Exit of illegal immigrant

[thetoad]

Hi,

Somebody was just asking this question of us and it made us wonder...

If a person illegally entered the UK some time ago (say 5 years) and they attempted to exit - what difficulties might they face? Would it be as simple as a strip search, interrogation and a bar for 10 years or could they face something a lot tougher?

[taylondon]

the london airports generally have no departure passport check, the only passport check is being made at the check-in desk of relevant airline and at the gate before boarding the plane. otherwise UK border agency has got no specific team to check people on their departure. During last 10 years I flew around 100 times and only 1 times I was asked my passport.
for example if a Turkish asylum seeker could get a valid turkish passport from the embassy, he/she can easily travel to Turkey without any question from UK side but when he arrives in Turkey, they would question him that what was he doing in the UK without a valid visa, but this is a simple procedure and the authorities generally let the person go in 2-3 hours unless he is wanted by police order.

[meats]

the london airports generally have no departure passport check, the only passport check is being made at the check-in desk of relevant airline and at the gate before boarding the plane. otherwise UK border agency has got no specific team to check people on their departure. During last 10 years I flew around 100 times and only 1 times I was asked my passport.
for example if a Turkish asylum seeker could get a valid turkish passport from the embassy, he/she can easily travel to Turkey without any question from UK side but when he arrives in Turkey, they would question him that what was he doing in the UK without a valid visa, but this is a simple procedure and the authorities generally let the person go in 2-3 hours unless he is wanted by police order.

Also depends whether or not the overstayer is wanted in connection with a crime etc as then they might be on the system that is used by the Stupid for check in.

[Mr Rusty]

"the london airports generally have no departure passport check"

That isn't true. As recently as 20th October I flew out of Terminal 3 Heathrow and there was the same immigration passport check just after the security barriers that has been there for the last couple of years. I think all the main London airports operate the same way. On the other hand, when I flew out of Birmingham in May I don't recall seeing an IO on departure.

They started making embark checks again at the main departure airports to boost their "removal" figures. Up to then, they had no idea if an asylum seeker, for example, had left the country.

An illegal who presented a passport with no evidence of lawful stay in the UK could expect to be asked a few questions, have his fingerprints checked and if necessary taken, and would probably be served with a notice as an illegal entrant. He could expect to be banned from applying for a visa or leave to enter for one year or 10 years, dependent on whether he was deemed to have left the Uk voluntarily or been removed - the latter would probably be the case.

Unless there was evidence of documentary fraud or some other criminal activity he would be allowed to leave on his flight.

[taylondon]

''the london airports generally have no departure passport check '' is true as ''generally'' does not mean ''always''
they do have passport checks time to time but not always so in general there is no passport check
i flew 100 times over last 10 years and I only was asked my passport once.
therefore from my last 10 years experience I can make the above comment using the word '' generally''