Are you or a loved one being removed from the UK due to criminality or the Home Office deeming it is for the public good? The Home Office has a number of avenues which it can rely on to remove/deport a person from the UK. This area requires specialist knowledge.

Deportation is a complex area of the law where the law is constantly changing. Therefore, it is important to instruct those who understand the complexities of this area. There is a public interest in deporting anyone who has committed an offence or offences and it is of importance that this is understood, and it should not be confused with Removal.

Deportation & Criminality

Deportation occurs mainly by way of the Borders Act 2007 where a foreign national has been convicted of a criminal offence which is more than 12 months or is regarded as a persistent offender, this being known as an automatic deportation. In addition to this there is the power to deport under section 5(1) Immigration Act 1971. Most people facing deportation will be under the automatic provisions, post any conviction for an offence. Currently the requirement is that the sentence must be 12 months or more, or be a persistent offender.

Once the automatic provisions are triggered, the Home Office serves a notice of Deportation, which must be responded to by way of representation as to why they fall into the exemption(s) or why there are very compelling circumstances which outweigh the public interest.

Sentences of 4 years & less: In these circumsatnces two exemptions under the Immigration Rules which are in part replicated in Part 5A of the Nationality Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 (as amended) are available:

• The first being that the person has been lawfully present in the UK for most of his life and is now socially and culturally integrated into the UK and there would be very significant obstacles to integration into the country to which he is to be deported.
• The second is the ‘unduly harsh’ exemption(s) and for this to arise it needs to show that he has a genuine and subsisting relationship with a 'qualifying' partner or a child, or both and that the effect of deportation on them would be 'unduly harsh’. 

Sentence of 4years or more: An applicant  is going to have to establish very compelling circumstances over and above the exemptions listed above to defeat the public interest. 

We can help you deal with making representations against the notice of deportation, or represent you at any appeal hearing before the immigration Tribunals or any other court. We have experience of dealing with deportation cases and we are familiar with the Immigration rules and laws which apply to deportation cases.

It is not just acts of crime which can lead to a person being removed from the UK. There are provisions within the Immigration Rules which allow for a person who is already in the country to be refused and removed in the public interest.

There are many Immigration rules that the Home Office can rely upon to remove a person who is already in the UK which include the following examples:

• S-LTR.1.6. The presence of the applicant in the UK is not conducive to the public good because their conduct (including convictions which do not fall within paragraphs S-LTR.1.3. to 1.5.), character, associations, or other reasons, make it undesirable to allow them to remain in the UK.
• Rule 320(19) there is a discretionary ground of refusal where the immigration officer deems the exclusion of the person from the UK to be conducive to the public good. For example, because the person’s conduct (including convictions which do not fall within paragraph 320(2)), character, associations, or other reasons, make it undesirable to grant them leave to enter.
• Rule 322 one of the grounds on which leave to remain and variation of leave to enter or remain in the UK should normally be refused is 322(5): the undesirability of permitting the person concerned to remain in the UK in the light of his conduct (including convictions which do not fall within paragraph 322(1C), character or associations.
• Section 10 (1)A person may be removed from the UK under the authority of the Secretary of State or an immigration officer if the person requires leave to enter or remain in the UK but does not have it. 

Should you receive such a refusal; it may have a right of appeal attached, if not then there will be a right to Administrative Review with a recourse by way of Judicial Review.

Revocation of a Deportation Order

Once a Deportation has been made it will be in place for 10 years, but you can make an application to have it revoked under the Immigration Rules which are  390,390A, 391, 398 & 399 

Immigration Rule 390 states that an application for revocation of a deportation order will be considered in light of all the circumstances taking into account the following:

• (i) the grounds on which the order was made;
• (ii) any representations made in support of revocation;
• (iii) the interests of the community, including the maintenance of an effective immigration control;
• (iv) the interests of the applicant, including any compassionate circumstances

 Immigration rule 390A - Where paragraph 398 applies the Secretary of State will consider whether paragraph 399 or 399A applies and, if it does not, it will only be in exceptional circumstances that the public interest in maintaining the deportation order will be outweighed by other factors.

Immigration rule 391 - In the case of a person who has been deported following conviction for a criminal offence, the continuation of a deportation order against that person will be the proper course:

• (a) in the case of a conviction for an offence for which the person was sentenced to a period of imprisonment of less than 4 years, unless 10 years have elapsed since the making of the deportation order, or
• (b) in the case of a conviction for an offence for which the person was sentenced to a period of imprisonment of at least 4 years, at any time,
• Unless, in either case, the continuation would be contrary to the Human Rights Convention or the Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, or there are other exceptional circumstances that mean the continuation is outweighed by compelling factors.

The position with regards to how to approach a revocation application is the same as regards to a pre-deportation applications under paragraphs 390A/398-399A. When conducting a revocation assessment, one has to factoring the proportionality of maintaining the order in place for the prescribed period, balancing the public interest in continuing it against the interference with the applicant’s private and family life.  A revocation of a deportation order is also subject to Section 117C of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 which mirrors the Immigration rules and a “deportation order may only be revoked if its retention is determined to be “unduly harsh”.

The grounds on which an appeal can be made against a refusal to revoke an order are set out in section 82(1) of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002.