Removal / Deportation / Detention / Bail

Removal & Deportation

The word “deportation” is often used in a wide sense, but there is an important distinction between removal and deportation. If someone is “removed” from the UK (sometimes known as “administrative removal”) it means that they have been removed from the UK because, for example, they have entered the UK illegally, they have overstayed their visa or they have broken the conditions of their visa.

Someone who has been “removed” from the UK may apply to the UK authorities to come back to the UK at any time after the removal. Depending on the circumstances there may be a high chance of the application being refused but nonetheless the application can be made.

“Deportation”, on the other hand, is a more serious matter. Deportation typically arises when a person has been convicted of a serious criminal offence, been given a period of imprisonment and subsequently been served with a Deportation Order. If they are then removed from the UK in accordance with the Deportation Order this is “deportation”. Differently from the situation with removal, a person who is subject to a Deportation Order will not be re-admitted to the UK until the Deportation Order is revoked, which will not be for a minimum of three years.

Detention and Bail

A person can be detained in immigration detention for a number of reasons. They may have arrived at an airport in the UK but the immigration authorities are unsure whether to admit them into the UK, and the person has been detained for the time being whilst the immigration authorities make further enquiries or consider the situation. 

In other cases a person who is an illegal entrant or overstayer may have been arrested and they are held in detention pending their removal from the UK.

In other cases a person who is subject to a Deportation Order may be held in immigration detention pending their removal from the UK.  

The immigration authorities have wide powers to detain people who are not British citizens and, unlike other forms of detention, there are no time limits on the length of time that someone can be detained in immigration detention. 

However, the immigration authorities cannot simply detain someone for as long as they like. There are legal remedies for someone held in immigration detention, and they are entitled to instruct a legal representative in the UK to assist them. 

In some cases the immigration authorities may decide to give a detained person “temporary admission”. This means that the person is allowed to leave detention for a specified period, after which they may have to return to their country, or they may possibly be able to apply to extend the period of temporary admission. There may be conditions attached to temporary admission such as residing at a particular address or reporting to the Immigration Service.

In cases where a person comes to the UK with a visa but they are refused leave to enter they may have an in-country right of appeal against the refusal of leave to enter. In such a case the immigration authorities may grant temporary admission to the person for the period that the appeal process takes.  

In other cases the immigration authorities may not be prepared to grant temporary admission. In such a case the detained person or their legal representatives may be able to apply for bail. This is a formal process and the application is made either to a Chief Immigration Officer or to an Immigration Judge at the Immigration Tribunal.

An application for bail is an application to be released from detention based on certain undertakings. The applicant or their legal representatives have to state that the applicant will abide by the conditions of the bail, which may include living at a particular address or reporting to the police or the Immigration Service.

As part of a bail application the applicant will typically provide “sureties”. A “surety” is a person who acts as a kind of guarantor that the applicant will abide by the terms of the bail, and who puts forward a sum of money which they can lose if the applicant does not abide by the terms of the bail.

If bail is granted it may be granted for a specific period of time or it may be granted until a specific event happens, for example the final determination of an appeal. If the applicant does break the terms of the bail then the bail may be revoked.