UK Visas and Immigration guidance on when and how staff may make an arrest using administrative immigration or criminal powers.
This is part of Immigration Enforcement General Instructions.
Guidance in this section has been reworked into a new format and plainer language. Not all of the enforcement guidance has been revised yet. If you cannot find the information you need in this section, please look in the chapters sections of Enforcement instructions and guidance.
We are aware these publications may have accessibility issues. We are reviewing them so that we can fix these.
Published 24 March 2016 Last updated 15 February 2024 +show all updates
Updated version of the Record keeping during enforcement visits guidance. All references to the paper pocket notebook (PNB) have been removed from the main body and placed into a contingency section at the end of the guidance.References to obsolete systems have also been removed.
Replaced Enforcement planning assessments guidance to give extra clarification on the completion of Equalities and Community Impact Assessment (ECIA) in line with the ECIA v2.0 template and to update the link to the generic Home Office EIA guidance and template page.
Document 'Coercive powers: overview' replaced by new document 'Immigration Enforcement powers'.
'Dealing with potential criminality (ICE teams)' updated. Full details are in the 'Changes from last version of this guidance' section.
The marriage investigations document has been updated.
Updated enforcement planning assessments guidance to include clarification of reasonable hours in respect of visit timings, PRONTO process update and clarification of which agency completes CIA on joint visits.
Updated Verbal abuse, obstruction and assault - Immigration Enforcement guidance.
Marriage investigations guidance updated.
Dealing with potential criminality (ICE teams) guidance has been updated to include clarification of details on aggravating factors.
Replaced 'Safeguarding and establishing lawful residence' - updated section on British Overseas Territories Citizens to reflect changes introduced by the Nationality and Borders Act 2022.
Added accessible version of Marriage investigations.
Minor revision to Safeguarding - establishing lawful residence concerning scope and intent of guidance in relation to use by non-Immigration Enforcement staff, additional detailed examples of evidence that might be sought/considered and updated links.
New forms added in version 2.0 of Preventing illegal working in licenced premises.
Guidance entitled 'Clandestine illegal entrants ' replaced with revised and updated version entitled 'Irregular or unlawful entry and arrival'.
Added guidance for Immigration Compliance and Enforcement teams (ICE) on 'Dealing with potential criminality'.
Added guidance on use of force.
Added new document on 'Preventing illegal working in licenced premises'.
Guidance on partnership working updated.
Marriage investigations guidance updated with advice to reflect the end of the grace period, amendment to the advice on frontier workers, advice on change of circumstances and update of removal pathways.
