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Immigration and Social Security Bill: Committee Stage Briefing on NC15: Illegal Working
NC15
Illegal Working – EEA & Swiss Nationals
To move the following Clause –
“Illegal Working EEA and Swiss Nationals Section 24B of the Immigration Act 1971 does not apply to any work undertaken by an EEA or Swiss national.”
Purpose
This new clause would limit the offence of illegal working so that it did not apply to EEA or Swiss nationals.
Briefing
JCWI supports this amendment. The criminalisation of work for undocumented migrants is one of the most pernicious aspects of the government’s Hostile Environment approach to immigration control, introduced in the Immigration Act 2016. The offence of illegal working applies to migrants found to be working without a valid legal status, or when their visa conditions ban them from working, or working hours beyond those permitted by their visa. The penalty carries a maximum custodial s…