This guide is for internationals who have recently moved to the United Kingdom and want help with a visa, a status application or an immigration appeal. After reading it, you will know who is allowed to give immigration advice, how to confirm that an adviser is regulated by the OISC or a solicitor by the SRA before you pay, and where to turn if the service goes wrong.
- What immigration advisers and solicitors do
- Who is allowed to give immigration advice
- How to check an immigration adviser before you pay
- How to check a solicitor on the SRA register
- Complaints, banned advisers and lost money
- FAQ
What immigration advisers and solicitors do
GOV.UK’s guide to finding an immigration adviser says an immigration adviser can help with most things to do with immigration if you need permission to stay in the UK. This includes helping you fill in the right forms and representing you at a tribunal. Advisers do not make immigration decisions.
A solicitor can also give immigration advice. GOV.UK says a solicitor can manage your case and find a barrister. If you are managing your own case but want legal advice or advocacy, the route to a barrister depends on where you live. In England and Wales it is the Bar Council’s Direct Access scheme, in Scotland the Faculty of Advocates, and in Northern Ireland the Bar of Northern Ireland.
The EU Settlement Scheme is one area where people often look for help. GOV.UK explains that people from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein might still be able to apply if they were living in the UK by 31 December 2020. The deadline for most people was 30 June 2021. People can still apply if they have “reasonable grounds” for missing it, for example illness or being the victim of domestic abuse. Whether those grounds apply in a particular case is a question for a regulated adviser or solicitor.
Who is allowed to give immigration advice
GOV.UK states that all immigration advisers must be registered with the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) or be a member of an approved professional body. The Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) regulates immigration advisers. It describes its role as making sure they are fit, competent and act in their clients’ best interests. Its GOV.UK page links to continued registration with the IAA and publishes the OISC Code of Standards, so you are likely to see both names while you search.
Solicitors are the other main route. To find solicitors who give immigration advice, GOV.UK points to three separate bodies:
- The Law Society, if you live in England or Wales
- The Law Society of Scotland
- The Law Society of Northern Ireland
An adviser who is not registered and not covered by one of these routes is not regulated. On 9 December 2024 the OISC published a news story about an unregulated adviser who was sentenced for providing unlawful services. Giving immigration advice without registration is a legal matter, not only a question of service quality.
How to check an immigration adviser before you pay
GOV.UK’s instruction is short: check if the adviser is registered and if they charge a fee before you use them. The check usually works in this order:
- Get the exact names. The full name of the individual adviser and of the organisation they work for can both matter when searching.
- Search the IAA Adviser Finder. GOV.UK links to this tool so you can find a registered adviser near you and confirm that a named adviser appears on it.
- Check the banned list. GOV.UK links to a list of people who are banned from acting as immigration advisers. The OISC also publishes statutory guidance on prohibited or suspended immigration advisers, dated 26 August 2025.
- Ask about fees in advance. The official pages do not set or list what advisers charge, so the adviser has to explain the fee.
- Pay only after the check. GOV.UK is clear that you cannot get your money back if an adviser is not regulated.
How to check a solicitor on the SRA register
If someone says they are a solicitor, the Solicitors Register run by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) lets you look up the records of the solicitors and law firms it regulates. The SRA calls it the definitive impartial source of information about those firms and people. You can use it to:
- check whether somebody is a solicitor and find where they work
- check whether the SRA regulates a law firm
- check for firms the SRA has closed down and people it has prohibited from practising as a solicitor
The search has three tabs: All, Person and Firm. The All tab shows both firm and person results. The SRA advises making sure every name is spelled correctly. An empty result needs careful reading: no results means the SRA has no record of a firm or person matching your search, so it is not safe to assume they are regulated by the SRA.
For solicitors in Scotland and Northern Ireland, GOV.UK points to the Law Society of Scotland and the Law Society of Northern Ireland.
Complaints, banned advisers and lost money
GOV.UK confirms that you can complain about an immigration adviser if you think you have had a bad service. The OISC’s GOV.UK page also refers to the OISC Complaints Scheme. The official pages used here do not set a time limit for complaints. The current process is on the regulator’s own pages.
That protection depends on the adviser being regulated. GOV.UK says plainly that you cannot get your money back if an adviser is not regulated. The IAA Adviser Finder, the banned list and the SRA register are how you find out whether an adviser is regulated.
FAQ
What is the difference between the OISC and the IAA?
GOV.UK names the OISC as the regulator of immigration advisers. Its GOV.UK page links to continued registration with the Immigration Advice Authority, and GOV.UK’s adviser search uses the IAA Adviser Finder. The official pages used here do not explain how the two bodies relate in more detail. The IAA Adviser Finder is the tool GOV.UK gives for checking whether an adviser is registered.
What does it mean if a solicitor does not appear on the SRA register?
The SRA says no results means it has no record of a firm or person matching your search, and that it is not safe to assume they are regulated by the SRA. The SRA’s search tips stress spelling names correctly. For Scotland or Northern Ireland, GOV.UK points to the Law Society of Scotland or the Law Society of Northern Ireland instead.
Can I get my money back from an unregulated adviser?
No. GOV.UK states that you cannot get your money back if an adviser is not regulated. You can complain about an immigration adviser if you think you have had a bad service.
How much do immigration advisers charge?
The official pages do not list fees. GOV.UK only says to check whether an adviser charges a fee before you use them. For a specific immigration question, an adviser registered with the IAA or a solicitor regulated by the SRA can explain their charges.
Official sources: gov.uk · gov.uk · sra.org.uk
Last verified: 26 September 2026 against the official pages linked above. Rules and fees change; the official page always wins.
This is general information, not legal or immigration advice. Immigration advice in the UK may only be given by advisers regulated by the OISC or by solicitors regulated by the SRA.
Sources
- gov.uk: Find an immigration adviser, accessed 26 September 2026 (archived copy)
- gov.uk: Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner, accessed 26 September 2026 (archived copy)
- sra.org.uk: Solicitors Register, accessed 26 September 2026
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