Boris Johnson Calls For Illegal Immigrant Overstayer Amnesty

Cynthia Barker writes...Hi, from a rainy London (back to normal weather) where our famous Mayor, Boris Johnson, has again called for a Home Office amnesty for the hundreds of thousands of visa overstayers and illegal migrants living in the capital.

Going against his party's immigration crackdown policies, which he described as "crazy", the outspoken Conservative Mayor told the Total Politics magazine that people in the UK illegally should be 'legalised' and offered British Citizenship so they can become a part of normal society and pay taxes.

The Home Office fees alone on 500,000 applicants would pay off a sizable chunk of the national debt, especially of they charged a special premium rate.

Boris correctly pointed out that hundreds of thousands of visa overstayers are living in London in a black market job world where they have no papers and pay no taxes to the UK economy:

"The alternative is to continue in a situation in which half a million people or maybe 750,000 people in Britain, most of them in London, not registered, with no papers, contributing to the London economy, making money, but not paying tax," he said.

"Not paying for the NHS, not paying for social services, not paying for all the benefits that they are in many ways consuming. I think that is in the end crazy."

This is not the first time the London Mayor has spoken out against Home Office immigration policies, which he has previously said are not helping growth in the economy because employers cannot hire the right people for skilled job vacancies.

The official Home Office and government line has always been that an amnesty for overstaying migrants would simply encourage more illegal immigration, as it has done in Spain for instance.

I know many Filipinos who have been granted residency after living in Spain or Italy illegally, and some 'TNT's' (a Tagalog term for overstayers) who benefited from a previous amnesty in the UK. Many are holding on for an amnesty, or 'concession'as it is usually called, because they have not had professional advice on their chances of legalising their status in the UK.

But as Boris says, what is the alternative? Leading think tank ippr estimated that it will take 20 years and £5 billion to deport 500,000 illegal immigrants, assuming you could even find them! After 20 years an illegal overstayer would qualify for 'long stay' indefinite leave to remain anyway. Most would have put down 'family life' roots, making if difficult to remove them whilst human rights 'Article 8' applies, especially if they have children who would have already qualified to apply for British citizenship.

If you need advice on any immigration matter, including overstaying your visa, EU or UK immigration law, or want to appeal against a refusal, call Cynthia Barker on 07850 307687 or 0208 731 5972 or email her your details to immigration@londonccs.com. Cynthia Barker is a qualified OISC Registered Immigration Adviser, with 15 years experience in immigration matters, with a team of Level 3 Immigration Law Practitioners, Concept Care Solutions, Middlesex House, 29-45 High Street, Edgware, HA8 7UU.