Late on Tuesday evening (18 November) the House of Lords completed its third-reading scrutiny of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, tidying drafting issues but making no fresh amendments. The legislation—first introduced in June—bundles tougher powers to interdict small-boat crossings, extends counter-terrorism search powers to immigration officers and lays the groundwork for a new digital visa-status registry.
Because peers did not alter the text at third reading, the Bill now returns to the House of Commons for ‘ping-pong’ consideration of earlier Lords amendments, a stage that ministers expect to conclude before Parliament rises for the Christmas recess. If enacted this winter, the Home Office hopes to commence key provisions—such as expanded ship-stop powers and data-sharing with HMRC—by spring 2026.
![House of Lords sends Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill back to Commons]()
For mobility managers the headline change is a statutory duty on sponsors to share payroll and location data with the Home Office on request. Failure to comply could attract civil penalties of up to £60,000. Businesses relying on frequent short-term visits will also note a new civil-litigation route enabling Border Force to fine carriers that fail to use the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) system once it becomes universal next April.
Human-rights groups have warned that the Bill risks eroding appeal safeguards, but ministers insist that streamlined asylum decision-making will reduce hotel costs and accelerate removals of failed claimants. Companies moving talent into the UK should review their right-to-work compliance protocols and ensure sponsor management systems can generate real-time data feeds if required under the new regime.
Because peers did not alter the text at third reading, the Bill now returns to the House of Commons for ‘ping-pong’ consideration of earlier Lords amendments, a stage that ministers expect to conclude before Parliament rises for the Christmas recess. If enacted this winter, the Home Office hopes to commence key provisions—such as expanded ship-stop powers and data-sharing with HMRC—by spring 2026.
For mobility managers the headline change is a statutory duty on sponsors to share payroll and location data with the Home Office on request. Failure to comply could attract civil penalties of up to £60,000. Businesses relying on frequent short-term visits will also note a new civil-litigation route enabling Border Force to fine carriers that fail to use the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) system once it becomes universal next April.
Human-rights groups have warned that the Bill risks eroding appeal safeguards, but ministers insist that streamlined asylum decision-making will reduce hotel costs and accelerate removals of failed claimants. Companies moving talent into the UK should review their right-to-work compliance protocols and ensure sponsor management systems can generate real-time data feeds if required under the new regime.
