| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act to amend the Law with regard to Aliens. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 5 Edw. 7. c. 13 |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 11 August 1905 |
| Other legislation | |
| Repeals/revokes | Registration of Aliens Act 1836 |
| Repealed by | Aliens Restriction (Amendment) Act 1919 |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
The Aliens Act 1905 (5 Edw. 7. c. 13) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.[2] The act introduced immigration controls and registration for the first time, and gave the Home Secretary overall responsibility for matters concerning immigration and nationality.[2] Those who "appeared unable to support themselves" or "likely to become a charge upon the rates" were declared "undesirable". The act also allowed to turn away potential immigrants on medical grounds. Asylum-seekers fleeing from religious or political persecution were supposedly exempted from the act but, nevertheless, their claims were often ignored.[3]
While the act was ostensibly designed to prevent paupers or criminals from entering the country and set up a mechanism to deport those who slipped through, one of its main objectives was to control Jewish immigration from Eastern Europe.[4] Jewish immigration from Eastern Europe significantly increased after 1880[5] which served as some basis for the creation of the Aliens Act 1905. Although it remained in force, the 1905 act was effectively subsumed by the Aliens Restriction Act 1914 (4 & 5 Geo. 5. c. 12), which introduced far more restrictive provisions. It was eventually repealed by the Aliens Restriction (Amendment) Act 1919 (9 & 10 Geo. 5. c. 92).
Some of the border control mechanisms established with the Aliens Act 1905 remained throughout the 20th century and into the 21st century.[6]
- ^ Short title as conferred by s. 10 of the Act; the modern convention for the citation of short titles omits the comma after the word "Act"
- ^ a b Moving Here
- ^ David Rosenberg, 'Immigration' on the Channel 4 website
- ^ David Rosenberg, 'Immigration' on the Channel 4 website
- ^ Bernard Gainer, The Alien Invasion: The Origins of the Aliens Act of 1905, (London, Heinemann Educational books LTD, 1972) Preface.
- ^ Smith, Evan (2023), "From the Aliens Act to the 'hostile environment': The making of the British border control system", UK Borderscapes, Routledge, doi:10.4324/9781003350255-3, ISBN 978-1-003-35025-5