Last updated: 12 October 2026

Who works in Immigration Enforcement?

The Home Office uses several different teams for enforcement. Some plan raids, some carry them out, some run reporting centres, and others make decisions on detention and removal. Understanding who does what helps communities protect themselves.

• Immigration Enforcement (IE) – frontline teams who carry out raids on homes and workplaces, ask questions, check documents, and detain people.
• Reporting and Offender Management (ROM) – the staff who run reporting centres, monitor people on immigration bail, and decide if someone should be detained at reporting.
• Casework Teams – Home Office staff who make decisions on people’s immigration cases, including detention, removal and deportation.
• Criminal and Financial Investigation (CFI) – officers who investigate organised immigration-related crime such as trafficking, smuggling or document fraud.
• Intelligence Units – teams who collect and share information about people, workplaces or networks to plan enforcement operations.
• International Intelligence Network – staff based outside the UK who work with other countries to stop people travelling to the UK.
• Detention and Escort Services (DES) – teams who run immigration detention centres and organise transport for removals, including charter flights.

What is immigration bail?

Immigration bail means you are not being held in immigration detention, but you must follow certain conditions. Being on immigration bail does not give you permission to stay in the UK

Common bail conditions include:

• living at a specified address
• reporting regularly to the Home Office or police 
• restrictions on work, study, or travel
• sometimes wearing an electronic tag (GPS monitor)

You should receive written information explaining your immigration bail conditions. This may be on a document called BAIL 201 or in another Home Office decision letter. Keep a copy and check what conditions you must follow, including when and where you must report.

You should take your immigration bail paperwork form and the text message or email confirming your appointment with you to reporting appointments. The Home Office calls these appointments “reporting events”.

If the Home Office gives you permission to enter or stay in the UK (leave to remain), your immigration bail automatically ends. This means you no longer have to follow the conditions of that bail, including reporting.

You should not need to apply for your immigration bail to end.

If you continue receiving reporting appointments or messages after being granted permission to stay, contact your reporting centre and ask it to update your records. Keep a copy of your Home Office decision and any messages you send.

If you are unsure whether your immigration bail has ended, seek legal advice before missing a scheduled appointment.

What is reporting?

Reporting is an immigration bail condition. It means keeping in contact with the Home Office while your immigration case is still being decided. Reporting is managed by the Reporting and Offender Management (ROM) teams within Immigration Enforcement (IE).

Many people call reporting “signing” because, for many years, people had to sign their name in a book or on a form each time they reported. Even though many centres now use computers or phone check-ins, the word “signing” is still widely used in communities. In this Key Guide, we will use the term reporting.

You may be asked to report in person, by telephone, or through digital reporting (usually email or via an app). The purpose of reporting is to show that the Home Office can contact you and that you are following your bail conditions.

Where do people report?

People required to report in person must attend the nearest Home Office reporting centre or another location specified on their Bail 201 form, or sometimes a police station.

There is no maximum distance set in law, but the Home Office should consider the impact of long travel times (over two hours each way) and take account of people who are young, elderly, vulnerable, or have medical issues.

If travel is difficult, staff can direct someone to report at a closer police station or by phone or digital reporting, though some events (for example, interviews) may still require travel to a main centre.

There are currently 14 immigration reporting centres listed on the UK Government website:

London and South:

• West London
• South London
• Folkestone (Kent)

North, Midlands and Wales:

• Liverpool
• Manchester
• Leeds
• Sheffield
• Solihull
• Loughborough
• Cardiff
• Swansea
• Middlesbrough

Scotland and Northern Ireland:

• Glasgow
• Belfast

Reporting also takes place at some police stations, including in areas without a dedicated reporting centre.

Your Bail 201 form or reporting appointment letter should tell you where you need to report.

These centres are also where you may go for other interviews about your case such as your screening interview in order to claim asylum, your substantive asylum interview, or for documentation or emergency travel document interviews. 

You can find updated contact details of all the reporting centres on the UK Government website here. 

Forms the Home Office asks you to complete before reporting

The Home Office now asks people to complete online forms before attending reporting appointments. There are two different forms.

First Reporting Event form

If you are going to a reporting centre for the first time, the Home Office says you should complete a First Reporting Event form before your appointment.

The form asks about your circumstances, including your family, health, work and contact details. The Home Office uses this information to help decide how often you need to report and whether you should report in person, by telephone or digitally.

There are different forms for different reporting centres. You can find the form for your reporting centre here.

Immigration Bail Biodata form

Since August 2026, the Home Office also asks people on immigration bail to complete a separate form called the Immigration Bail Biodata form.

This form asks for more information about you, including:

• your family
• where you went to school
• jobs you have had.

The Home Office says you should complete this form online before attending your reporting appointment. An immigration officer may also ask you to complete it at the reporting centre.

You can complete the Immigration Bail Biodata form here.

If you cannot complete the forms online, contact your reporting centre and explain why. Ask for help or another way to provide the information.

Do not miss your reporting appointment because you have not completed a form. Contact the Home Office if you are having difficulties, and keep a record of any messages you send.

Different ways to report

In-person reporting

If you have to report in person, you will be told to go to a Home Office reporting centre (or sometimes a police station) at a specific time and date. You will receive the appointment by text, email, or letter. The Home Office calls these appointments “reporting events.”

You should only attend if you have an appointment. When you arrive, you may have to queue at the entrance. You will show your text message and/or Bail 201 form to the security staff at the door. You will then go through security checks, where your bag is put through an X-ray machine and you walk through a metal detector. Inside, staff will check your identity, and you may be asked a few short questions about your current circumstances.

Sometimes reporting is quick. Other times, you may be asked to stay longer for an interview. You may be at risk of detention when you report  in some situations.

It is important that you bring  your Bail 201 form and the SMS text message or email confirming your appointment each time you go to report. Read more about the challenges you might face with in-person reporting here.

Telephone reporting

Telephone reporting is when the Home Office calls you at a certain date and time. You will have details of when you are expected to receive a telephone call on your Bail 201 form. You will get a text message to remind you of your next reporting time. 

You will usually receive a call from this phone number: 0300 1050321. You must answer the phone yourself. No one else is allowed to answer for you – not a friend, family member, legal adviser or solicitor. When you answer the call, the Home Office staff member will ask you some questions to check your identity. The call may also include personal questions, so try to be somewhere private, and somewhere you are able to access any important information or paperwork about your case. 

If you do not answer the planned phone calls, and the Home Office cannot reach you after trying again, they will say you have not followed your immigration bail rules. The Home Office will try to contact you (or your legal representative) within 72 hours after the missed call. If you still do not answer after these attempts, the Home Office may take further action. For example, they will tell you to start going to the reporting centre in person. 

Immigration Bail Digital reporting (IBDR)

Immigration Bail Digital Reporting (IBDR) is a way of reporting to the Home Office using your phone or email instead of going to a reporting centre. Sometimes you may have to report digitally and attend appointments in person.

If you have to report digitally, the Home Office will send you a text message or email with instructions. You must follow the instructions and confirm that you are reporting.

You must respond to the messages yourself. A friend, lawyer or support worker cannot report for you, unless the Home Office has told you to report as part of a family group.

Sharing your location

Some people must also share their location when reporting digitally. The Home Office should tell you if this is part of your bail conditions.

If you have to share your location:

1. Open the reporting message and follow the instructions to confirm you are reporting.
2. You will then be asked to complete a second step to share your phone or device’s location.

You should receive a digital confirmation when you have completed the steps. Keep this as a record.

The system records your device’s location when you report. It does not continuously track where you go.

The Home Office can keep this location information for up to 90 days. It may access the information if it believes you have broken your bail conditions. It can also use information without your name attached for other immigration enforcement purposes.

What if you miss a digital reporting message?

If you do not respond, the Home Office should send you reminders.

If you still do not respond, the Home Office may decide that you have broken your bail conditions. It may ask you to start reporting in person or take other action.

If the Home Office says you have missed a digital reporting appointment, you can explain what happened and provide any evidence you have.

What if you cannot use digital reporting?

The Home Office should not require you to report digitally if you cannot access the technology you need.

If you lose access to your phone or email, or your device is broken or stolen, contact the Home Office as soon as possible. Explain what happened and ask how you should report.

You can also ask for your reporting conditions to be changed if digital reporting is difficult because of a disability, health condition or other reason.

If you are having technical problems, contact the digital reporting team at:

hoimmigrationbaildigitalreporting@homeoffice.gov.uk

Keep copies of any messages you send.

The digital reporting system uses small files called cookies. These help the Home Office check which device is being used and identify possible problems, such as one device being used to report for several people.

If you need to change your phone number or email address, you can update these through the digital reporting service.

You can find more information on the Home Office’s digital reporting page.

Electronic Monitoring (tagging)

From 15 June 2022 to 31 December 2023, the Home Office ran a pilot using GPS electronic monitoring tags for certain people on immigration bail. This began under the Electronic Monitoring (EM) Expansion Pilot, using powers in Schedule 10 of the Immigration Act 2016, which allow the Secretary of State to make tagging a condition of bail for anyone who is “liable to detention.”

There is currently no clear public evidence that GPS tagging improves compliance compared to traditional reporting methods.

However, as of June 2026, Immigration Enforcement still have the power to use electronic monitoring tags and the Reporting and Offender Management (ROM) Guidance v9.0 still lists it as an option that can be used instead of, or in addition to, in-person reporting.

In practice, EM tags are GPS ankle devices supplied and managed by Mitie Care & Custody on behalf of the Home Office. They record a person’s movements 24 hours a day and send data securely to Home Office systems. People must charge the tag daily and report faults immediately. Failing to keep the tag charged or tampering with it can be treated as a breach of bail conditions, which may lead to detention.

Only GPS ankle tags are used in immigration cases. Other tag types used in the criminal justice system (for example, radio-frequency or alcohol-monitoring tags) are not used for immigration bail. The Home Office’s EM scheme is separate from the Ministry of Justice tagging system.

How often do I have to report?

The Home Office decides how often you must report and whether you need to report in person, by telephone or digitally.

The Home Office should consider your individual circumstances when making this decision. This includes your health, family responsibilities, how far you need to travel and what is happening in your immigration case.

The Home Office has guidance for its staff about how often different groups of people should report.

These are suggested reporting arrangements, not fixed rules. The Home Office must consider each person’s circumstances. You can also ask for your reporting conditions to be changed.

The table below summarises the Home Office Reporting and Offender Management guidance, version 9.0 (June 2026).

If you are pregnant

There are special reporting rules during pregnancy and after giving birth. The Home Office guidance says that reporting should normally stop for:

• 6 weeks before the week your baby is expected to be born
• 6 weeks after your baby is born.

You will need to provide a MATB1 form (a certificate confirming your pregnancy and expected due date).

The Home Office may still contact you by telephone during this time to check on your wellbeing.

If you need a longer break from reporting for medical reasons, you can provide medical evidence and ask for this to be considered

Challenges of in-person reporting

Reporting in-person can be extremely difficult. It can be hard practically, but also emotionally and physically. Many people describe reporting as humiliating, traumatising, or frightening. Reporting centres are also the places where people may be detained, so it is normal to feel anxious, scared, or unsure before an appointment. You can read the experiences of others here. 

There are also real barriers: long journeys, health problems, childcare, costs, or being treated unfairly at reporting centres. This section goes through some of the key practical issues and risks including travel, missed appointments, and risk of detention, and explains what steps you can take to prepare, protect yourself, and get support.

You can also ask to bring someone with you to a reporting appointment. This could be a trusted person, support worker, volunteer or lawyer.

The Home Office may allow this if you need extra support, for example because of a health condition, disability, or because it is your first reporting appointment.

You must ask the reporting centre for permission first. The reporting centre manager will decide whether to allow someone to accompany you.

If permission is given, the person supporting you can normally wait with you in the waiting area, but they cannot speak to Home Office staff on your behalf at the reporting counter.

If you need someone to come with you, contact your reporting centre before your appointment and explain why.

Travel assistance

If you are on immigration bail and must attend regular reporting appointments, you may be able to get help with travel costs in exceptional circumstances. You must apply directly to your reporting centre (listed on your Bail 201 form).

You can only apply for travel assistance in certain circumstances: 

• If you live more than 3 miles from your reporting centre
• If you live within 3 miles, you’ll only get help in exceptional cases, such as:
  serious health problems, mobility issues or mental-health conditions that make travel unsafe, or urgent childcare or caring responsibilities. You will need to provide evidence of this. 

If your application for travel assistance is refused you have the right to ask for the decision to be reviewed by the ROM manager. If they refuse again, they must give their reasons in writing. 

If your application is approved, the Home Office might  put additional money on your ASPEN card to cover the cost of the return journey, or they might send you return travel tickets (usually bus) by post or email, or give you tickets at your reporting appointment.

If your ticket is lost or stolen it will only be replaced in “exceptional circumstances”. If the Home Office thinks you are using tickets for other reasons except attending your reporting appointments then they may stop providing you with travel assistance.

What if I cannot attend a reporting appointment?

If you cannot attend a reporting appointment, contact the Home Office as soon as possible, preferably before your appointment.

Missing an appointment without explaining why may be treated as breaking your immigration bail conditions. This can increase your risk of detention.

You can ask the Home Office to change your appointment if you have a good reason. For example:

• you are unwell or have an important medical appointment
• you have an emergency involving your children or someone you care for
• you have problems travelling, such as cancelled transport or not being able to afford the journey
• you have an important legal appointment, asylum interview or court hearing
• you have experienced an emergency, such as a death in your family or a mental health crisis.

The Home Office must consider your circumstances. It must allow flexibility for asylum interviews, trafficking or modern slavery interviews, and court hearings.

The Home Office normally expects you to arrange solicitor appointments around your reporting times. However, you can still ask for a change if you have an important legal appointment that cannot be moved.

You can also ask for a change for religious reasons. The Home Office does not have to agree, but it can offer a different time.

If you miss one reporting appointment because you are ill, Home Office guidance says you do not need a doctor’s letter or other medical evidence. You should still contact your reporting centre and explain why you could not attend.

If you are unable to report for more than 7 days because of illness, the Home Office will ask for medical evidence. This could be a fit note, hospital appointment letter or another document from a healthcare professional.

If you have a long-term health condition that makes reporting difficult, you can also ask for your reporting conditions to be changed.

1. Contact your reporting centre as soon as possible. Explain why you cannot attend or why you missed your appointment.
2. Ask for a new appointment. Make your request in writing, such as by email, so you have a record.
3. Send evidence if needed. This could be a hospital letter, travel cancellation message or letter from your lawyer. Remember that you do not need medical evidence for one missed appointment because of illness.
4. Keep copies of your messages, evidence and any replies from the Home Office.
5. Tell your lawyer or caseworker, if you have one, so they know what has happened.

You can contact your reporting centre using the details on your reporting letter or the GOV.UK reporting centres page.

You can also call the Home Office Reporting Enquiry Line on 0300 369 0669.

If you have missed an appointment, the Home Office may contact you to ask what happened. Reply as soon as possible and explain your circumstances.

Missing one appointment does not automatically mean you will be detained. However, the Home Office may take further action if it cannot contact you or believes you have broken your bail conditions.

Do not assume your appointment has been changed just because you have asked. If you have not received a reply, contact the reporting centre again to check what you need to do.

Asking to change your reporting conditions

If you are on immigration bail, the Home Office decides how you must report, whether that is in person, by phone, or through digital reporting (IBDR) and how often you must report.

If you are experiencing serious difficulties with attending your reporting appointments or you think that it is not appropriate for your situation, you can ask for the Home Office to “vary” your reporting condition, which means changing the way you report. For example: 

• You have a long or difficult journey to the reporting centre. The Home Office guidance says staff should consider the impact of journeys taking more than 2 hours each way, especially if you have health problems or other needs. You can also ask for a change if a shorter journey is causing you serious difficulties. 
• You have a physical health condition that makes it difficult to travel to the reporting centre and/or puts your health at risk 
• You have a mental health condition that makes it difficult to go to reporting and/or is worsened by the reporting appointments. 
• You have to use your asylum support payments to travel to reporting 
• You are recognised as a victim of trafficking or modern slavery (you have a positive NRM decision). 
• You have to bring children with you to the reporting centre
• You have an ongoing asylum claim or another type of ongoing immigration case then you may be able to change to telephone or digital reporting

However, the Home Office is unlikely to change your conditions from in-person reporting if they believe that: 

• You are considered to be a Foreign National Offender (usually a criminal conviction with a sentence of 12 months or more)
• You are taking steps to return to your home country
• You refused or did not take up the Voluntary Return programme
• You have been identified for removal 
• You missed phone or digital reporting and the Home Office lost contact with you 

To make a request, you will have to provide evidence. For example: if you have to travel over 1 hour then you could provide a screenshot of the distance between your home address and the reporting centre from Google Maps. If you are making a request based on a physical health condition then you will need to provide evidence from your GP or healthcare professional. 

If you have a legal representative it is a good idea to speak to them about your reporting conditions to make sure that all information sent to the Home Office is accurate and consistent. 

Risk of detention when reporting in-person

There is always some risk of detention at a reporting appointment, but it is higher in certain situations. People are more likely to be detained if:

• Your immigration case has been refused or closed and you have no ongoing appeal or legal claim.
• You do not currently have an active application or legal case with the Home Office.
• The Home Office believes removal is possible soon (for example, if travel documents have been issued).
• You have been categorised as a “returns priority,” including people the Home Office says can be removed soon or people with criminal convictions.
• Your bail or reporting conditions have recently changed which may indicate that the Home Office is re-assessing your case.
• People with pending asylum claims or active judicial reviews are generally at lower risk, but detention can still happen.

The Home Office must complete a mitigating circumstances interview before they can decide to detain you. This decision must then be approved by a senior Home Office official.

A mitigating circumstances interview is when a Home Office officer asks you about anything that could affect the decision to detain you. They may ask about your family, partner, or children; any medical conditions, disabilities, or medication you need; and any mental health conditions or impairments (for example learning difficulties, psychiatric illness, or clinical depression). They may also ask if you want to leave the UK voluntarily.

If you have a mitigating circumstance interview, it is important to tell the Immigration Officer anything about your physical or mental health, and to give evidence if you can.

If you are detained at a reporting centre

If you are detained when you go to report, you will be kept in a holding room inside the reporting centre while the Home Office arranges transport to take you to immigration detention. You may be taken first to a Short-Term Holding Facility, or you may be taken directly to an Immigration Removal Centre.

The rules say you cannot be held in a holding room at a reporting centre for more than 24 hours. Your legal adviser is allowed to visit you while you are there.

A Home Office officer who is not trained to make arrests is not allowed to use force on you, unless it is needed to protect themselves or other people. In this context, “force” means any physical action used to make you move or do something, for example holding your arms, guiding you, pulling or pushing you, or using restraints like handcuffs. This includes moving you from the reporting area into an interview room or a holding room.

If you refuse to move or do not cooperate, the officer must call arrest-trained officers. These officers are allowed to physically escort you, which means holding or guiding you to another area. They may use reasonable force if they have to. This means they can use only the smallest amount of force needed to carry out the action. Officers should not use force to punish you or use more force than is necessary.

If the Home Office planned to detain you at a reporting appointment and you do not go, they may set a new time to detain you or they may send immigration officers to your home to carry out the detention.

Reporting Solidarity

In some areas, community groups have  signing support systems to help people who report. Before someone goes to report, they “check-in” with the group, who keep their contact details and simple instructions on what to do if they do not come out. This helps people feel safer and means supporters can act quickly if detention happens.

A signing support system can reduce stress because the person knows someone is looking out for them and there is a plan in place.

How groups can set up a basic signing support system:

• Keep a list of when and where each member reports.
• Know where they might be held locally before being moved to a detention centre.
• Collect simple information (with consent): name, date of birth, Home Office reference, lawyer’s contact, health needs, family responsibilities, and emergency contacts.
• Ask members to sign a consent form allowing the group (or a named person) to speak to their lawyer or support them if detained.
• Decide how the group will know if someone is detained. For example, a buddy system, WhatsApp check-in, phone tree, or group email.
• Follow a clear, agreed action plan. For example, contact their lawyer, find out where they’ve been taken, support them with legal advice or bail if needed, and make sure their family, health needs, and urgent responsibilities are looked after.

Immigration Enforcement

Immigration Enforcement is part of the Home Office. Its officers carry out immigration enforcement work across the UK, including:

• visits to homes and workplaces
• immigration checks
• arrests and detention
• operations in public places

The formal name for many of the local teams carrying out this work is Immigration Compliance and Enforcement (ICE). However, officers, vehicles and Home Office information commonly use Immigration Enforcement or IE.

You may also hear ICE used when people are talking about immigration enforcement in the United States. In the US, ICE means Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It is a different organisation with different legal powers. The comparison is also becoming part of UK politics. Reform UK has proposed creating an ICE-style deportation agency, and the Conservatives have proposed a removals force explicitly modelled on US ICE. This sits within a wider political shift towards more immigration enforcement, detention and deportation, while the current UK government has also significantly increased enforcement visits and arrests. The information on this page is about Immigration Enforcement in the UK.

In the next part of this guide, we explain some of the different ways Immigration Enforcement operates in the UK. We know that immigration enforcement can be frightening, and that as enforcement increases, more people and communities are experiencing the fear, disruption and violence that can come with it.

There is no simple way to make these situations safe. But throughout this guide, we have included phrases you can use, practical information about your rights, and things that may help you respond in the moment. You can also find a short summary of what you can say and do in the Action Section here.

Words we use in the next sections of this guide

The Home Office uses different terms for different kinds of enforcement activity.

Public operation
Immigration Enforcement can carry out planned activity in streets, town centres and other public places. The Home Office calls some of these Street Operations (STOPS). On this page, we usually call them public operations.

Enforcement visit
This is the Home Office term for Immigration Enforcement going to a home, workplace or other premises.

Immigration raid or raid
This is a term commonly used by communities, campaigners and the media for enforcement visits, particularly when officers arrive suddenly at a home or workplace. We sometimes use raid on this page because it may better reflect how these visits are experienced.

Immigration Officer
This means an officer working for Immigration Enforcement who is using immigration enforcement powers.

Warrant card
This is an Immigration Officer’s official identification. It is not the same as a warrant.

Warrant
A warrant is a legal document giving officers a particular legal power, for example to enter an address and search for a person or evidence.

Formal immigration examination
This is when an Immigration Officer formally checks someone’s immigration position using a legal power. It is different from voluntary questions an officer may ask when they first approach someone.

Where the Home Office uses a technical term that is important to understand, we explain it in plain language the first time it appears. 

Immigration Enforcement in public spaces

Immigration Enforcement can carry out planned operations in public places. The Home Office calls these Street Operations (STOPS).

Immigration Officers do not have a general power to stop people at random in public just to check their immigration status. A public operation must have a reason and be based on information connected to a person, place or possible problem with someone’s immigration status or conditions. For example, the Home Office may have information that a person they are looking for is likely to be in a particular area, or that there may be an immigration issue connected to a particular location.

The information behind an operation can come from different places. It might come from a member of the public, the police, a local council, HMRC or another organisation, previous Immigration Enforcement operations, surveillance, or Home Office information and analysis.

Public operations must be authorised by a senior Home Office officer. For most operations, the Home Office must also record the reasons for the operation. This should include the information being relied on, why the operation is needed, why that location has been chosen, whether the operation is lawful, necessary and proportionate, and possible risks to the community.

When an Immigration Officer approaches you in public

During a public operation, an Immigration Officer may approach you because they think you could be connected to the reason for the operation. For example, they may think:

• you are a person they are looking for
• you are connected to a person they are looking for
• you match information they already have
• something else connects you to the place or reason for the operation

Officers should not simply choose people at random. Home Office guidance also tells officers to look for information that helps them quickly rule out people who are not connected to their enquiry.

Immigration Officers must not make assumptions about someone’s immigration status because of their race or ethnic background.

 Home Office guidance says:

“It is unlawful for an Immigration Officer (IO) carrying out their duties to do any act that constitutes direct discrimination based on a person’s colour. A person’s colour or perceived ethnic origin can never be the basis of your ‘reasonable suspicion’ that someone is an immigration offender.” – Home Office, Enforcement visits, version 6.0, published for Home Office staff 9 April 2026, updated on GOV.UK 20 August 2026, section “Reasonable suspicion: equality and discrimination”

This means that clearly a person’s skin colour or perceived ethnic origin can never be the reason for reasonable suspicion. Other information about the situation may sometimes be relevant, but it must be connected to the reason for the operation rather than assumptions about someone’s race or background.

An Immigration Officer may first ask some simple questions to find out whether you are connected to the reason for the operation. The Home Office calls these “exploratory questions”.

For example, they might ask:

• “What is your name?”
• “Do you live around here?”
• “Do you know this person?”
• “Where have you just come from?”

These questions are voluntary. This means you can choose whether to stop and answer them.

You do not have to answer exploratory questions just because an Immigration Officer asks you. You also do not have to show proof of your immigration status during voluntary exploratory questioning.

If you do not want to answer, the officer cannot keep you there just because you refused to answer. Refusing to answer questions or show documents does not, by itself, give the officer reasonable grounds to formally examine or arrest you.

Immigration Enforcement operations can be frightening. You may feel nervous or confused, find it difficult to answer questions, avoid officers or try to leave. This does not automatically mean that there is a problem with your immigration status.

Home Office guidance also says:

“If a person displays evasive behaviour it should always be remembered that there may be a good reason for this.”

It also says: “A person’s unusual behaviour in isolation of other factors is particularly difficult to assess quickly.”

This means that being nervous, avoiding officers or trying to leave should not be enough on its own to justify a formal immigration examination. Officers should consider whether they have other information that gives them reasonable grounds to examine you.

When questioning is no longer voluntary

A formal immigration examination is different from voluntary exploratory questions. Before an officer can formally examine your immigration status, they must have a real reason to suspect that there may be a problem with your immigration status or conditions. This is called having reasonable grounds.

For example, they may have information that suggests you:

• do not have permission to be in the UK
• stayed in the UK after your immigration permission ended
• are working when your immigration permission does not allow you to work
• are not following another condition of your immigration permission

The officer cannot formally examine you based only on a guess or assumption. They may use different pieces of information together. For example, this could include information they already have about you, something that connects you to the reason for the operation, what is happening at the location, or your behaviour together with other information. The officer must be able to explain and record why they had reasonable grounds to formally examine you.

Once a formal immigration examination has started, the situation is different from voluntary questioning and you may no longer be free to leave.

Example of when an officer may move from voluntary questions to a formal examination

Immigration Enforcement is carrying out a planned STOPS operation in a town centre. Officers have information that a person they are looking for often visits that area.

An officer sees someone who they think may match the information they have. The officer approaches them and asks: “What is your name?” This may be a voluntary exploratory question to find out whether they are the person the officer is looking for. The person does not have to stop and answer voluntary exploratory questions. If they do not answer and walk away, this alone is not enough to give the officer reasonable grounds to formally examine them.

However, if the officer already has other information, or gets more information, which gives them reasonable grounds to suspect there may be a problem with the person’s immigration status, the officer may then be able to start a formal immigration examination.

The police and Immigration Enforcement

Police officers and Immigration Officers have different legal powers.

Police officers can speak to people in public and ask questions. For example, they may ask your name, what you are doing or where you are going.

In most situations where a police officer is simply asking questions, you do not have to stop or answer. If there is no other reason to suspect you, refusing to answer cannot by itself be used as a reason to search or arrest you.

Police also have separate legal powers to stop and search or arrest people. These powers have their own rules. For example, many stop and search powers require the officer to have reasonable grounds to suspect that you are carrying something they have a legal power to search for, such as drugs, a weapon or stolen property.

If a police officer is not in uniform, they must show you their warrant card, which is their police identification.

Police must not base reasonable suspicion on stereotypes or general assumptions about someone’s race or background.

The rules about police powers are different in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

When police and Immigration Enforcement work together

Police sometimes work with Immigration Enforcement during enforcement operations.

Police and Immigration Enforcement have different legal powers. If they are working together, each officer can only use the powers that apply to their own role.  For example, police may stop someone using a police power and then speak to an Immigration Officer who is also present. The Immigration Officer must still have their own legal reason to formally examine the person’s immigration status. 

They may first ask voluntary exploratory questions. To move to a formal immigration examination, they must have reasonable grounds to suspect that there may be a problem with the person’s immigration status or conditions, as explained above.

E-bikes and delivery riders

Delivery riders have been a particular focus of Immigration Enforcement activity in recent years.

Between January and June 2026, Immigration Enforcement carried out 635 visits and made 635 arrests across the wider warehousing, distribution and delivery services sector. Since July 2024, the Home Office says it has carried out more than 1,500 visits in this sector.

The Home Office has also carried out operations specifically targeting delivery riders. During one week of operations in July 2025, officers stopped and spoke to 1,780 people and made 280 arrests.

Immigration checks by delivery companies

Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat have also increased checks on people using their platforms.

These include right-to-work checks for account holders and registered substitute riders, as well as stronger identity checks designed to identify people using someone else’s account.

The Home Office also has an agreement with these companies to share information about the locations of hotels used for asylum accommodation. The companies can use this information as part of their checks for possible illegal working.

These company checks are separate from the legal powers used by police or Immigration Enforcement if they approach someone in public.

If you are seeking asylum and the Home Office gave you permission to work while your asylum claim is still being decided, there may be limits on the jobs you are allowed to do. Having permission to work does not always mean you can take any job, including delivery work.

Working outside the conditions of your permission can affect your immigration position and may also put your asylum support at risk. Read more about permission to work and asylum support here.

If police stop you while you are riding an e-bike

Police may stop you because they think there may be a problem with your bike or the way it is being used.

For example, they may think that an e-bike has been changed so that it no longer meets the legal rules for an electrically assisted pedal cycle (EAPC).

To be treated like an ordinary bicycle under these rules, an e-bike must:

• have pedals that can be used to move the bike
• have a motor with a continuous power of no more than 250 watts
• stop providing motor assistance when the bike reaches 15.5 mph

If an e-bike does not meet these rules, it may legally be treated as a motorbike or moped. Different rules can then apply, including rules about a driving licence, insurance, registration and where the bike can be ridden.

Police may also use other legal powers to stop, search or arrest someone if the requirements for those powers are met.

A police stop about an e-bike does not automatically become an immigration examination.

If Immigration Officers are also present, they must still follow the rules explained earlier on this page. They may first ask voluntary exploratory questions. Before formally examining someone’s immigration status, they need reasonable grounds to suspect there may be a problem with that person’s immigration status or conditions.

Being a delivery rider, riding an e-bike or being stopped by police does not by itself give Immigration Enforcement reasonable grounds to formally examine you.

Immigration Enforcement visits to homes and workplaces

The Home Office calls immigration raids “enforcement visits”. We call them raids because they are often sudden, frightening and happen without warning.

Immigration Enforcement may visit a home or workplace to:

• look for someone they want to arrest
• investigate suspected illegal working
• investigate a suspected immigration offence
• look for particular documents or evidence

Different legal powers apply to different actions. A power to enter a home or workplace does not automatically give Immigration Officers permission to search everyone, question everyone about their immigration status, search phones or take property.

If you are unsure what officers are doing, you can ask: “What legal power are you using?”

Immigration Officers must identify themselves

Immigration Officers have official Home Office identification called a warrant card. This is different from a warrant that gives officers a legal power to enter a building.

If an Immigration Officer is not in uniform, they must identify themselves and show their warrant card when they speak to you as an officer. Immigration Officers in uniform should also identify themselves if you ask.

You can always ask:

“Can I see your ID?”

How can Immigration Officers enter?

The legal power Immigration Officers need depends on where they want to enter and why.

They may be able to enter because:

• they have a warrant
• they have an Assistant Director letter, usually called an AD letter, to enter a business
• they are using a specific legal power for some businesses selling alcohol or providing late-night hot food
• the person who controls the property gives informed consent
• another specific legal power applies

You can ask:

“What legal power are you using to enter?”

If officers ask for your permission to enter

Immigration Officers may ask the person who lives in the home, or the person responsible for the workplace, to let them in. This is called informed consent.

Before you agree, officers should explain clearly:

• who they are
• why they want to enter
• what they want to do inside
• that they are asking for your permission
• that you do not have to agree
• that you can change your mind

You can ask:

“Do I have to let you in, or are you asking for my permission?”

If they are asking for permission, you can say:

“I do not consent to you entering.”

For a private home, permission must normally come from an adult who lives there. A landlord cannot give Immigration Officers permission to enter a tenant’s private home.

A person under 18 should not be asked to give permission for officers to enter.

In shared accommodation, permission to enter one person’s room does not automatically give officers permission to enter another person’s private room. They must get permission from the person who lives in that room.

At a workplace, officers may ask the owner, manager or another person who appears to be responsible for the premises for permission to enter.

If officers entered because you gave permission, you can change your mind. You can say:

“I am withdrawing my consent. I no longer agree to you being here.”

If officers do not have another legal power allowing them to stay, they should stop relying on your permission.

If you physically block or obstruct Immigration Officers while they are lawfully using their powers, you could be arrested for obstruction. Obstructing an Immigration Officer acting lawfully is a criminal offence. You can still ask what legal power they are using, ask to see any document that gives them that power, and record what happens if it is safe.

If officers have a warrant

A warrant is a legal document from a court that gives Immigration Officers permission to do particular things, such as enter and search a place.

Different warrants allow officers to do different things. For example, a warrant may allow officers to:

• enter a particular address to find and arrest someone
• search for particular documents
• search for evidence of an offence

A warrant does not automatically allow officers to search for anything they want. Ask to see the warrant as soon as possible. You can check the information on the warrant is correct including:

• the address
• the date it was issued
• the legal power written on it
• who or what officers are looking for
• what officers are allowed to search for

Immigration warrants are normally valid for 3 months from the date they are issued. Where possible, officers should show the occupier the warrant and a document called a Notice to Occupier, and give them copies.

You can ask:
“Please show me the warrant so I can read it.”
“Who or what does this warrant allow you to search for?”

If the warrant is to find a particular person

A Schedule 2 paragraph 17(2) warrant allows Immigration Officers to enter the address on the warrant to look for and arrest a particular person.

It does not automatically give them power to investigate everyone else who happens to be there.

If the person named in the warrant is not there, you can say:

“The person named in the warrant is not here.”

If it is clear that the person is not there, Home Office guidance says the warrant must not be used to search for them. This is different from a warrant to search for evidence or documents, which may still allow officers to search the premises even if the person is not there.

Officers may have another legal power. If they say they do, ask:

“What other legal power are you using?”

AD letters for businesses

An Assistant Director letter, usually called an AD letter, is not a court warrant. It is Home Office authority that can allow Immigration Officers to enter and search business premises without a warrant to arrest a person.

Officers must have reasonable grounds to believe the person they are looking for is at the business. They must also have grounds to arrest that person.

An AD letter:

• only covers business premises, not separate residential accommodation
• should not be used instead of a warrant where there is time and grounds to apply for one
• cannot be used as an alternative if a court has refused a warrant on the same information
• cannot be used simply because a business has refused to let officers enter voluntarily

The officer entering must show their warrant card. They should give the person in charge the AD letter and a Notice to Occupier, which explains the power they are using.

In urgent cases, authority can be given by telephone and the AD letter may be provided afterwards, normally within 2 working days.

You can ask:

“Who are you looking for?”
“Why do you believe they are here?”
“Can I see the AD letter and Notice to Occupier?”

Businesses selling alcohol or late-night hot food

In England and Wales, Immigration Officers have a power under Section 179 of the Licensing Act 2003. This can allow them to enter some businesses without a warrant or permission where they have reason to believe the premises are being used to sell alcohol or provide hot food or drinks to the public between 11pm and 5am. The premises do not have to actually hold a licence.

They can only use this power to investigate whether an immigration offence is being committed in connection with that activity. For example, this could include suspected illegal working connected to the sale of alcohol or late-night food or drink. 

This is not a general power to enter a business for any immigration purpose. Home Office guidance says officers must not use Section 179 simply to:

• arrest a named person where the information they have means a warrant should be used;
• use it as an alternative where an AD letter cannot be obtained;
• carry out general right-to-work compliance checks where there is no information suggesting illegal working connected to the relevant activity; or
• enter separate private living accommodation, unless there is a separate reason to believe that alcohol sales or late-night food or drink are also taking place there. 

Once officers have lawfully entered under Section 179, they can take immigration enforcement action if they identify immigration offences.

You can ask:
“What legal power are you using to enter?”
“What immigration offence are you investigating?”
“How is it connected to the sale of alcohol or late-night food or drink?”

What can Immigration Officers do after they enter the property?

What an Immigration Officer can lawfully do after entering the business or property depends on the legal power they are using.

For example, a warrant allowing officers to search for one person does not automatically allow them to:

• formally examine everyone else’s immigration status
• search everyone
• search for unrelated documents
• take someone’s possessions

Sometimes, what officers see or learn during a visit can change what they are allowed to do. For example, officers may come to a workplace looking for one person. While there, they might ask other people voluntary questions such as whether they work there or live there. What someone tells them, together with other information the officers already have, may lead them to formally question or arrest that person. If this happens, officers should still be able to explain what allows them to do this, and why.

The same rules about voluntary exploratory questions and formal immigration examinations explained in the public spaces section also apply during home and workplace visits. In short: officers can ask you voluntary questions, but you do not have to answer them. If they formally examine you using immigration powers, they should make this clear and different rules apply. You can ask: “Are these questions voluntary?” or “Am I free to go?”.

Being nervous, confused or not wanting to answer questions does not, by itself, mean there is a problem with your immigration status. You do not have to answer voluntary exploratory questions, and choosing not to answer does not by itself give officers a reason to think you are breaking immigration law.

If an officer says that you must answer questions, you can ask:

“Am I being formally examined under immigration law?”
“Why am I being examined?”
“What legal power requires me to answer?”

If a formal immigration examination has started, you may no longer be free to leave. You can ask for an interpreter if you do not understand what is happening. You can also ask to speak to a lawyer.

Searches during a raid

What officers are allowed to search depends on why they are searching and what law they are using. They should only search for the person or thing that the law allows them to look for.

For example, if officers have a warrant to search for a person, they should look in places where that person could be. If they want to search for something else, such as documents, they may need a different legal power.

You can ask: “What are you looking for?” or “What allows you to search for this?”

If you think officers are searching somewhere they are not allowed to, it is usually safer not to physically try to stop them. If it is safe, record or write down what happens and try get legal advice afterwards.

Can Immigration Officers search your phone?

Immigration Officers cannot simply take your phone and look through your messages, photos, calls or apps whenever they want. But in some situations, the law may allow them to ask for information stored on your phone or another electronic device, or to take the device.

What they are allowed to do depends on why they want the information and what legal power they are using. If officers ask for your phone, you can ask: “What legal power are you using?” or “What information or document are you looking for?”

In some situations, Immigration Officers may have a legal power to ask you for a specific document that is saved on your phone or another device. This could be an identity document, immigration document or something connected to your work.

If they have this power, you should be the person who opens the device and finds the document. Home Office guidance says the officer should not do this for you.

You might be able to:

• show the document on your screen
• send them a copy
• print the document

If officers are legally allowed to ask for a document and you cannot or do not provide it, there are some situations where they may then be allowed to take the device.

This is different from an officer taking your unlocked phone and looking through your messages, photos, calls or apps.

You can ask:

“What document are you asking for?”
“What allows you to ask me for this?”
“Can I find the document and show it to you myself?”

The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 gives Immigration Officers new powers to search, take and look at phones and other devices in some situations. These powers do not apply to everyone. They only apply to some people who came to the UK without the permission they needed and where officers think the device may contain information about helping people enter the UK unlawfully.

These powers do not mean Immigration Officers can search everyone’s phone. An officer may ask for your PIN or password. You do not have to give it under this power, and refusing is not itself a criminal offence.

If an officer says you must give it, you can ask: “What allows you to make me give you my PIN or password?”

Having someone there to support you during a raid

If Immigration Officers are searching your home or workplace, you can ask to have someone there with you.

Home Office guidance says that if the occupier asks for a friend, neighbour or another person to witness the search, they must be allowed to do so, as long as that person does not interfere with or obstruct the search.

A supporter can help to:

• read the warrant or other documents
• make notes
• keep track of which legal powers officers say they are using
• record important times and events
• help you understand what is happening

Support does not always mean lots of people arriving at the premises. One calm person who can read documents, ask questions and record what happens may sometimes be the most useful support.

Download a copy of our POCKET GUIDE FOR PROTECTING OUR COMMUNITIES AGAINST IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT made with Leeds Anti-Raids Action.

After a raid has happened

Once officers have left, there may still be important things to deal with. Try to record what happened, check whether anyone needs urgent immigration or legal support, and think about what could happen next. It is also important to look after yourself and other people who were affected.

Record important information

As soon as you can, write down what happened. It may be useful to record:

• when officers arrived and left
• how many officers were there
• officers’ names or warrant numbers, if you know them
• what legal power they said they were using
• what documents they showed or gave you
• who or what any warrant was for
• who officers questioned
• whether anyone was searched
• whether officers looked at any phones or other devices
• anything officers photographed, copied or took
• who was arrested or detained
• anything important officers said about why they were taking an action

Keep any documents the officers gave you. If you have photographs or videos, keep the original files if you can, rather than only keeping copies that have been sent through WhatsApp or another messaging app. If you think Immigration Officers may have acted unlawfully, you can try to get legal advice about what happened.

Think about what might happen next

After an Immigration Enforcement visit, check whether anyone needs help with their immigration situation.

This might include:

• Reporting: Check when everyone next has to report to the Home Office. If someone has missed a reporting appointment, they should get advice and contact the reporting centre as soon as possible.
• Letters and documents: Check anything officers gave you. Has anyone been given a new appointment, reporting condition or other Home Office document?
• Risk of detention: If someone may be at risk of detention, make or update a safety plan. Think about who they would contact, their lawyer’s details, important documents, medication, children or other people they care for, and who could help if they were detained.
• Officers may come back: If officers were looking for someone and did not find them, they may try to find that person again. If officers return, you can still ask “What allows you to come in?” Do not assume that a previous visit automatically means they can enter again.

If someone has been detained

Try to find out where they have been taken and make sure people they trust know what has happened.

As soon as possible:

• contact their immigration lawyer, if they have one
• collect copies of important immigration and legal documents
• tell their lawyer about anything urgent, such as a removal date, court deadline, health needs or medication
• make sure the detained person has important phone numbers and knows who is supporting them
• if they do not have a lawyer, ask about legal advice available in the detention centre, including the Detained Duty Advice Scheme
• get advice about immigration bail and whether they can apply

Look after yourself and each other

Raids can be extremely frightening and stressful, even if nobody is taken away. After officers leave, give yourself and other people time and get support if you need it.

You may find it helpful to:

• contact someone you trust and tell them what happened
• check that everyone is safe and has what they need
• check in with people who were questioned, searched or particularly affected
• help anyone who has been arrested or detained to contact a lawyer or support organisation
• talk through what happened with other people who were there
• share practical tasks so that one person does not have to deal with everything
• take a break before trying to sort everything out at once

You do not have to deal with what happened on your own. Friends, family, community groups and support organisations may be able to help with both practical things and how people are feeling.

Find out more about what happened

You can make a Freedom of Information request (FOI) to the Home Office to ask for information they have recorded about an Immigration Enforcement visit or operation.

For example, you could ask whether they produced:

• an operational plan
• an operational booklet
• an equality assessment
• other records about how the operation was planned or carried out

You can send an FOI request directly to the Home Office. You can also use WhatDoTheyKnow, a website that helps you make FOI requests. Remember: requests made through WhatDoTheyKnow are published online. Do not include private or personal information that you do not want to be public. Make an FOI request using WhatDoTheyKnow here If you have not made an FOI request before, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has guidance on how to make one. You can read this guidance here.

The Home Office may not give you everything you ask for. The law allows them to keep some information private, including some information about immigration enforcement or law enforcement. If they refuse to give you information, they should tell you why. If you disagree with their decision, you can ask them to look at it again. This is called an internal review. An FOI request is usually used to ask for information about policies, decisions or operations.

If you want information the Home Office holds about you personally, you would normally make a Subject Access Request (SAR) instead. For example, a SAR can be used to ask for information about you held on Home Office immigration records.

The Anti-Raids Network 

The Anti Raids Network (ARN) is a loose, volunteer-led network of groups and individuals who share information and resources to help communities resist immigration raids. It is not one organisation and has no leaders. Instead, people work together to spread practical knowledge about people’s rights, support neighbours during enforcement visits, and challenge immigration controls on the street. ARN focuses on mutual aid, direct action, and solidarity, helping communities stay safe, informed and connected.

There are anti-raids groups across the country, and each uses different methods to support their communities. It’s important to remember that this work is not only about blocking a van. It’s also about preparing people long before a raid happens:  building local solidarity, strengthening neighbourhood networks, and making sure everyone knows their rights. When communities are informed and connected, we are far less likely to reach crisis moments in the first place.

Learn more about the Anti-Raids Network

Download Anti-Raids flyers in different languages

Find your local Anti-Raids Group

Video: Fighting back against immigration raids as a community

Leeds Anti-Raids Action have created a video of their training designed to help people feel more confident about the basics of immigration raids: what they are, how to spot them, what your rights are, and the wide range of ways communities can resist and keep each other safe.