Applying for First-tier Tribunal bail
Applying for the First-tier Tribunal bail process is different from the way in which the Home Office deals with the matter. An application for bail to the First-tier Tribunal should be made on the bail form. It should be sent by the applicant or their representative to the First-tier Tribunal hearing center nearest to where the applicant is detained.
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The First-tier Tribunal is then responsible for listing a bail hearing when they have received an application for bail. They aim to list a bail hearing within 3 days of an application being received by them. If an application is received by them after 3.30 pm it is treated as having been received on the following working day.
Bail summary
The bail summary produced by the caseworker contains:
- the applicant’s personal details;
- the criteria considered for detention;
- details of any Financial Condition Supporter;
- full immigration history and chronology;
- the reasons for opposing bail;
- the conditions to be set if bail is granted;
- a request that the First-tier Tribunal transfer the bail to the Home Office to manage.
Request to vary bail conditions
Where the Home Office wishes to vary an applicant’s bail conditions, for example where we want to increase or decrease their reporting requirement, the team in Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas and Immigration or Border Force managing the case will send the Presenting Officers Unit (POU) a copy of form B3.
That is a Request for Variation of Bail Conditions and Transfer form. Form B3 will be sent to the POU who serves the FTTIAC where the applicant now lives, therefore it may not be sent to the POU who handled the previous bail application. The AIT Workload Allocation document tells casework units what FTTIAC will deal with the variation and Contact details for POUs is the contact details for the POU.
Initial case owner action
When a detainee enters detention the case owner should set a 3-month reminder for making an automatic bail referral in order that they have sufficient time to send the application to Appeals Operations for submission to the FtT at the 4-month point.
That date will be amended in the event that an application for Tribunal bail is made and refused. The case owner will send the detainee the Auto Referral Pack which will include the B1 form used to apply for FtT Bail and the BAIL 501 form (automatic bail opt-in form).
They will give the detainee 5 days to complete the Auto Referral Pack including the B1 application form and the BAIL 501. They will ask that the applicant does not sign the B1. If the detainee indicates that they wish to opt-out of the automatic bail referral process no referral for automatic bail will be sent to Appeals Operations to submit to the FtT, and CID will be updated to reflect this.
If the detainee returns the Auto Referral Pack the case owner should send the completed B1 and the BAIL 502 Automatic Bail Referral letter to the Presenting Officers Unit (POU) who deals with bail applications for where the detainee is currently detained. Details of which FtT hearing center deals with which POU can be found on the POU Hearing Centre Matrix. The B1 form should not be signed.
If the detainee does not return the Auto Referral Pack but does not indicate that they wish to opt-out of the process, the case owner should send the BAIL 503 Auto Bail Referral letter with no application form B1 to the POU who deals with bail applications for where the detainee is currently detained.
Breaches where there is a financial condition
Where the applicant was previously released on bail and a financial condition was one of the conditions imposed on them, the following process shall apply. The casework unit managing the applicant’s bail will notify the Presenting Officers Unit (POU) bail clerk by email that a condition of bail has been breached (AIT Workload Allocation tells casework units which FTTIAC deals with the postcode where the applicant lives whilst POU Hearing Centre Matrix tells them which POU deals with that hearing center).
They will do that by sending the POU the Liability of Payment Summary or BAIL 303 and a request to transfer the bail to the Home Office. The bail clerk should then enter a PLH on the restrictions screen for that date and tell the PO that they can find the relevant documentation in the applicant’s bail file on the Transfer drive. The PO will then present the Home Office’s case at the PLH using the BAIL 303 as the basis for their case.
The Financial Condition Supporter will be given the opportunity to explain to the FTTIAC why they should not be liable to pay the financial condition. The FTTIAC will give their decision orally and will provide a written decision later. After the hearing, the PO should update the outcome of the PLH on the restrictions screen.
Police National Computer Checks
The police have agreed to share PNC checks with the Home Office. PNC checks can be submitted to immigration judges and representatives, providing the information they contain is material to a case and is necessary for legal proceedings, including bail hearings. The PNC check, if it is being relied on by the decision-maker, will form part of the bundle.
