A re-entry ban is a period during which the Home Office must refuse an application to come to the UK because the applicant previously broke immigration law, for example by overstaying or using deception. The Immigration Rules call it a mandatory refusal period. It lasts from 12 months to 10 years, depending on how the person left.
Key points
- The Immigration Rules call re-entry bans mandatory refusal periods. They are set out in Part Suitability, paragraph SUI 12.1.
- The period is 12 months if the person left voluntarily at their own expense. It is 2 or 5 years if they left voluntarily at public expense.
- A person removed from the UK at public expense, or refused for deception, faces a 10-year period.
- A short overstay of 30 days or less can be disregarded if the person left voluntarily and the overstaying began on or after 6 April 2017.
- When a period ends, refusal is no longer mandatory. The Rules still allow a discretionary refusal in some cases.
How a re-entry ban works
A re-entry ban comes from a rule in Part Suitability of the Immigration Rules. The Rules call it a mandatory refusal period and add that it is also known as a re-entry ban.[1]Home Office, Immigration Rules: Part Suitability
The rule has two parts. The person must have previously breached immigration laws. The new application must also be made within the relevant time period. If both are true, an application for entry clearance or permission to enter must be refused.[1]Home Office, Immigration Rules: Part Suitability
The Rules treat a person as having breached immigration laws if, aged 18 or over, they overstayed, breached a condition of their permission, were an illegal entrant, used deception in a previous application or acted to frustrate immigration controls.[1]Home Office, Immigration Rules: Part Suitability See overstaying and deception. The Home Office must prove a previous breach. The standard of proof is the balance of probabilities, which means more likely than not.[2]UK Visas and Immigration, Part Suitability: previous breach of UK immigration laws (caseworker guidance)
If the person has breached immigration laws in more than one way, only the breach that leads to the longest period counts.[1]Home Office, Immigration Rules: Part Suitability
The periods
The time runs from the date the person left the UK. For a refusal based on deception, it runs from the date of the refusal.[2]UK Visas and Immigration, Part Suitability: previous breach of UK immigration laws (caseworker guidance)
| Period | When it applies |
|---|---|
| 12 months | The person left voluntarily at their own expense |
| 2 years | The person left voluntarily at public expense, within 6 months of being given notice of liability for removal or of no longer having a pending appeal or administrative review, whichever is later |
| 5 years | The person left voluntarily at public expense, more than 6 months after that point |
| 5 years | The person left or was removed as a condition of a caution under section 22 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, once any condition prohibiting return has expired |
| 10 years | The person was removed from the UK at public expense |
| 10 years | The person used deception in an application. For visits this applies to entry clearance applications only |
Exceptions and what happens after
Some overstays do not count. A period of overstaying is disregarded in two linked cases. The person must have left voluntarily and not at the expense of the Secretary of State. They must also have overstayed for 30 days or less, where the overstaying began on or after 6 April 2017. For overstays that began before that date the limit is 90 days or less.[1]Home Office, Immigration Rules: Part Suitability A person is also not treated as an overstayer in the cases in paragraph SUI 13.1. One is where the application was made within 14 days of the previous permission expiring and there was a good reason beyond the applicant’s control why it could not be made in time.[1]Home Office, Immigration Rules: Part Suitability
When the period has ended, refusal is no longer mandatory. The Rules still allow an application to be refused if the person has acted to frustrate immigration controls, for example by using a false identity or by failing to cooperate with removal. They also allow refusal where the applicant is, or has been, in breach of immigration laws.[1]Home Office, Immigration Rules: Part Suitability The caseworker guidance says the decision maker must consider all the circumstances. It lists why and how the breach happened, the time since the breach and the impact of refusal on the person or family in the UK.[2]UK Visas and Immigration, Part Suitability: previous breach of UK immigration laws (caseworker guidance)
Example
Karim is a visitor who overstays by 4 months and then leaves the UK voluntarily at his own expense. The overstay is longer than 30 days, so it counts as a breach. The period is 12 months from the day he left. An application made inside those 12 months must be refused.
Leila overstays by 20 days on a stay that began after 6 April 2017 and leaves voluntarily at her own expense. That overstay is disregarded under the 30-day rule.
Both examples use only the figures in the Rules. They are illustrations of how the rule reads and do not say how a Home Office decision will go on any case.
What people get wrong
Many people believe a ban is a fixed sentence that expires and leaves no trace. It is not. When the period ends, refusal under the mandatory rule stops. The Rules still allow a discretionary refusal where a person acted to frustrate immigration controls or has been in breach.
A second mistake is the start date. For most periods the clock runs from the date the person left the UK. For deception it runs from the date of the refusal, not from the date of departure.[2]UK Visas and Immigration, Part Suitability: previous breach of UK immigration laws (caseworker guidance)
The bottom line
A re-entry ban is a mandatory refusal period written into Part Suitability. Its length depends on how the person left and what the breach was. Short voluntary overstays can be disregarded. The end of a period does not remove every risk of refusal. Check the exact paragraph and the dates on the refusal letter before relying on any figure here.
Common questions
It depends on how the person left the UK. The periods are 12 months, 2 years, 5 years or 10 years. The table on this page sets out which applies, as written in paragraph SUI 12.1 of the Immigration Rules.
Usually yes. The period runs from the date the person left the UK after the breach. For a refusal based on deception, it runs from the date of the refusal.
Not always. If a person left voluntarily, not at public expense, an overstay of 30 days or less is disregarded where it began on or after 6 April 2017. For overstays that began earlier, the limit is 90 days or less.
Yes, in some cases. Refusal is no longer mandatory, but the Rules say an application may be refused where the person acted to frustrate immigration controls or is, or has been, in breach of immigration laws.
Sources
We cite the Immigration Rules, legislation and GOV.UK guidance directly. Rules change, so each source shows the date we last checked it.
- Home Office. Immigration Rules: Part Suitability. Checked 11 November 2026. ↩
- UK Visas and Immigration. Part Suitability: previous breach of UK immigration laws (caseworker guidance). Checked 11 November 2026. ↩