Asylum and Immigration Bill
The Asylum and Immigration Bill was introduced in July 2026 and we have briefed on the following aspects:
- Our opposition to abolishing the First-tier Tribunal’s oversight for immigration decisions
The Bill replaces the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) with a new immigration appeals body (IIAA), which instead of being made up of expert, independent judges will be controlled significantly by the Home Office. We are opposed to the removal of independent judiciary from deciding appeals on such a complex and important area of law. The IIAA will not reduce the asylum appeal case backlog; it is likely to exacerbate it.
- Article 8 ECHR reform
The UK already has stringent Article 8 rules, especially for deportation cases. There are over two times more lottery millionaires made each year than foreign national offenders who win human rights deportation appeals on Article 8 alone. The most stringent changes in the Bill are not limited to individuals who have committed a criminal offence. They are likely to significantly impact the rights of children, faultless for the actions of their parents, and bring us closer to the threshold of incompatibility with the ECHR.
- Modern slavery provisions
The Bill means the starting point for delays by victims providing information, or inaccurate information, will be that it damages their credibility, unless there is a good reason. This risks perpetuating harmful myths about victims of human trafficking and modern slavery. The Home Office is also removing the duty to grant leave to remain for trafficking victims if necessary for their recovery, an important lifeline for victims which is already seldom used.
- Claim Notices
We are concerned that this will be a form of detained fast track appeal, previously found to be unlawful by the Court of Appeal on the basis of systemic unfairness.
JUSTICE are opposed to the abolition of the immigration Tribunal, which removes independent oversight of the Home Office and will exacerbate (not resolve) the asylum appeal backlog. We have also highlighted concerns around the Article 8 reforms and troubling aspects of the modern slavery law changes.