Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer

We use cookies to improve your experience of our website. You can find out more or opt-out from some cookies.

Menu

Your options if you're in the UK illegally

This advice applies to Scotland

If you're living illegally in the UK, you might be able to apply to make your stay legal. You’ll be living here illegally if you came to the UK without permission or your permission to stay has expired. 

You can also get help returning to your home country if you want to.

If you can’t live in the UK legally but choose to remain here, life could be difficult. You can be charged for some NHS treatment or be detained and removed from the country. You might be exploited at work, struggle to find housing. 

Get immigration advice

There are ways to make your stay legal. An immigration specialist will decide which applies to you. Don't worry, getting advice will be confidential - they won't tell anybody about your query. Contact your nearest Citizens Advice for help finding an adviser in your area. 

You can also call the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants for help. They provide free and confidential advice to people living in the UK illegally. 

Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants
Telephone: 020 7553 7470
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, 10am to 1pm
Calls cost up to 13p per minute from landlines, 3p to 55p from mobiles
www.jcwi.org.uk

Whether you can live in the UK legally will depend on your circumstances. Your application will probably be refused if you apply more than 14 days after your permission to stay has expired. Check your biometric residence permit or passport if you’re not sure when your leave expires.

You might be able to apply to stay in the UK if:

  • it would be very difficult for you to live in the country you would be in - for example because of a lack of work, education, family or friends, or if you wouldn't be accepted back there
  • returning to your home country would be dangerous - perhaps if you would be persecuted
  • you’ve got a partner who has a right to stay in the UK - for example, if the partner is British or an EEA citizen
  • you’ve got children in the UK, especially if they're British citizens, settled or have been in the UK for 7 years or more
  • your last visa was as a partner and you've suffered domestic abuse at the hands of the partner related to your visa

If you’ve got children living in the UK illegally, it’s important to get advice on whether you can make an application for them. They’ll be living illegally if they haven’t been registered for British citizenship or leave to remain. You can read more about what you can do if your child is here illegally. 

If you can't stay in the UK legally

You might be able to get help from the government to arrange and pay for your journey back to your home country. This is known as making a 'voluntary return'. You can contact the Voluntary Returns Service team to find out what help you can get. You can read more about voluntary returns on GOV.UK.

Voluntary Departures and Assisted Voluntary Returns
Telephone: 0300 004 0202
Monday to Friday, 9am to 5.30pm
Calls cost up to 12p per minute from landlines, 3p to 45p from mobiles

You can also apply online for help to leave the country.

Did this advice help?
Why wasn't this advice helpful?

Please tell us more about why our advice didn't help.

Did this advice help?

Thank you, your feedback has been submitted.

Page last reviewed: 22 August 2019