Accreditation scheme

On this page:

About the Scheme
A New Approach From October 2007
Complaints
The Role of the Law Society
Re-Accreditation
Remuneration

About the Scheme

The Immigration and Asylum Accreditation Scheme (IAAS) is a compulsory accreditation scheme for all individuals performing publicly funded work in the Immigration Category. The scheme was designed to assess that each candidate possesses both the knowledge of immigration and asylum law and procedure and the practical skills required to provide good quality legal services in this category of law.

The IAAS provides five levels of accreditation:

Level 1 Probationer
Level 1 Accredited Caseworker
Level 2 Probationer
Level 2 Senior Caseworker
Level 3 Advanced Caseworker.

The levels specify the type of legal aid work an adviser may carry out. The IAAS Work Restrictions in the Documents section of this page details the work permitted at each level.

New advisers who have not previously undertaken publicly funded immigration and asylum work may be entitled to a probationary period (Level 1 Probationer) upon registration.

This will allow the candidate to carry out a limited amount of publicly funded work, as set out in the Work Restrictions, under close supervision for a set period of time whilst working towards full accredited status.

All applications to become a Probationer should be made to the Law Society using the specified form, which can be found on the Law Society website.

Advisers who do not require or are not entitled to a probationary period may also register to sit the assessments directly with an assessment organisation(s) appointed by the Law Society (currently only Central Law Training Ltd).

Only advisers fully accredited at Level 1, Level 2 or Level 3 may have day-to-day responsibility of their own case files.

Level 1 probationers may not have day-to-day responsibility for their own case files.

Only advisers accredited at Level 2 or 3 may have conduct of Controlled Legal Representation (preparation and advocacy relating to proceedings before the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal).

Immigration and asylum legal aid providers must have at least one caseworker fully accredited at Level 2 who also holds the additional IAAS supervisor’s qualification.

A New Approach From October 2007

There have been some changes to the operation of the Immigration and Asylum Accreditation Scheme since its inception. The LSC, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), and the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) agreed a new approach to the operation and administration of the IAAS from October 2007. This is designed to overcome ambiguities around accreditation and regulation, particularly in relation to issues of character and suitability.

Further details about the approach can be found in the IAAS Update 1 June 2007 in the Documents section of this page.

From 1 October 2007 the LSC has required all advisers to be:

accredited to an appropriate standard under IAAS; and
registered with the relevant regulatory organisation for inclusion on their respective lists of approved accredited advisers (Law Society register or OISC list of regulated advisers)

Complaints

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) or the Legal Complaints Service and Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) continue to deal with complaints and regulatory matters concerning the character, conduct, behaviour or inadequate service of those they regulate.

If any complaint or regulatory matter concludes with an adviser being suspended or removed from their respective lists the adviser will be ineligible to perform publicly funded work under an LSC Immigration Contract until such time the adviser is reinstated or re-approved by the regulatory body.

The Role of the Law Society

The Law Society is responsible for:

setting the standards against which assessments are made
the assessment process

The Immigration & Asylum Accreditation Scheme moved from the Solicitors Regulation Authority to the Law Society on 1 July 2009. There is no change to the operation of the scheme.

The Law Society has published full guidance relating to the operation of IAAS on its website.

The Law Society alone will maintain the register of solicitors and their employees who have successfully completed the assessments for accredited, senior and advanced caseworkers.

Upon passing all the IAAS assessments at the relevant level solicitors and their employees should apply to the Law Society for inclusion on this register.

The Law Society has also taken on the administration of all applications for registration as a probationary immigration and asylum caseworker for LSC contract purposes.

The Law Society will maintain the register of all probationary caseworkers and ensure that they comply with the assessment requirements within the specified timescales.

The form for applying for registration can be found on the Law Society website.

For further details please visit the Law Society website.

Re-accreditation

Accreditation under the IAAS lasts for a period of 3 years and is subject to a re-accreditation process.

The Law Society is currently developing the IAAS re-accreditation process. In the meantime it has extended the membership of all Immigration and Asylum Accreditation Scheme members to 1 January 2010.

Any queries on the re-accreditation process should be raised with the Law Society.

Remuneration

The assessment organisation, Central Law Training, publishes details of the current fees for assessment on its website. Individuals seeking assessment will be required to submit the required payment when booking a date for assessment.

When an applicant achieves full accreditation at levels 1 or 2, upon receiving the relevant application the LSC will make a contribution towards the costs of successful applicants as long as they are employed to perform publicly funded work under a current immigration contract.

The LSC will not, however, contribute towards the costs of agents or clerks unless the provider can demonstrate that they are employed under a contract of service.

Contributions will be made only to the organisation employing the candidate at the time that accredited status is awarded, and individual applicants cannot be reimbursed.

An applicant who fails any assessment will not be reimbursed and will have to pay a further fee to re-sit an assessment. The LSC will, however, make a contribution towards the cost of the assessments in which the applicant is ultimately successful, as long as he/she is employed to perform public funded work.

The application form for contribution of fees for the Immigration and Asylum Accreditation Scheme can be found in the Documents section on this page.

Last updated: 05 November 2009