Part II Carriers’ Liability
Individuals without proper documents or authorisation
F240F1Charge in respect of individual without proper documents or authorisation
F3(1)
The Secretary of State may charge the owner of a ship or aircraft the sum of £2,000 where—
(a)
an individual who would not, on arrival in the United Kingdom, be entitled to enter without leave arrives by travelling on the ship or aircraft, and
(b)
at least one of the Cases set out in subsections (1A) to (1C) applies.
(1A)
Case 1 is where, on being required to do so by an immigration officer, the individual fails to produce an immigration document which is valid and which satisfactorily establishes the individual’s identity and the individual’s nationality or citizenship.
(1B)
Case 2 is where—
(a)
the individual requires an entry clearance,
(b)
an entry clearance in electronic form of the required kind has not been granted, and
(c)
if required to do so by an immigration officer, the individual fails to produce an entry clearance in documentary form of the required kind.
(1C)
Case 3 is where—
(a)
the individual was required not to travel to the United Kingdom unless the individual had an authorisation in electronic form (“an ETA”) under immigration rules made by virtue of section 11C of the Immigration Act 1971 that was valid for the individual’s journey to the United Kingdom, and
(b)
the individual did not have such an ETA.
F4(2)
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(3)
The charge shall be payable to the Secretary of State on demand.
(4)
F5No charge shall be payable on the basis that Case 1 applies in respect of any individual if the owner provides evidence that the individual produced an immigration document of the kind mentioned in subsection (1A) to the owner or his employee or agent when embarking on the ship or aircraft for the voyage or flight to the United Kingdom.
F6(4A)
No charge shall be payable on the basis that Case 2 applies in respect of any individual if the owner provides evidence that—
(a)
the individual produced an entry clearance in documentary form of the required kind to the owner or an employee or agent of the owner when embarking on the ship or aircraft for the voyage or flight to the United Kingdom,
(b)
the owner or an employee or agent of the owner reasonably believed, on the basis of information provided by the Secretary of State in respect of the individual, that the individual did not require an entry clearance of the kind in question,
(c)
the owner or an employee or agent of the owner reasonably believed, on the basis of information provided by the Secretary of State, that an entry clearance in electronic form of the required kind had been granted, or
(d)
the owner or an employee or agent of the owner was unable to establish whether an entry clearance in electronic form of the required kind had been granted in respect of the individual and had a reasonable excuse for being unable to do so.
(4B)
No charge shall be payable on the basis that Case 3 applies in respect of any individual if the owner provides evidence that the owner or an employee or agent of the owner—
(a)
reasonably believed, on the basis of information provided by the Secretary of State in respect of the individual, that the individual was not required to have an ETA that was valid for the individual’s journey to the United Kingdom,
(b)
reasonably believed, on the basis of information provided by the Secretary of State, that the individual had such an ETA, or
(c)
was unable to establish whether the individual had such an ETA and had a reasonable excuse for being unable to do so.
(5)
For the purpose of F7subsection (4) or (4A)(a) an owner shall be entitled to regard a document as—
(a)
being what it purports to be unless its falsity is reasonably apparent, and
(b)
relating to the individual producing it unless it is reasonably apparent that it does not relate to him.
(6)
For the purposes of this section an individual requires F8an entry clearance if—
(a)
under the immigration rules he requires F8an entry clearance for entry into the United Kingdom, or
(b)
as a result of section 41 he requires a visa for passing through the United Kingdom.
(7)
The Secretary of State may by order amend this section for the purpose of applying it in relation to an individual who—
(a)
requires leave to enter the United Kingdom, and
(b)
arrives in the United Kingdom by train.
(8)
An order under subsection (7) may provide for the application of this section—
(a)
except in cases of a specified kind;
(b)
subject to a specified defence.
(9)
In this section “immigration document” means—
(a)
a passport, and
(b)
a document which relates to a national of a country other than the United Kingdom and which is designed to serve the same purpose as a passport.
(10)
The Secretary of State may by order substitute a sum for the sum in F9subsection (1).