Assistant immigration officer

Assistant immigration officers check that people have the right to visit or stay in the UK.

Also known as: Assistant immigration enforcement officer

• Starter salary£25,000 a year
• Experienced£30,000 a year
• Typical hours41 to 43 a week

What you'll do

As an assistant immigration officer you could:

• check passports, work permits and take fingerprints
• interview people entering the UK
• help immigration officers with surveillance work
• arrange to remove people who are not allowed to stay in the UK
• issue forms and carry out clerical work
• handle enquiries

Working environment

You could work at a border post, at an airport, in an office, at a port or at an outreach centre.

You may need to wear a uniform.

Skills and knowledge you'll need

You'll need:

• excellent verbal communication skills
• patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
• customer service skills
• knowledge of English language
• thinking and reasoning skills
• excellent written communication skills
• the ability to work well with others
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

How to become a assistant immigration officer

You can get into this job through:

• a college course
• an apprenticeship
• applying directly

College

You could do a college course in public services which would teach you some of the skills needed in this role. After you finish your course, you could apply for a trainee assistant immigration officer post.

Entry requirements

Entry requirements for these courses vary.

Apprenticeship

You could do a Public Service Operational Delivery Officer Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship with the Civil Service.

This usually takes between a year and a year and a half to complete.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

• 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship

Direct application

You could apply to join the Civil Service as an assistant immigration officer. You'll usually need at least 5 GCSEs, including English and maths.

When you apply, you'll need to:

• describe your skills and life experience on an application form
• complete tests of your literacy and numeracy skills
• take further selection tests and have an interview

Restrictions and requirements

You'll need to:

• be a UK citizen
• pass enhanced background checks
• pass security checks
• pass a medical check
• have a full driving licence

Career path and progression

You could become an immigration officer or move to other posts in the Civil Service.

Career tips

Experience of working with the public will be helpful. You may also find it useful to speak a second language, although this is not essential.

Guides for this industry

• Immigration & Border Force: pay, interviews and getting started →

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Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0