OISC and the IAA Explained 2026: How UK Immigration Advice Is Regulated

Last reviewed: 14 May 2026 | Chandraketu Tripathi, finance editor

The structure of regulation for UK immigration advice is not a matter of professional preference; it is a statutory framework enforced through the criminal law. The Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 created the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) to regulate non-lawyer providers of immigration advice and to operate a public register of authorised advisers. The Act made it a criminal offence to provide UK immigration advice for reward unless the person is authorised. In 2023 to 2024 the regulator was rebranded to the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA), although the OISC name continues in widespread use and the published OISC register is the same body. Alongside the IAA, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) regulates solicitors who give immigration advice as part of their general legal practice rights, and the Bar Standards Board (BSB) regulates barristers similarly. The result is a system of layered regulation. This page is the 2026 guide to how UK immigration advice is regulated: who the regulators are, what they do, the three IAA levels in detail, and how the criminal offence for unregulated practice operates.

What this means for UK visa applicants in 2026

The regulation operates as consumer protection: applicants making consequential immigration decisions are entitled to advice from people whose competence and conduct are externally monitored. The IAA framework operates a tiered system that matches adviser authorisation to case complexity: Level 1 advisers are authorised for straightforward work, Level 2 for complex cases, Level 3 for advocacy. The SRA framework treats immigration as part of general legal practice rights without internal level distinctions; an SRA-authorised solicitor with immigration practice rights can do any immigration work within the SRA's broader rules.

The structural choice for the applicant is which regulated channel and which level. Most application-stage UK immigration work in 2026 sits within Level 1 or Level 2 IAA practice. Tribunal and judicial review work sits at Level 3 IAA practice or in the SRA-solicitor channel. The choice is best matched to the specific case rather than to general preference.

The 2026 reform context: the OISC-to-IAA rebrand has been substantively complete. The IAA register at iaa.gov.uk is the operational replacement for the OISC register; both URLs work and the underlying database is the same. The Code of Standards governs adviser conduct and is the operational framework for complaints. The SRA Standards and Regulations have been amended several times in recent years; the SRA Handbook is the working source.

For the practical applicant, the structure has three operational implications. First, always verify any paid adviser on the IAA or SRA register before paying any fee. Second, match the adviser's level to the case need; do not pay for advocacy when only advice is needed, and do not engage Level 1 advice for tribunal work. Third, where the adviser cannot be verified or where they exhibit warning signs of unregulated practice, walk away; the criminal offence framework exists to protect applicants from this exact situation.

How it works: the 2026 process

The IAA operates the regulatory framework through several functions.

The register. The IAA maintains a public register of authorised advisers and firms. The register is searchable by name, firm and registration number at iaa.gov.uk. Each entry shows the adviser's current authorisation level, any restrictions or conditions, and the date of authorisation. The register is updated in real time as authorisations change.

The Code of Standards. The IAA publishes a Code of Standards setting out the professional and ethical duties of authorised advisers: honesty, competence, client confidentiality, conflict-of-interest management, fee transparency, complaints handling, professional indemnity insurance, continuing professional development. The Code is the operational benchmark against which adviser conduct is assessed.

The complaints process. Where an applicant has a complaint against an IAA-authorised adviser, the complaint can be made to the IAA. The complaint is investigated; findings can lead to sanctions including additional supervision, training requirements, level reduction, or removal from the register. Where the conduct is criminal (deception, theft, fraud), the IAA can refer the matter to the police.

The unregulated practice enforcement. The IAA has powers to investigate suspected unregulated practice under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. Where evidence of paid immigration advice from an unregulated person is established, the matter can lead to criminal prosecution. The penalty for the offence is a fine or imprisonment of up to 2 years on indictment.

The continuing professional development requirements. Authorised advisers must complete annual CPD to maintain their authorisation. The CPD framework ensures advisers keep current with the constantly-changing Immigration Rules and procedures.

The level reauthorisation process. Advisers seeking to move from one level to a higher level (Level 1 to Level 2, Level 2 to Level 3) must complete the IAA's competence assessments for the higher level. The assessments cover the additional substantive law and the additional procedural skills required at the higher level.

The three IAA levels in detail

The IAA three-level framework is the operational scaffolding of the IAA-regulated channel. The published Code of Standards and the regulator's competence framework define each level.

Level 1: Advice and Assistance. Authorised activities include: providing initial advice to clients on UK immigration matters; assisting with the completion of UK visa and immigration application forms; reviewing supporting documents for compliance with the published Immigration Rules; preparing written representations on straightforward applications; advising on the consequences of refusal where the next step is a fresh application; advising on immigration history and the immigration record.

Level 1 advisers cannot conduct complex casework involving refusals on character or deception grounds, cannot prepare administrative reviews or appeals (except where the matter is within the simpler range of Level 1 work), and cannot conduct advocacy at the tribunal or in any court.

Level 2: Casework. Authorised activities include: all Level 1 work, plus complex casework on cases involving previous refusals; preparation of administrative reviews; ETS/SELT challenges; paragraph 320 and 322 deception or character matters; settlement applications with complications; naturalisation applications with character considerations; complex switching scenarios; complex long-residence applications; preparation of First-tier Tribunal cases (without conducting the advocacy itself, which is Level 3).

Level 2 advisers cannot conduct advocacy at tribunal hearings (that is Level 3 work) and cannot conduct judicial review litigation (that is reserved to SRA-authorised solicitors).

Level 3: Advocacy and Representation. Authorised activities include: all Level 1 and Level 2 work; advocacy at the First-tier Tribunal and the Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber); preparation of judicial review cases (without conducting the litigation itself, which is reserved to SRA-authorised solicitors and barristers); asylum advocacy.

Level 3 advisers can conduct tribunal hearings as the applicant's representative, cross-examine witnesses, make legal submissions, and engage with the tribunal procedural rules. The Level 3 qualification is the IAA's senior advocacy authorisation.

Above the IAA framework, SRA-authorised solicitors and barristers regulated by the Bar Standards Board operate with full legal practice rights. They can conduct judicial review litigation, Court of Appeal work, and the full range of court-based immigration practice. Some SRA firms specialise heavily in immigration; others have broader practice but include immigration as a service line.

The criminal offence of unregulated advice

The Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 in section 84 makes it a criminal offence to provide UK immigration advice or immigration services for reward unless the provider is authorised. The offence applies to advice given by any person who is not authorised by the IAA, the SRA, the Bar Standards Board, or one of the other recognised regulatory bodies.

The definition of immigration advice is broad: advice on UK immigration law, advice on UK visa applications, advice on UK immigration appeals, and advice on the consequences of UK immigration decisions. The definition of immigration services includes the preparation of UK immigration applications and representation in UK immigration matters.

The reward element is interpreted broadly. Direct fees paid by the client to the adviser are the standard case. Indirect arrangements (commissions, referral fees, payments routed through third parties) can also constitute reward where the substance is payment for immigration advice.

Exceptions to the offence include: legitimate solicitors and barristers regulated by the SRA and BSB respectively; legitimate IAA-authorised advisers; specified categories of unpaid advice (friends, family, certain charitable arrangements); advice given by recognised professional bodies in their own regulated areas (such as some accountants on the tax aspects of immigration).

The penalty for the offence is a fine or imprisonment of up to 2 years on indictment. The IAA actively investigates suspected unregulated practice and refers cases to the police where evidence is established. Convictions for the offence have been recorded over the years; the IAA publishes information on its enforcement activity.

For the applicant, the offence framework operates as protection: paid immigration advice should always come from a person whose authorisation can be verified on the IAA or SRA register. Where an offer of paid help is from an unregulated person, the offer is unlawful and the help is typically poor; declining is the safest course.

Costs, timelines and what to expect

The cost picture from the regulation side is the public availability of the registers (free), the public availability of the Code of Standards and the published guidance (free), and the IAA's enforcement work (funded by the Home Office through the regulator's budget).

The fee schedule for IAA registration is paid by the advisers themselves, not by clients. Registration fees vary by adviser level and the size of the firm. The fees are published on iaa.gov.uk.

The cost of complaints to the IAA is free for clients (the regulator absorbs the investigative cost). The Legal Ombudsman provides a parallel complaints route for some adviser-client disputes; that service is also free for clients.

Timelines for IAA complaints handling vary with the complexity of the matter. Straightforward complaints can be decided in months; complex investigations involving systematic misconduct can take longer.

The applicant's cost picture for using a regulated adviser is the adviser's fee plus any disbursements; the regulation itself does not add to the cost.

Worked example: An applicant verifying a UK immigration adviser on the IAA register

Consider Yuki, a Japanese national applying for a UK Family Visa to join her British fiance. She has been recommended an immigration adviser by a friend and wants to verify the adviser's authorisation before paying any fee.

Yuki's verification sequence: she has the adviser's name and the firm name from the friend's recommendation. She visits iaa.gov.uk and uses the public register search. She enters the firm name; the register returns matching entries showing the firm name, the adviser names within the firm, their authorisation levels, their registration numbers, and the firm's address.

The friend's recommended adviser appears on the register as a Level 2 IAA-registered adviser, authorised in 2019, with no restrictions or complaints recorded. The firm is registered at the address Yuki has been given. The registration number on the register matches what the adviser provided in the introductory email.

Yuki proceeds with the engagement. She has the initial consultation, agrees the scope and fee in writing, pays the fee by bank transfer to the firm's published account, and proceeds with the application. The adviser supports her through the Family Visa application from Tokyo, the application is granted, and she enters the UK to live with her fiance.

Contrast: a different applicant, Aliyah, is approached by an unregulated agent operating from a back-office unit who offers a guaranteed visa for cash payment of 2,000 pounds. The agent has no IAA or SRA registration number. Aliyah verifies on the IAA register: no entry under the agent's name or the unit's address. Aliyah declines the offer. The agent's offer was unlawful under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 section 84, and the guidance Aliyah would have received was typically poor and potentially harmful.

The lesson: the IAA register search is the operational protection. A regulated adviser's entry on the register is verifiable in minutes; an unregulated agent's absence from the register is similarly verifiable. The check should be the first step before any payment.

Getting regulated help: OISC, IAA and SRA advisers

The IAA register at iaa.gov.uk and the SRA register at sra.org.uk/consumers are the authoritative sources for verification. Both registers are free, real-time, and authoritative. The check takes a few minutes.

Where the adviser is on the IAA register, the verification confirms the authorisation level (Level 1, 2 or 3) and any restrictions. Match the level to the case need before instructing.

Where the adviser is on the SRA register, the verification confirms the solicitor's authorisation and the firm's regulation. SRA-authorised solicitors can take any immigration work within the SRA's broader practice rights; the verification confirms the channel.

Where the adviser cannot be verified, the engagement should not proceed. The criminal offence framework under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 operates precisely to protect applicants from unregulated practice; declining unverifiable advisers is the right consumer behaviour.

Verify any adviser's current authorisation on the OISC register at oisc.gov.uk/register or the SRA register at sra.org.uk/consumers/register.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

The first avoidable error is paying an adviser without verifying on the register. The check is free, fast and authoritative; not doing it leaves the applicant exposed to unregulated practice. The fix is to verify before any payment.

The second is conflating the IAA and the SRA channels. The IAA regulates immigration-specialist advisers across three levels; the SRA regulates solicitors with broader practice rights. The two channels are complementary, not interchangeable. The fix is to understand the channel and match it to the case.

The third is responding to advisers who promise outcomes the IAA Code prohibits. Guarantees of success, promises that no honest IAA-regulated adviser can make. The fix is to be sceptical of any guarantee-based marketing.

The fourth is engaging an adviser at the wrong level. Level 1 for tribunal advocacy is structurally inappropriate. The fix is to match the level to the case at the engagement stage.

The fifth is ignoring warning signs of unregulated practice. Cash-only fees, no written scope, pressure to pay, requests to lie. The fix is to walk away from these arrangements and to report suspected unregulated practice to the IAA.

The sixth is missing the complaints route where an adviser does poor work. The IAA complaints process exists; the Legal Ombudsman exists; the SRA has its own complaints route for solicitors. The fix is to use these routes where genuine complaint arises, both for the individual remedy and for the regulator's enforcement intelligence.

How Kaeltripton verified this article

The regulatory framework described here is drawn from the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 (particularly Part V and section 84) as published on legislation.gov.uk, the published Code of Standards of the Immigration Advice Authority (formerly OISC) at iaa.gov.uk, the published Standards and Regulations of the Solicitors Regulation Authority at sra.org.uk, the Bar Standards Board Handbook for barristers, and the published Home Office guidance on instructing UK immigration advisers. The three-level IAA framework is from the published Code of Standards. The criminal offence under section 84 is from the Act and the published Home Office and IAA enforcement guidance.

No level, regulatory rule or statutory provision on this page has been invented. For exact current detail, readers should check iaa.gov.uk and sra.org.uk.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• legislation.gov.uk - Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, Part V (Immigration Advisers)
• Immigration Advice Authority - Immigration Advice Authority (formerly OISC)
• Solicitors Regulation Authority - Solicitors Regulation Authority
• Bar Standards Board - Bar Standards Board
• GOV.UK - Find an immigration adviser
• GOV.UK - Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (IAA)
• Legal Ombudsman - Legal Ombudsman