The Home Office has announced the appointment of John Tuckett as the new Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI), following pre-appointment scrutiny by the Home Affairs Select Committee earlier in 2025. Tuckett replaces David Bolt, who has served as interim ICIBI since June 2024. The ICIBI monitors and reports on the efficiency and effectiveness of the UK's border, immigration and citizenship system, making recommendations directly to the Home Secretary. The government is also recruiting a new Immigration Services Commissioner to replace Tuckett in that role, with the appointment expected to be confirmed in due course.

The Home Office has appointed Lord Bernard Hogan-Howe to lead the independent review of police force structures, which will recommend reforms to restructure policing across England and Wales into fewer, larger forces. The review will determine the optimal number of forces, their geographic coverage and governance and accountability arrangements. Under the new structure, regional forces would take on responsibility for complex investigations, including homicide, drug offences and county lines, while Local Policing Areas within larger forces would focus on local issues such as shoplifting, drug dealing and antisocial behaviour. The review's terms of reference are expected to be confirmed shortly, with recommendations to be submitted to the Home Secretary by summer 2026. The appointment follows the publication of the police reform white paper.

Home Office has appointed Lord Macdonald of River Glaven KC to lead an independent review of public order and hate crime legislation. The review will assess the powers of the police to manage protests and evaluate current hate crime laws, including offences relating to aggravated behaviour and the incitement of hatred.  It will also examine whether existing legislation is effective, proportionate and able to protect communities from hate and intimidation.  The review will also consider whether the law appropriately balances free speech and peaceful protest with the need to prevent disorder and ensure public safety. Lord Macdonald will be supported by senior policing expert, Owen Weatherill. The terms of reference for the review will be confirmed in the coming weeks, with the review expected to commence shortly and conclude by February 2026.

The Home Office has appointed Reverend Clive Foster MBE as the inaugural Windrush Commissioner, effective for an initial three-year term. This newly created role is tasked with independently overseeing the government’s initiatives to address the Home Office Windrush scandal, ensuring that the voices of victims play a central role in shaping reform. Reverend Foster, a senior pastor with deep community ties and a personal connection to the Windrush legacy, will lead efforts to redress past injustices and drive systemic reform. This appointment forms part of the government’s Plan for Change, which is further reinforced by a £1.5m compensation fund for affected individuals and the re-establishment of the Windrush Unit to prevent future errors.

The Home Office has announced that £400,000 has been awarded to ten community organisations under the Windrush Compensation Advocacy Support Fund (WCASF) to assist victims of the Windrush scandal in navigating the compensation application process. The WCASF, totalling £1.5 million over the next three years with £400,000 available in the first year, aims to provide additional support to affected communities and forms part of the wider Plan for Change, which seeks to deliver justice for victims. The ten successful organisations span England, Wales and Scotland, ensuring nationwide support. Advocates from these organisations will help applicants gather evidence, access services and share experiences in culturally sensitive environments. The successful organisations for year 1 funding are:

The Home Office has begun the phased rollout of new contactless technology at UK airport eGates, enabling eligible passengers to pass through the border without presenting their passport at the eGate reader. The system takes a live image of the passenger and checks it against verified immigration, travel and passport information to verify their identity. The rollout began at East Midlands Airport on 6 October 2026, initially for British citizens, and will expand to other airports and nationalities already eligible to use eGates over the coming months. All UK airport eGates are expected to be upgraded by early 2027. Passengers who require further checks may still be required to present their passport or be directed to a Border Force officer and should continue to carry their passport at all times. The rollout forms part of the government’s wider programme to modernise the UK border and follows the introduction of the Electronic Travel Authorisation scheme.

The Home Office has launched a call for evidence on the establishment of a new Independent Appeals Body as part of wider reforms to the UK asylum system. It is seeking views, evidence and practical insight on how the new body should be structured to operate effectively, efficiently and in a manner that ensures fair access to justice for all users. The responses will inform the legislation underpinning the new body and support decisions regarding its governance, processes and operational arrangements. The call for evidence will close on 22 April 2026.

The Home Office has published an update on EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) status automation. It confirms that, from 9 April 2026, improvements to the automated system will increase the number of eligible pre-settled status holders who are automatically converted to settled status without needing to make a further EUSS application. The system now checks for 30 months of tax and benefit records within the last 60 months to confirm UK residence, replacing the more complex residence rules previously applied. However, the Home Office notes that some groups cannot be automatically converted. These include EEA citizens who have not been paying tax or receiving benefits for at least 30 months in the last 60 months, non-EEA national family members, joining family members, individuals under 18 and those granted pre-settled status who later obtained another UK immigration status. The Home Office notes that, where automatic conversion is not possible, pre-settled status will continue to be extended by five years, and individuals can apply in the usual way once they become eligible.

As part of its various changes to Sponsor Guidance on 9 April 2025, the Home Office has made a number of revisions to the Workers and Temporary Workers: sponsor a Global Business Mobility worker guidance. In addition to changes to Global Business Mobility routes which are common to various other routes, including the extension of prohibitions on recouping sponsorship fees and associated administrative costs from sponsored workers, the guidance also includes a significant change to the ‘qualifying overseas business link’ requirement on the UK Expansion Worker route. Details of the updated provisions covering this requirement are set out below.

The Home Office has published Circular 004/2021: money laundering: the confidentiality and sensitivity of suspicious activity reports (SARs) in the context of disclosure in private civil litigation. It should be read in conjunction with Circular 022/2015 on the disclosure of SARs in criminal proceedings. The purpose of this Circular is to provide guidance to help protect reporters of SARs (including but not limited to financial institutions and professional services firms), the subjects of SARs and the integrity of the SARs regime wherever possible.

The Home Office has updated its 'Retention and usage of biometric information' guidance document. Notably, it states that the 15-year biometric retention period applies to those who enrolled their fingerprints from 1 July 2021. A shorter ten-year period applies to those who enrolled their fingerprints before this date, unless they meet one of the grounds for longer retention as set out in the guidance.

On 29 May 2025 the Home Office published guidance covering how the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme will apply for persons who are dual citizens of the UK/Ireland and countries whose nationals require an ETA to visit the UK (if they do not otherwise hold a UK visa). The guidance notes that such persons are not eligible for an ETA. Instead, these individuals must prove their right to travel to the UK by presenting a valid British or Irish passport, or another valid passport that contains a certificate of entitlement to the right of abode. However, it goes on to state that ‘currently’, British dual citizens who do not have a valid British passport but hold a valid passport from ETA-required countries will continue to be allowed to enter the UK on their non-British passport without an ETA.  In an email to stakeholders dated 30 June 2025, the Home Office has confirmed that this is a ‘temporary measure’ during the current ‘transition period’. This means that ‘prior to full enforcement’ of the ETA scheme, it does not expect carriers to deny boarding to dual British or Irish citizens who are travelling only on their non-British/Irish document or without a certificate of entitlement. However, such persons will need to ensure that they make the necessary arrangements prior to the end of this transition period. Presumably this refers to the point that the Home Office brings into force section 76 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022, which extends carriers liability penalties where a person does not have an ETA but requires one.