Asylum: Employment
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing those awaiting their asylum applications to be concluded to take paid employment.
Answered by Alex Norris
Asylum seekers are eligible to apply for permission to work in the UK if their claim has been outstanding for 12 months or more, through no fault of their own. Those permitted to work are restricted by the Home Office to apply for jobs on the Skilled Worker occupations at Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) level 6 or above. The list of occupation can be found at: Immigration Rules - Immigration Rules Appendix Skilled Occupations - Guidance - GOV.UK).
The Home Office keeps its policies under regular review. However, there are no current plans to change the permission to work policy for asylum seekers. Instead, our focus is on restoring order and control to the asylum system and ensuring our policies do not encourage people to undercut the resident labour force.
We encourage asylum seekers to undertake volunteering activities in a charitable or public sector organisations whilst awaiting their decision, so long as it does not amount to unpaid work. Volunteering for a charity or public sector organisation provides a valuable contribution to their local community and this will assist with their integration if they ultimately qualify for protection.
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