Part 6: Miscellaneous Section 77: Special Immigration Appeals Commission
Overview: This section relates to immigration decisions in respect of a person’s entitlement to enter, reside or remain in the UK, or to their removal from the UK, and allows the Secretary of State to decide that any legal challenge brought against such decisions will be heard in the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC), rather than the Upper Tribunal of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber or the High Court, where satisfied that the decision is based on information that should not be disclosed in the public interest.
	Background: The intention is to close the "SIAC gap" via this amendment to the Special Immigration Appeals Commission Act 1997 to allow immigration decisions to be made and defended on the basis of sensitive material that should not be disclosed in (a) the interests of national security; (b) the interests of the relationship between the UK and another country; (c) the public interest generally, but without giving individuals rights of appeal which they otherwise would not be entitled to. The purpose of the amendment to the legislation is to ensure that any immigration decision that may be challenged by way of an application for judicial review (JR) can be certified to ensure any legal challenge is heard by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission in the same way that any decision that can be challenged by appeal can be certified.
	SIAC is an independent judicial tribunal that can hear immigration appeals where the decision is based on sensitive information, for example where information has been provided by the Security Services. However, some types of immigration-related decisions relying on sensitive information that needs to be protected have no right of appeal, and can only be challenged by judicial review-and so cannot be heard in SIAC. This is known as the "SIAC Gap".
	There is some limited mitigation in that while most immigration related JRs are heard by the Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber), legal challenges to decisions that are based on national security information can still be heard in a closed session in the High Court, upon the instruction of the Lord Chief Justice. This is called a Closed Material Procedure (CMP). This mitigation is limited: firstly, a detailed application from the Secretary of State must be filed and considered and a declaration made by the court permitting an application for a CMP (whereas closed material can always be used in SIAC cases); and secondly, under a CMP "sensitive material" covers only that which would be damaging to the interests of national security and so it cannot be utilised for cases concerning serious organised crime or sensitive international relations material or cases that rely upon historic security information. This section amends the following legislation:
Sections 2, 6A and 7 of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission Act 1997.
Section 115(8) of the Equality Act 2010.
	The amendment seeks to reinstate the position as it was before the introduction of the Points Based System in 2008, a position that has previously been agreed by Parliament.