On Friday 5 August the Home Office announced it is scrapping the Police Registration scheme.

The Police Registration Scheme required some nationals of 44 countries to physically register at local police stations on arrival, or when they moved address. 

We're glad this racist scheme is being abolished - but sadly this move reflects the worrying, ever-expanding digitisation of the Hostile Environment - and feels like one step forward, two steps back.

This scheme is only being scrapped as police have access to Home Office data already. We will still see police working hand in hand with the Home Office to surveil, target and criminalise black and brown communities. It’s likely they’ll use the same racist matrixes as before.

The digitisation of the Hostile Environment is a major concern, as the Home Office rolls back our rights to privacy. Recently it announced plans to introduce monitoring through facial recognition watches, which will require people to scan their faces up to five times a day. 

Government-sanctioned hostility towards migrants – whether it’s digital or physical – does not keep our communities safe. We need an end to the hostile treatment of migrants and abolition of all Hostile Environment policies.

As a migrant in the UK - do I need to register with the police?

The Police Registration Scheme has been scrapped. Read the full statement from the Home Office below.

Statement from the Home Office External Engagement Team

Join us and stand up for the rights of all migrants