Employers are appealing against civil penalties for employing illegal workers. Mark Tempest reports
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The civil penalty regime introduced by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 (IANA 2006) celebrated its first birthday on 1 March 2009. IANA 2006 allows the UK Border Agency (UKBA) to issue penalty notices against employers who employ a person in breach of immigration law. Employers face a maximum penalty of £10,000 per illegal worker. The total amount of penalties issued is already over £14m.
IANA 2006 sets out a three-stage process. It allows UKBA to impose a penalty, it allows a penalised employer to object to the penalty via an internal review, and it provides for an appeal to the county court. The appeal is the only way of challenging the penalty in law.
Appeals under IANA 2006 are governed by Pt 52 of the Civil Procedure Rules, which is supplemented by a lengthy practice direction. Compliance with the practice direction is mandatory.
Pt 52 discourages appeals from judicial decisions by
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