involved
• to be lawful, detention must be based on one of the statutory powers and accord with Home Office policy and with the limitations implied by domestic and Human Rights case law
• detention must be used sparingly and for the shortest period necessary
• it is not an effective use of detention space to detain people for lengthy periods if it would be practical to detain later in the process once any appeal rights have been exhausted, and
• detention is most usually appropriate:
  • a) to effect removal
  • b) initially to establish a person’s true identity on the basis of their application, and
  • c) where there is reason to believe that the person will fail to comply with any conditions attached to their release.

Certain people should not be maintained except under exceptional circumstances.  These include:

• unaccompanied children and young persons under the age of 18
• the elderly
• pregnant women
• those suffering from serious medical conditions which cannot be satisfactorily managed within detention
• those suffering from serious mental illness
• torture victims
• people with serious disabilities
• victims of trafficking
• other vulnerable people

If you fall into anyone of these categories, we can arrange for your release and furthermore, you may be able to claim compensation for the time that you spent illegally in Immigration detention.

Bail

If you are being held in an Immigration detention centre, you may be able to apply for bail.  Our expert solicitors can assist you with making the application.

The grant of bail enables persons liable to detention to be physically present in the UK. Persons on bail have not, however, legally entered the UK. A person granted bail may live in the UK for months or possibly years but have not entered the UK within the meaning of the law.

Bail can be hard to get if you have been found guilty of breaking your bail conditions before or have been charged with a criminal offence.  To help us secure bail, it is helpful if you have suitable accommodation available and you can ask someone to act a ‘surety’.  Your surety will pay money if you break your bail conditions and will ensure you report to Immigration officials when required.

What is a deportation order?

If you’ve broken the Immigration Rules, for example by living in the UK illegally, the Home Office can make you leave. Most people call this being deported, but it’s technically called administrative removal (for simplicity it will continue to be called a deportation order in this article).

If you have been given a deportation order, you may not be able to re-enter the UK, even as a tourist on a Standard Visitor Visa obtained with the help of an immigration solicitor, for a certain period.

What are the reasons a deportation order can be made?

The Secretary of State can issue a deportation order for the following reasons:

• It is believed to be in the public good that the person subject to the deportation order is removed from the country.
• The foreign national is the spouse, civil partner or child of the person subject to a deportation order.
• The foreign national is over 17 years has committed a criminal offence and the court which sentenced him or her recommends that they be deported after they have served their prison sentence.

Administrative Removal

Administrative removal is the process by which the Home Office can remove people from the UK. It is to be distinguished from deportation, which involves an entirely distinct legal process and is usually reserved for those who have committed serious criminal offences and/or whose presence in the UK is deemed not conducive to the public good.

If you have been administratively removed from the UK, you may be subject to a re-entry ban, meaning you will not be allowed to re-enter the UK for a period of one to ten years.

Administrative removal can be used for:

• overstayers
• illegal entrants and those refused leave to enter
• those whose leave has been curtailed, cancelled or revoked
• family members of the above groups

If you are facing administrative removal, our expert solicitors have the experience and means to assist you and fight in your corner.  You can trust our team to work tirelessly to ensure your reasons for remaining in the UK are heard and every possible legal channel used to prevent the removal taking place.

If you need assistance and legal advice on Immigration detention, bail or removal please feel free to contact our UK Immigration team on 0203 959 9123. We will gladly assist you to obtain the best outcome for your matter.