The Home Office says Immigration Enforcement illegal working raids and arrests hit their highest recorded level between July 2024 and the end of December 2025, a trend that matters to employers and workers.
Key facts
- Who: Employers, including small businesses in sectors such as nail bars, car washes, barbers, takeaway shops, restaurants and construction, and the people they employ
- From: 13 January 2026
- Source: Immigration Enforcement raids reach highest level in history (Home Office, GOV.UK)
The Home Office announced on 13 January 2026 that illegal working raids and arrests are at the highest level in British history. It says the number of raids has risen by 77% since the government took office, with an 83% rise in arrests, measured from July 2024 to the end of December 2025.
More than 17,400 raids were carried out over that period, and the Home Office names nail bars, car washes, barbers and takeaway shops among the businesses targeted. It says the major uplift, which led to more than 12,300 arrests, was made possible by a £5 million funding boost for Immigration Enforcement last year.
In Wales, 1,320 raids were carried out in 2025, leading to 649 arrests. The Home Office says that is a 103% and 85% rise respectively compared with 2024.
Examples given from Wales include three visits to packaging and distribution warehouses in Caldicot on 5 August, which led to eight arrests, and a visit to a barbers in Porthmadog on 12 September, which led to three arrests. A visit to a commercial construction site in Gower, Swansea, led to seven arrests.
The announcement also describes related measures:
- Immigration Enforcement officers across the UK now have body-worn video technology, which the Home Office says will help bolster arrests and prosecutions.
- Under the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act, right to work checks are being expanded to cover the gig, casual, subcontracted and temporary worker economy.
- The government has announced that digital ID will be mandatory to prove a right to work by the end of Parliament. It says this will give employers a simpler, more consistent way to check eligibility, and will help identify businesses that fail to carry out checks.
What this means for employers and workers
The figures show enforcement activity has increased across the UK, including in Wales.
The planned expansion of right to work checks to gig, casual, subcontracted and temporary workers means businesses that use those arrangements should keep an eye on how the change affects them. The government's plan for mandatory digital ID is also intended to change how employers prove eligibility to work.
Employers unsure how these developments apply to their own circumstances should take legal advice.
Sources
- Home Office, Immigration Enforcement raids reach highest level in history, GOV.UK, 13 January 2026