Making People Criminal: The Role of the Criminal Law in Immigration Enforcement

Theoretical Criminology. 16 (4), November 2012

Criminal Justice, Borders and Citizenship Research Paper No. 2531049

34 Pages Posted: 28 Nov 2014

See all articles by Ana Aliverti

Ana Aliverti

University of Warwick - School of Law

Date Written: 2012

Abstract

This article analyses the recent expansion of immigration offences and the reasons for relying on the criminal law and its institutions for immigration enforcement. By relating the scholarship on (over) criminalisation with the growth of immigration offences, it explains the origins of the use of criminal law for regulatory purposes and their influence in the immigration control system in Britain. The great reliance on the criminal law to regulate immigration in the last two decades is distinctive of a period in which crime and immigration have been increasingly politicised. In immigration enforcement, criminal law serves both symbolic and practical purposes as many of these offences are used primarily as threats to enforce compliance and against those who cannot be removed.

Keywords: immigration crimes, UK Border Agency, criminalisation, fraud, removability

Suggested Citation

Aliverti, Ana, Making People Criminal: The Role of the Criminal Law in Immigration Enforcement (2012). Theoretical Criminology. 16 (4), November 2012, Criminal Justice, Borders and Citizenship Research Paper No. 2531049, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2531049

Ana Aliverti (Contact Author)

University of Warwick - School of Law ( email )

Gibbet Hill Road
Coventry CV4 7AL, CV4 7AL
United Kingdom

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