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Civil penalties for employers


This page explains the penalties employers will have to pay if they use illegal migrant workers.

We introduced a civil penalty system for employers on 29 February 2008. This is allowed under section 15 of the Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.

Employers found to be using illegal migrant workers will be served with a notification of potential liability (NOPL) by immigration staff carrying out enforcement and compliance visits. The Illegal Working Civil Penalty Unit will then consider evidence provided by the visiting officer or team and decide whether to issue the employer with a notification of liability (NOL) and a civil penalty of up to £10,000 for each illegal worker.

If we issue a notice of liability and impose a civil penalty against an employer found to be using illegal migrant workers, the employer must, within 28 days:

  • pay the civil penalty in full; or
  • submit a request to the Illegal Working Appeals and Finance Section to pay the civil penalty in a series of monthly instalments; or
  • submit an objection against the service of the civil penalty to the UK Border Agency; or
  • lodge an appeal against the service of the civil penalty to the County Court (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or the Sheriff's Court (Scotland).

The penalty system operates on a sliding scale of amounts, based on the type of eligibility checks employers have made on their workers, the number of occasions on which a warning has been issued or civil penalty imposed, and the extent to which the employer has co-operated with us. See the civil penalty code of practice for more details or download our framework for assessment of civil penalties.

The new penalty scheme sits alongside a tough new criminal offence of knowingly employing an illegal migrant worker (section 21 of the 2006 Act). This will be used in the more serious cases where rogue employers knowingly and deliberately use illegal migrant workers, often for personal financial gain. This will carry a maximum two year custodial sentence and/or an unlimited fine.

We will publish the details of employers who have been found to be liable for the payment of a civil penalty for employing illegal migrant workers. See our policy on publication of non-compliant employer details for the full details.

See the Lists of civil penalties issued to employers for the published details of employers found liable to pay a civil penalty for employing illegal migrant workers.

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