In the UK, immigration bail is the legal permission given to you if you are detained or liable to be detained, under immigration powers, to remain outside immigration detention while your immigration matter is dealt with.

• If you are detained, or liable to be detained as a result of:

• detention pending your deportation; or

• detention by the Secretary of State (UK) where you are liable to examination or removal; or

• detention by immigration officers where you are liable to examination or removal; or

• detention pending your automatic deportation

You can be granted, and in some circumstances remain on, immigration bail even where detention is no longer lawful. A grant of immigration bail does not itself give you permission to stay in the UK or a general right to work.

The above extends to you against whom the Secretary of State is considering making a deportation order under the Immigration Act 1971 - Section 5(1) and you are no longer liable to be detained.

Who can apply for an immigration bail?

If you are in immigration detention, an asylum seeker, overstayer, or are subject to removal, you can apply for an immigration detention bail. You may be granted immigration bail by the Secretary of State (in practice, someone acting on behalf of the Secretary of State (UK), including an immigration officer) where you are detailed or liable to be detained under conditions listed above or an independent judge at the First-tier Tribunal (the First-tier Tribunal has no power to grant you an immigration bail if you are liable to detention but not detained, however, if you are detained and wish to be granted bail by the Tribunal you must submit an application in writing to the Tribunal). If you are granted bail, you will be allowed to live in the community in the UK instead of being held in an IRC (Immigration Removal Centre) or a prison, while your immigration case is still being decided.

When are you more likely to get an immigration bail?

You are more likely to be granted immigration bail if you have a place to stay.

Your application for an immigration bail has a higher possibility of succeeding if you have at least one ‘Financial Condition Supporter’. This is a person (usually a family member, friend, or another responsible person) who:

• will pay money if you do not obey your bail’s conditions

• can attend your bail hearing

In the application form, you are required to provide information about where you will stay and your Financial Condition Supporter or supporters.

When you might not or find it harder to get released on bail

You may not or find it harder to get released on bail if you:

• have broken the conditions of your bail in the past

• have a criminal record, and there is a risk you might reoffend

If you were not granted bail, or in other words refused bail in the last 28 days, you will not receive another hearing unless your situation has changed significantly. In your application, you will need to explain what you think is the change in your situation.

Even if you are granted bail, you might not be released if you are due to be removed from the country.  If your removal date is in the 21 days after you receive bail, the UK’s Home Office will have to agree to your release.

How to apply for an immigration bail?

You can apply for bail to the Home Secretary any time after arriving in the UK. You may apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) but only if you arrived in the country more than 8 days ago.

You might also be automatically referred to the First-tier Tribunal for a bail hearing if you have been in detention for no less than 4 months.

1. Apply for Secretary of State bail

You can apply to the Home Secretary for bail from the first day you enter the UK. This is termed ‘Secretary of State bail’.

You will need to download and fill in form BAIL401. In the form, you will need to explain why you are asking for an immigration bail.

If you are in an IRC (Immigration Removal Centre)) you can get the form Bail401 from the welfare officer, or if you are in a prison you can get the form from your detention paperwork pack.

You can represent yourself through a solicitor or legal adviser or on your own without a legal representative.

Your bail application will be decided by Home Office staff without a hearing.

2. Apply for bail from the Tribunal

You can apply to the independent ‘First-tier Tribunal’ for an immigration bail if you entered the UK more than 8 days ago. An independent judge at a hearing will decide your application for bail.

You will need to download and fill in form B1.

If you are unable to download the form B1 yourself, you can:

• ask the staff where you are being held

• contact the tribunal by phone or by email 

You need to send the form to the tribunal or hearing centre where the tribunal appeal hearing is happening, provided you have a tribunal appeal hearing scheduled.

If you do not get an appeal hearing, you should ask staff at the place where you are held. The staff can fax your bail application to the right venue.

3. Automatic referral for bail by the Home Office to the First-tier Tribunal 

You will automatically be referred for a bail hearing by the Home Office to the First-tier Tribunal if:

• you have been in detention for no less than 4 months; and

• you are not being detained in the national security interests; and

• no action is being taken to deport you from the UK; and

• in the last 4 months, you have not applied for bail to the First-tier Tribunal

The Home Office will apply on your behalf using all the information they have.

You can refuse this referral by the Home Office, or choose to apply yourself. However, the Home Office will apply on your behalf every 4 months unless you choose to make your own bail application.

4. Apply for bail to the Special Immigration Appeals Commission

You may be held in a detention centre or prison by the UK government if it believes you are a threat to national security and therefore should be deported from the country.

In such a situation, you can apply to be released on bail while you are waiting for your immigration appeal to be heard by the commission.

You will need to fill in the bail application form.

If you are unable to download the form, you can request the commission or staff in the detention centre or prison for a copy.

The commission will hold a bail hearing to decide if you should be released.

If you are released on bail, you will have to obey conditions, like:

• You would have to stay at a given address

• You would have to keep away from named persons

• You would not have to use computers or mobile phones

Upon breaking any of these conditions:

• You will have to go back to detention centre or prison

• Your surety (a person to take responsibility for you) will have to pay the bail money

Upon refusal of your bail, you can apply again.

You are unlikely to get a bail hearing if you apply again within 28 days and your situation has not changed significantly in that time. Significant situation change includes incidents such as you need to move to a new address.

Duration of an immigration bail 

The duration of your bail lasts from the point you are granted one to when it ends. A grant of your bail starts from the time stated on the notice granting it. 

A grant of immigration bail ends when you are: 

• No longer liable to be detained and the Secretary of State for the Home Department is not considering whether to make a deportation order against you  

• Granted leave to enter the UK or leave to remain here 

• Detained under one of the provisions mentioned in the bulleted points in the first paragraph of this article for immigration bail 

• Removed from the UK, or otherwise leave the country

Conditions of your immigration bail

If you are granted immigration bail, you will have to obey at least one of the following conditions. 

You might be required to:

• Report to an IRC (Immigration Reporting Centre) on a regular basis

• Attend an appointment or hearing

• Face restrictions on the place of your residence

• Have an EM (Electronic Monitoring) tag

• Have restrictions on the occupations, work, or studies you can do

• Obey any other condition the person granting you the bail thinks fit

You or your 'Financial Condition Supporter ' might be required to promise to the person or authority granting your immigration bail—normally the Secretary of State/Home Office, or, where applicable, the First-tier Tribunal to pay money if you break one of the other conditions of your immigration bail. This is known as a ‘financial condition’.

However, these conditions can be changed after you have been granted bail.

What if you fail to obey your bail terms?

If you fail to follow the terms of your bail, you might:

• Have the conditions of your bail changed with tighter restrictions

• Be charged with a crime

• Be required to pay the money that was agreed at the bail hearing, or your ‘Financial Condition Supporter’ might have to pay the money

• Be sent back to detention

Ask to change your bail conditions

You can ask the First-tier Tribunal (if they granted you bail), Home Office or an immigration officer (If you are on Secretary of State bail) to change (‘vary’) the conditions of your bail, for example, if you need to relocate to a new address.

However, you must continue to follow your bail conditions until a decision has been made to change them.

How can Visa and Migration help?

Being detained or being liable to be detained is a tough situation. In such a situation, you may find it even harder to think of applying for immigration bail. However, we can help you with an immigration bail. 

We can also prepare and present your immigration bail application, assist with the bail hearing where applicable, and advise you on complying with any bail conditions if bail is granted.

For expert advice and queries on immigration bails, you can call us at +44 (0)20 3411 1261 or write at info@visaandmigration.com