3 APPG memberships (as of 20 Nov 2024)
Domestic Violence and Abuse, Migration, Social Science and Policy15 Former APPG memberships
Carers, Compassionate Politics, Complex Needs and Dual Diagnosis, Food Banks, Health and the Natural Environment, Immigration Detention, Inappropriate Institutional Care of Autistic People and People with Learning Disabilities, Mindfulness, No Recourse to Public Funds, Poverty, Refugees, Rule of Law, Social Mobility, Tennis, Universal CreditDivision Voting information
Debates during the 2024 Parliament
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
Sparring Partners
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
(8 debate interactions)
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
(4 debate interactions)
Department Debates
(7 debate contributions)
(6 debate contributions)
(3 debate contributions)
(2 debate contributions)
Legislation Debates
Baroness Lister of Burtersett has not made any spoken contributions to legislative debateLords initiatives
These initiatives were driven by Baroness Lister of Burtersett, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
2 Bills introduced by Baroness Lister of Burtersett
A Bill to introduce a minimum period of 56 days after an asylum claim is determined before an asylum claim is considered to be determined for the purposes of ending asylum support; to make provision about the serving of documentation relevant to the ending of asylum support following an asylum determination; and connected purposes.
Friday 13th December 2024
Order Paper number: 4
(Possibly be Debated)
A bill to introduce a minimum period of 56 days before an asylum claim is considered to be determined for the purpose of ending asylum support
Baroness Lister of Burtersett has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
Latest 36 Written Questions
(View all written questions)1 Other Department Questions
We will commence the socio-economic duty in section 1 of the Equality Act 2010 through a commencement order in due course. The duty will require public bodies, when making strategic decisions, to actively consider how their decisions might help to reduce the inequalities associated with socio-economic disadvantage. To ensure effective implementation, we will develop guidance to help relevant authorities comply with the duty once commenced. We will be updating Parliament on this in due course.
Minister of State (Education)
The Child Poverty Taskforce is working to publish the Child Poverty Strategy in Spring 2025.
The publication on 23 October ‘Tackling Child Poverty: Developing our Strategy’ sets out how we will develop the Strategy, harnessing all available levers to deliver a reduction in child poverty this Parliament.
Beyond the Child Poverty Taskforce, the Department for Work and Pensions has recently concluded a public consultation on Child Maintenance Service (CMS) reform, with a government response to be published in due course and is reviewing the child maintenance calculation.
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
2 Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport Questions
(View all Baroness Lister of Burtersett's DCMS questions)The Government provides the majority of funding for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England - which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding in areas of greatest need to tackle inactivity levels through community-led solutions.
Between 2022 and 2024, Sport England and delivery partners in other parts of the UK, invested £161 million into grassroots football facilities, providing new and upgraded pitches and facilities.
In 2024/25, the Government and our partners are investing £123 million UK-wide. This funding will provide clubs and sites with new and resurfaced pitches, changing rooms and pavilions, maintenance machinery, floodlights, goalposts, and more.
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Sir Andy Murray has contributed a huge amount to British sport throughout his long career, both on and off the court. We know how important access to facilities is as part of the legacy of our sporting heroes, so people can try the sports they see on screen. The Government has committed to continue to support grassroots facilities across the UK.
As part of the Park Tennis Court Programme, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Lawn Tennis Association are investing over £30 million between 2022-2024 to deliver improvements to over 3,000 park tennis courts across Great Britain. The renovation works include the installation of digital access gates, court nets, fencing, re-surfacing, and re-painting - all of which aim to improve access and increase participation in tennis, whilst prioritising the courts in the most deprived communities.
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Every child, regardless of their background or family circumstances, deserves the opportunity to progress and succeed in school and beyond. There is no place for hate or prejudice in our education system.
Under the Equality Act 2010, schools must not discriminate against a pupil in a number of respects because of a characteristic protected by the Act.
The Public Sector Equality Duty requires public bodies, including maintained schools and academies, to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination and other conduct prohibited by the Act; advance equality of opportunity for people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not share it; and foster good relations across all characteristics.
The department has published guidance for schools on how to comply with their duties under the Equality Act 2010, which is attached and can also be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equality-act-2010-advice-for-schools.
The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The Curriculum and Assessment Review will seek to deliver a curriculum that reflects the issues and diversities of our society, ensuring all children and young people benefit from a curriculum that represents them and their families. When the reforms coming out of the review are implemented, the department intends that all schools will be required to teach the core National Curriculum.
The review group has recently launched a call for evidence, setting out a number of key questions and themes where it would particularly welcome evidence and input.
The department respects the autonomy of schools and teachers in terms of what resources they choose to use or recommend to their individual pupils, based on individual need in their own educational context and circumstances.
School Initial Teacher Training (ITT) courses must be designed so that trainee teachers can demonstrate that they meet all of the Teachers’ Standards at the end of their course.
Part Two of the Teachers’ Standards covers personal and professional conduct and specifically includes "not undermining fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs".
The Equality Act 2010 requires accredited ITT providers to ensure that they are not discriminating against applicants on the basis of any protected characteristics.
Minister of State (Education)
The government is determined that the higher education (HE) funding system should deliver for the economy, for universities and for students and will look carefully at all options and come forward with proposals.
Funding plans for the HE sector will be set out at the relevant fiscal event, in line with the approach to public spending commitments across government.
All HE providers registered with the Office for Students (OfS), that intend to charge higher fees, must have an Access and Participation Plan (APP) approved by the OfS. These need to set out the underrepresented groups they will support and the ways that they will do so. Interventions can include tutoring disadvantaged students in the local area, but also activities such as academy sponsorship, outreach, summer schools and student bursaries. HE providers are expected to evaluate their interventions to demonstrate effectiveness.
Minister of State (Education)
11 Department for Work and Pensions Questions
(View all Baroness Lister of Burtersett's DWP questions)We are committed to reviewing Universal Credit to make sure it is doing the job we want it to do. We have begun this work with the announcement of the Fair Repayment Rate in the Budget and we will continue to work with stakeholders closely as the review progresses. We will regularly update Parliament on progress.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is required by law to undertake an annual review of benefits and State Pensions, based on a review of trends in prices and earnings growth in the preceding year. The Secretary of State announced her decisions to Parliament on 30 October.
The basic and new state pensions, and the standard minimum guarantee in pension credit, will be increased by 4.1%, in line with the increase in average weekly earnings in the year to May-July 2024. Other state pension and benefit rates covered by the statutory review will be increased by 1.7%, in line with the increase in the consumer prices index in the year to September 2024. The full list of proposed State Pension and benefit rates for 2025/26 will be published in November.
This increases expenditure on state pensions and benefits by £6.9 billion in 2025/26 compared with not uprating in 25/26, of which, £4.7 billion will be from state pensions and pensioner benefits, £0.9 billion from disability and carers benefits, and £1.2 billion from working-age benefits.
Statistics on the number and type of families and individuals in families benefitting from the uprating of benefits, were also made available on 30 October. Further detail can be found here Benefit uprating: estimated number and type of families and individuals in families benefitting from the uprating of benefits in financial year 2025 to 2026 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
No estimate has been made of what the total cost for all types of benefits available to working age adults and children would be for each 0.1 per cent increment increase in April 2025.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
In the latest year [2022-23] of the Family Resources Survey approximately 11% of adults were black or minority ethnic individuals. This sample is large enough to provide income and poverty data breakdowns by ethnicity.
The Family Resources Survey sample is drawn by address with stratification of postcode areas by economic standing, such that the achieved sample is representative by economic status. The FRS sample is not drawn by any family characteristic, protected or otherwise, because only the address is known at the point of draw; the address’ occupants are unknown until the later stage of interview. Thus, there is no direct mechanism to alter the issued sample to increase the number of black or minority ethnic families.
We already publish accredited official statistics, including poverty data broken down by ethnicity, in the annual Family Resources Survey-based Households below average income (HBAI) statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab).
In addition, we use the Family Resources Survey data to publish additional low income data by ethnicity in the Ethnicity Facts and Figures portal - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk_ (opens in new tab).
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Statistics on the ethnic group of those who have received a Universal Credit (UC) adverse sanction decision from April 2023 to April 2024, are available in section 4.2 of the latest release of the Benefit Sanction Statistics publication and in table 7.1 on the latest data tables on the GOV.UK website.
However, these statistics are descriptive and as such do not facilitate consideration of disparities. To measure any disparities would require analysis of the sanction rate, which is calculated by dividing the number of claimants undergoing a sanction by the number of UC claimants who are in conditionality regimes where sanctions can be applied, at a point in time.
The level of ethnicity declarations for those claimants included within the sanction rate measure, which would be needed to assess any disparities, has not reached the minimum level of 70% in any month. The Department will continue to monitor the level of ethnicity declarations in relation to the sanction rate with the goal of publishing statistics on sanction rate and ethnicity once the 70% threshold is reached.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has announced funding to extend the Household Support Fund (HSF) for a further 6 months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025.
An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the HSF in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual.
As with previous HSF schemes, the Fund will be made available to County Councils and Unitary Authorities in England to provide discretionary support to those most in need.
The HSF scheme guidance and individual Local Authority funding allocations for the forthcoming extension will be announced as soon as possible ahead of the scheme beginning on 1 October 2024.
DWP is conducting an evaluation of the fourth iteration of the Household Support Fund. This includes research with a selection of representative Local Authority case study areas, consisting of interviews with Local Authority officials and their delivery partners, and surveys and interviews with recipients of the HSF. This evaluation will provide key evidence on how Local Authorities are delivering the scheme, and their experiences of doing so, as well as the effectiveness of the funding for recipients.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
No estimates have been published.
While we cannot commit to changing the two child policy at this time, tackling child poverty is at the heart of the Government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and improve the life chances of every child. This is why the child poverty taskforce will look at all available levers to reduce child poverty, including social security reforms, before publishing a strategy in Spring 2025.
The taskforce will engage external experts throughout the strategy development process including through a rolling programme of meetings, with sessions built thematically to bring together a broad range of experts on specific topics.
The Government also recognises the importance of capturing the experiences of those living in poverty which is why the taskforce will also draw on findings from wider external engagement events in all regions and nations of the UK. These events will convene a broader range of voices, including bringing in the perspectives of families and children themselves.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The new Ministerial Taskforce will drive cross-government action on child poverty, starting with overseeing the development of our ambitious new strategy in line with the Opportunity Mission.
We will continue to engage with leading organisations, charities, campaigners and parents to shape and inform these plans. After initial engagement, the formal work to develop the new child poverty strategy will begin, and the Taskforce terms of reference will be published in the coming weeks. Recognising the wide-ranging causes of child poverty, we will explore how we can use all the available levers we have across government and wider society to drive forward the change our children need.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
No recent estimates have been published but external estimates are available. Tacking child poverty is at the heart of this Government's mission to break down barriers to opportunity. Our new Ministerial Taskforce will oversee the development of an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty, tackle its root causes, and give every child the best start to life.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The new Ministerial Taskforce will drive cross-government action on child poverty, starting with overseeing the development of our ambitious new strategy in line with the Opportunity Mission.
We will continue to engage with leading organisations, charities, campaigners and parents to shape and inform these plans. After initial engagement, the formal work to develop the new child poverty strategy will begin, and the Taskforce terms of reference will be published in the coming weeks. Recognising the wide-ranging causes of child poverty, we will explore how we can use all the available levers we have across government and wider society to drive forward the change our children need.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The new Ministerial Taskforce will drive cross-government action on child poverty, starting with overseeing the development of our ambitious new strategy in line with the Opportunity Mission.
We will continue to engage with leading organisations, charities, campaigners and parents to shape and inform these plans. After initial engagement, the formal work to develop the new child poverty strategy will begin, and the Taskforce terms of reference will be published in the coming weeks. Recognising the wide-ranging causes of child poverty, we will explore how we can use all the available levers we have across government and wider society to drive forward the change our children need.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
3 Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Questions
(View all Baroness Lister of Burtersett's FCDO questions)Under the terms of the agreement, Mauritius will be free to implement a programme of resettlement on the islands other than Diego Garcia. The terms of resettlement will be for Mauritius to determine. We will also work with Mauritius to restart visits to the islands, including Diego Garcia, for Chagossians.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Under the terms of the agreement between the UK and Mauritius, Mauritius will be free to implement a programme of resettlement on the islands, other than Diego Garcia. The terms of resettlement will be for Mauritius to determine. We will also work with Mauritius to start a new programme of visits for Chagossians to the Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia. The UK provided compensation to the Chagossian community in the 1980s that courts have ruled was paid in full and final settlement. As part of the agreement between the UK and Mauritius, we will finance a new trust fund for Mauritius to support Chagossians. We will also increase our support to Chagossians living in the UK and around the world, through new and existing projects.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Ministers and officials will continue to regularly engage with members of the Chagossian community in the UK, Mauritius and Seychelles on a range of issues, including on the implementation of the agreement between the United Kingdom and Mauritius. We recognise the importance of the islands to Chagossians and have worked to ensure this state-to-state agreement reflects their interests.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Home Office takes our duty of care towards children and young people extremely seriously and we prioritise asylum applications from children and young people. We do not run the Scottish Guardianship Service and the evaluation is therefore for the Scottish government, but we welcome the support offered to unaccompanied asylum seeking children by the service.
Minister of State (Home Office)
Currently, a newly recognised refugee gets 28 days to move on from asylum accommodation following the issue of their Biometric Residence Permit (BRP). The introduction of eVisas means that changes will need to be made to the move on process. We will provide further information on the initiation of the move on period before we stop issuing BRPs.
When the Home Office stops issuing Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) to newly recognised refugees without a previous BRP or valid passport, we will create a UKVI account and eVisa for them within 14 days of a positive decision on their Asylum claim being served. This action will be referenced in their decision letter.
We will inform the person that their UKVI account has been created and provide the necessary information for them to sign in. This communication will also include details on how to get support for accessing or reporting any issues with their eVisa.
Currently, people sign in to their UKVI account using a Document Number and Date of Birth. For those without a document, we will issue a new reference number, known as a UKVI Customer Number, which can be used alongside their Date of Birth to sign in and view their eVisa.
We acknowledge the existing challenges in delivering correspondence and BRP cards to newly recognised refugees. We are exploring the best ways to provide this information, including making increased efforts to capture contact details during the asylum process.
Minister of State (Home Office)
We are determined to restore order to the asylum system so that it operates swiftly, firmly, and fairly. Clearing the asylum backlog is our priority.
It is a financial necessity to start clearing the asylum backlog so that those costs do not continue to mount up at the expense of the taxpayer. The Home Secretary changed the law to remove the retrospective application of the Illegal Migration Act. This allows decision-makers to decide asylum claims from individuals who have arrived in the UK from 7 March 2023. Asylum interviews have commenced, and asylum claims are now being decided for individuals who arrived in the UK from 7 March 2023.
The Home Office continues to invest in a programme of transformation and business improvement initiatives to speed up and simplify decision making, reduce the time people spend in the asylum system and decrease the number of people who are awaiting an interview or decision.
Minister of State (Home Office)
In line with the duties introduced by the Equality Act 2010, the Home Office undertakes an equality impact assessment whenever decisions are taken on policy relating to registering statutory rights to British citizenship. Most recently, equality impact assessments were undertaken when changes were made to Section 3(1) British Nationality Act 1981 and on the introduction of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022.
There are various provisions within the British Nationality Act 1981 that allow for children born in the UK to register as British citizens. The Home Office has published clear and easy to follow guidance for applications under each of these sections. Home Office caseworkers are trained to carry out their duties to ensure that those who apply and meet the statutory requirements are granted citizenship.
Minister of State (Home Office)
In line with the duties introduced by the Equality Act 2010, the Home Office undertakes an equality impact assessment whenever decisions are taken on policy relating to registering statutory rights to British citizenship. Most recently, equality impact assessments were undertaken when changes were made to Section 3(1) British Nationality Act 1981 and on the introduction of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022.
There are various provisions within the British Nationality Act 1981 that allow for children born in the UK to register as British citizens. The Home Office has published clear and easy to follow guidance for applications under each of these sections. Home Office caseworkers are trained to carry out their duties to ensure that those who apply and meet the statutory requirements are granted citizenship.
Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office regularly engages with local authorities to support them in ensuring that children in local authority care, who are not already British citizens, can make an appropriate application for registration for citizenship. Children in local authority care are not required to pay an application fee when applying for registration as a British citizen.
In most cases, local authorities have access to the information needed to establish the citizenship rights and apply for registration for children in their care. Where there are evidence gaps, the Home Office will assist any applicant by checking information held in its records to confirm a claim.
Following the implementation of the British Nationality Act 1981, a range of explanatory material was prepared to support those affected by changes made by the Act. This material has been maintained and now forms part of the content of the relevant GOV.UK pages. The Home Office maintains published customer guidance for every British citizenship and nationality route, and also provides a British nationality status confirmation service.
Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office regularly engages with local authorities to support them in ensuring that children in local authority care, who are not already British citizens, can make an appropriate application for registration for citizenship. Children in local authority care are not required to pay an application fee when applying for registration as a British citizen.
In most cases, local authorities have access to the information needed to establish the citizenship rights and apply for registration for children in their care. Where there are evidence gaps, the Home Office will assist any applicant by checking information held in its records to confirm a claim.
Following the implementation of the British Nationality Act 1981, a range of explanatory material was prepared to support those affected by changes made by the Act. This material has been maintained and now forms part of the content of the relevant GOV.UK pages. The Home Office maintains published customer guidance for every British citizenship and nationality route, and also provides a British nationality status confirmation service.
Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office regularly engages with local authorities to support them in ensuring that children in local authority care, who are not already British citizens, can make an appropriate application for registration for citizenship. Children in local authority care are not required to pay an application fee when applying for registration as a British citizen.
In most cases, local authorities have access to the information needed to establish the citizenship rights and apply for registration for children in their care. Where there are evidence gaps, the Home Office will assist any applicant by checking information held in its records to confirm a claim.
Following the implementation of the British Nationality Act 1981, a range of explanatory material was prepared to support those affected by changes made by the Act. This material has been maintained and now forms part of the content of the relevant GOV.UK pages. The Home Office maintains published customer guidance for every British citizenship and nationality route, and also provides a British nationality status confirmation service.
Minister of State (Home Office)
The government is keeping all existing pathways under review in response to events in Gaza.
Minister of State (Home Office)
As part of our move to a ‘digital by default’ border and immigration system, physical immigration documents are being replaced by fully digital eVisas (an online record of the person’s immigration status).
We understand some customers may feel apprehensive about transitioning to and navigating a digital system. We have already put a range of measures in place to support vulnerable and digitally excluded customers, including Assisted Digital support for account creation; ‘helper’ and ‘proxy’ roles who can assist with specific tasks or manage an account for the customer; and a dedicated contact centre that can help customers to access or recover their account, update their personal details or share immigration status information on their behalf if they are unable to do so.
In addition, we have a dedicated programme of grant funding, which will enable organisations to support vulnerable people, including those experiencing homelessness, to create UKVI accounts and accessing their eVisas. We expect these grant funded organisations to be operational by Autumn. Further details about the organisations will be published on gov.uk in due course.
We are working collaboratively with a range of third-party stakeholders who offer support to people requiring assistance in creating a UKVI account and accessing their eVisa. Information on accessing this support is available on gov.uk.
We will not curtail a person’s permission to stay in the UK if they fail to create a UKVI account before their BRP expires. For many, the end 2024 deadline will have no impact; most people don’t need to prove their immigration status on a day-to-day basis, and many of the checks performed will be unaffected by the expiry of Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs). BRP holders will still be able to use the online right to work and rent services to prove their rights once their BRP expires – provided they still have valid status – although we will encourage them to register for a UKVI account to access those services instead. If a customer cannot create an account before their BRP expires at the end of 2024, they will still be able to create a UKVI account quickly and easily after that date, using their expired BRP if needed.
While we are encouraging people who were issued with older forms of evidence of immigration status, such as ink stamps in passports, to transition to eVisas, they will still be able to prove their rights as they do today, using their legacy documents where these are permitted. That will not change at the end of the year.
The No Time Limit (NTL) process is for people with historic (legacy) status who want to upgrade to a modern, digital product and take advantage of its benefits, as well as for those who have lost their BRP or whose BRP has expired. Currently, we give them a BRP at the end of the process, whereas in the future they will be issued an eVisa, which will streamline the process.
Requests for evidence in such cases are an opportunity for the person to show that their leave has not lapsed and are conducted in line with the existing published guidance. We apply a balance of probabilities approach and exercise discretion where appropriate. We will also continue to support customers, especially those who may be vulnerable, including via our Assisted Digital service which is available in the UK to provide individual support by phone and email to individuals who require assistance with IT-related aspects of transitioning to eVisas.
Further information about eVisas and future updates will be available at www.gov.uk/evisa.
Minister of State (Home Office)
As part of our move to a ‘digital by default’ border and immigration system, physical immigration documents are being replaced by fully digital eVisas (an online record of the person’s immigration status).
We understand some customers may feel apprehensive about transitioning to and navigating a digital system. We have already put a range of measures in place to support vulnerable and digitally excluded customers, including Assisted Digital support for account creation; ‘helper’ and ‘proxy’ roles who can assist with specific tasks or manage an account for the customer; and a dedicated contact centre that can help customers to access or recover their account, update their personal details or share immigration status information on their behalf if they are unable to do so.
In addition, we have a dedicated programme of grant funding, which will enable organisations to support vulnerable people, including those experiencing homelessness, to create UKVI accounts and accessing their eVisas. We expect these grant funded organisations to be operational by Autumn. Further details about the organisations will be published on gov.uk in due course.
We are working collaboratively with a range of third-party stakeholders who offer support to people requiring assistance in creating a UKVI account and accessing their eVisa. Information on accessing this support is available on gov.uk.
We will not curtail a person’s permission to stay in the UK if they fail to create a UKVI account before their BRP expires. For many, the end 2024 deadline will have no impact; most people don’t need to prove their immigration status on a day-to-day basis, and many of the checks performed will be unaffected by the expiry of Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs). BRP holders will still be able to use the online right to work and rent services to prove their rights once their BRP expires – provided they still have valid status – although we will encourage them to register for a UKVI account to access those services instead. If a customer cannot create an account before their BRP expires at the end of 2024, they will still be able to create a UKVI account quickly and easily after that date, using their expired BRP if needed.
While we are encouraging people who were issued with older forms of evidence of immigration status, such as ink stamps in passports, to transition to eVisas, they will still be able to prove their rights as they do today, using their legacy documents where these are permitted. That will not change at the end of the year.
The No Time Limit (NTL) process is for people with historic (legacy) status who want to upgrade to a modern, digital product and take advantage of its benefits, as well as for those who have lost their BRP or whose BRP has expired. Currently, we give them a BRP at the end of the process, whereas in the future they will be issued an eVisa, which will streamline the process.
Requests for evidence in such cases are an opportunity for the person to show that their leave has not lapsed and are conducted in line with the existing published guidance. We apply a balance of probabilities approach and exercise discretion where appropriate. We will also continue to support customers, especially those who may be vulnerable, including via our Assisted Digital service which is available in the UK to provide individual support by phone and email to individuals who require assistance with IT-related aspects of transitioning to eVisas.
Further information about eVisas and future updates will be available at www.gov.uk/evisa.
Minister of State (Home Office)
As part of our move to a ‘digital by default’ border and immigration system, physical immigration documents are being replaced by fully digital eVisas (an online record of the person’s immigration status).
We understand some customers may feel apprehensive about transitioning to and navigating a digital system. We have already put a range of measures in place to support vulnerable and digitally excluded customers, including Assisted Digital support for account creation; ‘helper’ and ‘proxy’ roles who can assist with specific tasks or manage an account for the customer; and a dedicated contact centre that can help customers to access or recover their account, update their personal details or share immigration status information on their behalf if they are unable to do so.
In addition, we have a dedicated programme of grant funding, which will enable organisations to support vulnerable people, including those experiencing homelessness, to create UKVI accounts and accessing their eVisas. We expect these grant funded organisations to be operational by Autumn. Further details about the organisations will be published on gov.uk in due course.
We are working collaboratively with a range of third-party stakeholders who offer support to people requiring assistance in creating a UKVI account and accessing their eVisa. Information on accessing this support is available on gov.uk.
We will not curtail a person’s permission to stay in the UK if they fail to create a UKVI account before their BRP expires. For many, the end 2024 deadline will have no impact; most people don’t need to prove their immigration status on a day-to-day basis, and many of the checks performed will be unaffected by the expiry of Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs). BRP holders will still be able to use the online right to work and rent services to prove their rights once their BRP expires – provided they still have valid status – although we will encourage them to register for a UKVI account to access those services instead. If a customer cannot create an account before their BRP expires at the end of 2024, they will still be able to create a UKVI account quickly and easily after that date, using their expired BRP if needed.
While we are encouraging people who were issued with older forms of evidence of immigration status, such as ink stamps in passports, to transition to eVisas, they will still be able to prove their rights as they do today, using their legacy documents where these are permitted. That will not change at the end of the year.
The No Time Limit (NTL) process is for people with historic (legacy) status who want to upgrade to a modern, digital product and take advantage of its benefits, as well as for those who have lost their BRP or whose BRP has expired. Currently, we give them a BRP at the end of the process, whereas in the future they will be issued an eVisa, which will streamline the process.
Requests for evidence in such cases are an opportunity for the person to show that their leave has not lapsed and are conducted in line with the existing published guidance. We apply a balance of probabilities approach and exercise discretion where appropriate. We will also continue to support customers, especially those who may be vulnerable, including via our Assisted Digital service which is available in the UK to provide individual support by phone and email to individuals who require assistance with IT-related aspects of transitioning to eVisas.
Further information about eVisas and future updates will be available at www.gov.uk/evisa.
Minister of State (Home Office)
During the testing phase of the eVisa transition, the Home Office, under the previous administration, started emailing BRP holders directly in April 2024 with instructions on how to create a UKVI account to access their eVisa. This included sending anonymised invitations based on available contact email addresses.
We are now looking to start using other communication methods, such as text messages. As contact details may get out of date, we plan a wider external communications campaign to reach key stakeholders such as employers, landlords and education establishments. This will include the development of a range of communications materials, routine updates on GOV.UK and extensive engagement with relevant stakeholders, in addition to direct messaging to those affected. The number of people who have created UKVI accounts to access their eVisas is changing rapidly, with a large number of customers already having created their UKVI accounts successfully.
Minister of State (Home Office)
An Equality Impact Assessment (EIA) was completed on the first phase of the roll out of eVisas to EEA nationals on 9 November 2020, which built on the Policy Equality Statement (PES) for the EUSS which was produced in 2017 and published on the gov.uk website on 18 November 2020:
Policy equality statement: EU Settlement Scheme (accessible version) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
A separate EIA considering equalities issues in relation to the use of digital only right to work and rent checks was published on gov.uk in June 2022: Digital only right to work and rent checks: equality impact assessment (accessible) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
We are also in the process of reviewing our eVisas EIA, setting out further analysis of the equalities issues in relation to the proposed prioritisation plan for roll out of eVisas and ceasing to issue physical documents. We plan to publish an up-to-date version of this EIA on gov.uk in a due course.
Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is determined to restore order to the immigration system so that it operates swiftly, firmly, and fairly.
We remain committed to engaging with local authorities and key stakeholders as we continue to identify a range of options to help those integrating into our communities.
The new Home Secretary will decide on the future of current Home Office policies and announcements will be made to Parliament in due course.
Minister of State (Home Office)