Between October 2024 and September 2025, Immigration Enforcement officers arrested more than 350 illegal workers and carried out over 500 visits across Scotland – up almost a third on the previous 12 months.

Recent operations include an August enforcement visit to a restaurant in Lochgelly, Fife, where two men from Pakistan and India were detained for alleged illegal working. In September, two Indian nationals were arrested at a restaurant in Fort William, while a further five arrests were made at an Aberdeen takeaway in October.

Civil penalty referral notices were issued to all three businesses, meaning they could face fines if found liable.

The clampdown forms part of Operation Sterling, a £5 million UK government initiative targeting illegal working in takeaways, beauty salons, fast food delivery services and car washes. Across the UK, arrests for illegal working have risen by 63 per cent, the highest level on record.

Under new laws expanding right-to-work checks to the gig economy, employers found hiring illegal workers now face fines of up to £60,000 per person, potential prison terms of up to five years, and business closures.

The government has also struck data-sharing agreements with delivery companies including Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats, allowing Immigration Enforcement to cross-check locations of hotels housing asylum seekers against the firms’ rider databases to detect those working illegally.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: “Illegal working creates an incentive for people attempting to arrive in this country illegally. No more.

“Those found to be illegally working in beauty salons, car washes and as delivery drivers will be arrested, detained and removed from this country. I will do whatever it takes to secure Britain’s borders.”

The government is legally obliged under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 to provide accommodation for asylum seekers who cannot support themselves while their claims are being processed.

To qualify for asylum in the UK, applicants must already be within the country and be unable to return home due to a well-founded fear of persecution. Most claimants arrive with limited means and require state housing and support while awaiting a decision on their case.