Fines in the UK for bosses who employ migrants illegally to triple
5822 Mins Read
Hiring migrants illegally will be “financially ruinous” for businesses under a new crackdown to stop Britain from being seen as soft on immigration.
Fines for bosses who employ migrants in the UK illegally will triple to up to £60,000 per employee, making the practice so economically damaging that it can “put them out of business”.
Under the fining scheme, the civil penalties for employers will treble from £15,000 to £45,000 per illegal worker for a first breach, and increase to £60,000 for repeat breaches, up from £20,000.
For landlords, who are sometimes in collusion with companies who employ them, the fines will rise from £80 per lodger and £1,000 per tenant for a first breach to up to £5,000 per lodger and £10,000 per tenant. Repeat breaches will be up to £10,000 per lodger and £20,000 per tenant, up from £500 and £3,000 respectively. The higher penalties will take effect from the start of 2024.
The move, announced on Sunday by Robert Jenrick, the Immigration Minister, aims to end the perception of the UK as a soft touch for Channel migrants who believe they can easily find work in Britain’s black market.
Landlords will also face a ten-fold increase in fines if they let properties to migrants or take them on as lodgers without checking their immigration papers. Ministers believe the move will help “stop the boats”, one of Rishi Sunak’s five key pledges. It comes as ministers are reportedly considering the Ascension Island and five other countries in Africa for deported migrants if the Rwanda scheme is ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court this autumn.
The Home Office is on Monday expected to move the first asylum seekers to the Bibby Stockholm barge in Dorset from their taxpayer-funded hotels. Nail bars, car washes, construction, social care and hospitality will be targeted in the enforcement of the new regime as the key businesses exploiting migrants who have entered the UK illegally, often on small boats.
