D7.35 Arrest of a person subject to a deportation order

Immigration Act 1987 ss 97, 99

1. Section 97 of the Immigration Act 1987 provides that any person in relation to whom a deportation order has been made under section 91 or section 92 of the Immigration Act 1987 may be arrested at any time by any member of the Police without warrant and placed in custody.
2. A deportee will usually only be arrested if they refuse to comply with any proper requests that are made of them or if the Police are convinced that an arrest is justified on the grounds of public safety.
3. If a deportation order has not been served on the person before they are arrested under the circumstances given in (b) above, an immigration officer must serve the order on the person as soon as possible.

D7.35.1 Consequences of arrest

1. If a person is arrested they must be brought before a District Court Judge no later than 48 hours after the arrest in order to determine whether or not they should be detained in custody under a warrant of commitment (see D6) or released from custody until their deportation.
2. If a Judge declines to issue a warrant of commitment for the person's detention in custody and instead orders the person's release on conditions under section 101 of the Immigration Act 1987, the person is to be released under the following conditions:
   1. that they reside at a specified address; and
   2. that they report to a Police station at intervals of not more than 7 days and at such times and in such a manner as the Judge may specify; and
   3. any other conditions the Judge may impose to ensure the person complies with residence and reporting conditions.
3. A member of the Police or the person concerned can apply at any time to the District Court to have the conditions varied. If the person breaches the conditions the Judge's order for their release is nullified, enabling the Police to arrest the person without warrant and bring them before a District Court Judge again.

Effective 01/10/1999