IAA launches national campaign to protect people from fraudulent, unregulated immigration advisers
The Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) yesterday launched its first nationwide awareness campaign, aimed at protecting people seeking immigration advice from fraudulent, unregulated immigration advisers.
The campaign carries the key message: "Before you trust them, check them," encouraging people to always verify an adviser's credentials before proceeding. You can check the IAA register at portal.immigrationadviceauthority.gov.uk/s/adviser-register to make sure an adviser is authorised to provide immigration advice.
Formerly known as the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC), the IAA sets and enforces professional standards for immigration advisers and takes action against those operating illegally or providing substandard advice.
According to the IAA, pre-campaign research found that many people seeking immigration advice are unaware that advisers must be formally authorised. This lack of awareness can lead individuals to use unregulated advisers, leaving them vulnerable to scams and poor-quality advice that may have serious consequences for their immigration cases.
As the IAA's guidance on becoming an regulated immigration adviser explains, it is a criminal offence in the UK to provide immigration advice or services unless the provider is regulated by the IAA or otherwise authorised under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. Legal professionals do not need to register with the IAA to provide immigration advice if they are members of approved professional bodies recognised under the legislation. These include the General Council of the Bar, Law Society of England and Wales, Chartered Institute of Legal Executives, Faculty of Advocates, Law Society of Scotland, General Council of the Bar of Northern Ireland and Law Society of Northern Ireland.
Karen Eyre-White, Director of Service Delivery at the Immigration Advice Authority, recently spoke to barrister Adam Pipe about the authority's role in regulating immigration advisers. During the discussion, she noted that advisers and organisations are registered at different levels, reflecting the types of immigration advice they are qualified and authorised to provide.
She explained: "In simple terms, a Level 1 advisor can give basic one-off applications within the immigration rules and on asylum, some limited support to asylum seekers. At Level 2, you can deal with much more complex immigration cases and all aspects of an asylum application. And then Level 3 is the level where advisers can represent clients at appeal and also do some judicial review work."
With regard to the IAA's new campaign, Eyre-White emphasised that the authority is keen to ensure it reaches as wide an audience as possible, underlining how important it is for people to use the online Adviser Register. She also pointed to the IAA's online reporting function, which allows individuals to report suspected illegal or poor-quality advice, and noted that the authority is seeking feedback from across the sector to help identify and address misconduct.