Organisational structure UK Immigration Service grades are/were reflective of the legislation that stipulates that the decision to refuse a person
leave to enter the United Kingdom is taken by an
Immigration Officer only with the authority of a Chief Immigration Officer or an
HM Immigration Inspector. The decision that a person inside the UK is in breach of
immigration law and liable for
administrative removal or deportation can be taken by an Immigration Officer or a caseworker of Executive Officer grade or above acting on behalf of the
Secretary of State, with the authority of a Chief Immigration Officer or Higher Executive Officer. The removal of such offenders may only be enforced with the authority of an HM Inspector or Senior Executive Officer. Immigration Officers also have the power to deal with immigration offenders under the criminal proceedings part of the
Immigration Act 1971 and prosecute through the Criminal Justice System. Assistant Immigration Officers' were common in the early days of the service but were dispensed with when the age bar on becoming an Immigration Officer was abolished, (date uncertain but probably before WW2). The grade of Assistant Immigration Officer was revived in 1991 but the role was initially badly defined and the scope of their work subject to ongoing dispute with the unions representing the Immigration Service grades, the
Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), and
Immigration Service Union (ISU). In 2017 immigration to the UK from outside the EEA is based primarily on the five tier system High-Value Migrant Tier 1 Visas, Skilled Worker Tier 2 Visas, Student & Tier 4 Visas and Temporary Worker Tier 5 Visas with applications being reviewed by an Immigration Officer.
Working practice Ports of Entry working practice The working environment for the Immigration Service differed greatly dependent on whether the work was performed at a port of entry, or in an after-entry environment within the community. All staff were, and are, governed by the overarching laws found within the various Immigration and Nationality Acts but the everyday application of the law at ports of entry is made through the application of the Immigration Rules – these are published rules that explain how the law is to be interpreted and applied. It is the interpretation of the rules that make immigration law so controversial. The practicalities of assessing large numbers of people arriving at ports mean that a great deal of discretion is given to the immigration officer, (although less now than was once the case). While the officer must obtain the approval of a Chief Immigration Officer or Inspector to refuse someone entry the way in which interviews are conducted and recorded are based on a lower level of proof than those in other areas of law enforcement. The immigration rules for visitors say that the immigration officer must be "satisfied" that the person is a genuine visitor not intending to stay longer than the rules allow and is not intending to seek employment. The idea that a relatively low ranking officer merely has to satisfy himself or herself as to the person intentions rather than prove an offence, as is the case in criminal matters, is a long-standing cause of legal and legislative tension. The level of proof is effectively a balance of probabilities rather than that of an overwhelming case being proven against the arriving passenger. In practice the immigration officer is required to conduct an in-depth interview, seek corroborative evidence from other sources and present a compelling case to a Chief Immigration Officer before refusing the person. The work of a port based immigration officer is to sift arriving passengers to detect those whose accounts of their intentions give some cause for concern. The officer will briefly interview all arriving people who are not British Citizens or EU nationals, check their document for alterations or forgery, verify any entry clearances held, assess their travel history against the stamps in their passport, check them against warnings lists and do all of this, usually, in less than two minutes. If the officer is satisfied they will stamp the passport with one of a variety of wordings, (conditions), depending on the reason for the persons stay and apply a time limit according to pre-set criteria. The pressure on port immigration officers is to do this quickly so as to satisfy various targets concerning waiting times. There has never been a quota or target for detecting and refusing inadmissible passengers – the performance standards for immigration officers at ports have always revolved around the quality of interviewing, decision making and their investigative qualities. ==See also==