Under paragraph 360 of Part 11B of the Immigration Rules, an asylum seeker may apply for permission to work if:
Permission to work is not granted automatically after 12 months. An application must be made to the Home Office and approved before employment can begin.
If the Home Office considers that the applicant has contributed to the delay in deciding their claim, permission to work may be refused.
An application for permission to work must be made using the PTW1 form, which is available online. An applicant can complete the form themselves or ask their immigration lawyer to assist them.
Once completed, the application can currently be submitted by post to:
Permission to Work Team
Level 0
Capital Building
Old Hall Street
Liverpool
L3 9PP
Alternatively, the completed form can be submitted by email to: AsylumPTW@homeoffice.gov.uk
There is currently no Home Office fee for making an application for permission to work.
If permission to work is granted, the asylum seeker will receive an updated Application Registration Card (ARC). This card will confirm whether they are permitted to work and will typically display either:
See the Home Office guidance for examples of Application Registration Cards and the work categories shown on them.
Following the grant of permission, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will usually contact the individual and invite them to apply for a National Insurance number, which will also be required by employers.
Employers must carry out the appropriate right to work checks before employment begins.
Where an asylum seeker presents permission to work, employers should:
Employers should also check that the particular job being offered falls within any restrictions attached to the individual's permission to work.
This is important because permission to work as an asylum seeker does not necessarily mean that the individual is permitted to undertake any job in the UK.
Yes. Even where permission to work is granted, the employment an asylum seeker can undertake is heavily restricted.
An asylum seeker with permission to work is generally limited to roles:
Permission to work does not allow an asylum seeker to:
This is one of the most restrictive aspects of working as an asylum seeker. In practice, an individual may be granted permission to work but still find it difficult to secure a job that falls within the categories permitted by the Home Office.
Obtaining employment may affect an individual's eligibility for both asylum support and legal aid.
Asylum support under section 95 and legal aid are both subject to a means test, which means that an individual’s income must come under a specified threshold to receive living support, accommodation, and access to a free lawyer.
If an asylum seeker begins earning a regular income after obtaining permission to work, this may affect their eligibility for Asylum Support and Legal Aid.
Depending on their individual circumstances, employment could result in:
The financial thresholds differ between asylum support and legal aid, so individual eligibility should always be checked with Migrant Help and any legal aid provider.
Anyone who secures employment should notify Migrant Help immediately by reporting a ‘Change of Circumstances’. Failure to notify Migrant Help, may result in Asylum Support being withdrawn altogether, even if they would have remained eligible otherwise.
The right to work will depend on the progress and outcome of the individual's protection claim.
If an individual is granted refugee status, they will usually receive unrestricted permission to work in the UK.
This means they can continue working without the restrictions that applied to their permission to work as an asylum seeker.
Where an asylum claim is refused and an in-time appeal is lodged, permission to work that was granted while the asylum claim was pending can generally continue while the appeal is heard.
An asylum seeker who becomes Appeal Rights Exhausted (ARE) will lose permission to work in the UK.
Similarly, if an appeal is not lodged within the relevant deadline, the individual may lose both their right to work and their right to remain in the UK.
Yes. Asylum seekers can undertake genuine voluntary work at any stage of the asylum process without first obtaining permission to work.
However, there is an important distinction between volunteering and unpaid employment.
Volunteering must not amount to unpaid work or replace a role that would normally be undertaken by a paid worker.
A genuine volunteering arrangement should generally involve:
Volunteering can provide asylum seekers with valuable opportunities to develop skills, gain experience, build connections and contribute to their local communities while their asylum claim remains outstanding.