Senior Carer Work Permit Cancelled Following UKBA Compliance Check

A Filipina Senior Carer faces deportation and ruin after her Work Permit was cancelled following a compliance check by the UK Border Agency (UKBA).

The compliance check and subsequent interviews and investigation goes back to January 2007, at which time the UKBA compliance unit “ascertained that the actual Senior Carer role that (name omitted) was undertaking was not as represented in her work permit application”.

In other words, she was not actually working as a Senior Carer, but rather as a Care Assistant.

Her employer, a Care Home, was given an opportunity to make representations, which were “carefully considered” by the compliance team before they revoked the Work Permit and curtailed her Leave to Remain (visa).

Despite instructing a Solicitor and the later intervention of the Immigration Advisory Service, the worker is being asked to leave the UK, having been branded an overstayer. No action has been taken against the employer.

The case serves as a warning to companies employing staff on Work Permits or Student Visas. A routine compliance check or form can open a ‘can of worms’ for employers, leading to loss of workers and possible fines of up to £10000.

Other problems have arisen due to employers not paying the correct salary or employing the worker at a different branch without informing the Home Office.

With record numbers of migrant workers being deported, employers are advised to carry out file checks to ensure they are employing staff legally.

For the latest immigration news visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

If you need immigration advice or have been refused a visa please email us at: info@immigrationmatters.co.uk

Bison UK are running FREE Senior Carer Seminars for people with Work Permit issues.