legal and social conditions for asylum seekers and refugees in ...

UNITED KINGDOM
LEGAL CONDITIONS
The legal basis
– The Geneva Convention of 1951 and New York Protocol of 1967;
– The Immigration Acts: comprising Immigration Act 1971, Immigration Act 1988, Asylum and
Immigration Appeals Act 1993, Asylum and Immigration Act 1996, Immigration and Asylum Act
1999 as well as Immigration (Carriers' Liability) Act 1987;
– Numerous pieces of secondary legislation, and especially the Immigration Rules contained in
Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules (HC 395) of 23 May 1994 as amended by Statement
of Changes in Immigration Rules (CM 3365) of August 1996;
– The Asylum Appeals (Procedure) Rules of 1996;
– The Dublin Convention;
The Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 is a large piece of legislation, being introduced in stages.
At the time of writing (May 2000), most of it was still to be enacted. Of particular interest are
Sections 11 and 12 concerning the removal of asylum seekers to countries that are said to be
safe third countries of refuge, and Part IV of the Act, which will replace all of the appeals
provisions in the 1971 Act. Section 11 is intended to give effect to the Dublin Convention, or any
other European agreement which may be concluded to replace it in future, while Section 12 refers
to other countries outside the EEA (see “Safe third country cases” below). Changes to the
appeals rules still have to be drafted, but it has been announced that these changes are intended
to take effect from 2 October 2000.
Refugee status
Convention status is the only type of refugee status granted in the United Kingdom. The criteria
for granting refugee status are set out in paragraph 334 of the Immigration Rules (HC 395):
“An asylum applicant will be granted asylum in the United Kingdom if the Secretary of State is
satisfied that :
(i) he is in the United Kingdom or has arrived at a port of entry in the United Kingdom; and
(ii) he is a refugee, as defined by the Geneva Convention and Protocol; and
(iii) refusing his application would result in his being required to go (whether immediately or after
the time limit of an existing leave to enter or remain), in breach of the Convention and
Protocol, to a country in which his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his
race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a particular social group."
Refugee status is normally granted by way of a grant of indefinite leave to remain (permanent
residence). Prior to 24 July 1998 the normal practice was to grant asylum for a period of four
years, after which time the refugee could apply for indefinite leave to remain. Some refugees still
have time-limited asylum, granted before July 1998.
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United Kingdom