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

threshold is likely to be about GBP 200-230 [EUR 343–395] for a single adult: i.e. anyone with
more than this does not qualify for support. Thresholds for families with children will be higher. As
well as any cash or savings they have, asylum seekers will have to declare any jewellery worth
more than GBP 1,000 [EUR 1,718], but they will not be forced to sell these items to support
themselves.
NASS support consists of vouchers and a maximum of GBP 10 [EUR 17] per person, per week in
cash. The total amount comes to 70% of income support, and the vouchers can be exchanged for
food and other goods in supermarkets and local shops. Shops are not able to give change for
vouchers. Asylum seekers may also apply for NASS accommodation, which means they may
have some meals provided and therefore receive fewer vouchers.
Asylum seekers who submitted their application before 3 April 2000 have not been transferred to
the new support system. They will continue to receive whichever means of support (i.e. benefits
or local authority assistance) until a decision on the asylum claim is made. The same applies to
those applicants who belong to a group or have applied in a region, which has not yet entered the
new scheme (see “Accommodation” below).
Asylum seekers from countries which have ratified either the Council of Europe Social Charter or
the European Convention on Social and Medical Assistance may be able to claim income support
after 3 April under certain conditions, although this has not yet been clarified.
Work
Asylum seekers cannot work initially, but if they have not received a decision on their asylum
application within six months, they can apply to the Home Office for permission to work. This is
usually granted, but is not an automatic entitlement.
According to refugee-assisting NGOs, some asylum seekers experience difficulty in receiving this
permission. In certain circumstances this permission to work can be given earlier than six months
for compassionate or humanitarian reasons, again at the discretion of the Home Office.
Once granted, permission to work also includes the right for asylum seekers to participate in
government vocational training schemes, some of which may include language teaching, if they
meet the normal conditions for those schemes.
Language tuition
The UK does not have a special programme of language tuition for asylum seekers. Many adult
education institutions and further education colleges offer English as a Second Language (ESOL)
courses, and asylum seekers may attend these. ESOL courses usually charge low fees or, in
some cases, can be offered free. English as a Foreign Language (EFL) courses are much more
expensive and are not usually suitable for asylum seekers: they are aimed at people who are
visiting the UK for short periods.
Language tuition can also be provided as part of vocational training schemes, or by voluntary or
community organisations. It can also be in the form of language support for other educational
subject areas.
Full-time study (over 16 hours) is not permitted for those in receipt of benefit, although this
amount of pure English language tuition is rarely available in any case.
School attendance
School is compulsory and free between the ages of 5 and 16, and all children must follow the
national curriculum between those ages. Children of asylum seekers are entitled to attend
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