Bogus barbers, vape stores and sweet shops targeted in £1.5million immigration crackdown
Border security minister, Alex Norris, told LBC that "crooked" employers would feel the full force of the law.
Bogus barbers, sweet shops and vape stores are being targeted in a fresh crackdown on both illegal working and serious criminal organisations using the high street as a front for criminal activity.
Listen to this article
Immigration Enforcement teams have been handed an additional £1.5m to carry out extra in-person spot checks on shops suspected of operating in the shadow economy.
Businesses will be warned that they could be slapped with fines of up to £60,000 for every employee who does not have the right to work in the UK.
Border security minister, Alex Norris, told LBC that "crooked" employers would feel the full force of the law.
Bosses found to be using high street premises as a front for laundering drug money or supplying illicit goods that harm public health - such as illegal vapes and tobacco - could also see their stores closed and face five-year prison sentences.
In recent years, there has been a proliferation of barbershops, minimarts, car washes, nail bars and vape stores across the UK, with law enforcement agencies suspecting some of these businesses are being used for criminal activity.
A study published in 2025, for example, revealed a staggering 1,200% increase in vape shops in just over a decade.
Last year, the National Crime Agency carried out raids on more than 2,700 high street locations as part of Operation Machinize.
The operation yielded 924 arrests, saw the recovery of over £10.7m in laundered cash and led to the destruction of £2.7m worth of illegal commodities.
As well as targeting stores shifting illegal products and seeking to launder money made from drug-dealing, theft and fraud, Home Office immigration enforcement teams are also seeking to root out people working illegally.
Illegal workers are often paid less than those with a right to work in the UK, undercutting wages and reducing employment opportunities, and are at a greater risk of exploitation from employers.
The £1.5m campaign, spread over three years, will initially focus on communities deemed to have the biggest issues, before being rolled out more widely.
Officials will be sent into stores suspected of wrongdoing to remind them of their responsibilities under the law, including the need to conduct a Right to Work check on every employee.
Intelligence will then be shared with local police forces and the National Crime Agency to ensure follow-up action is taken.
Border officials believe illicit working is a key driver of illegal immigration into the UK. To tackle this, the government has announced asylum seekers found working illegally in the shadow economy will be stripped of their asylum payments and accommodation.
Last year, there were 10,589 visits by illegal working teams to premises in England, with an 83% increase in arrests.
Speaking to LBC, minister for border security, Alex Norris, said: "Too many crooked bosses are using high street stores as fronts for their organised crimes, with illegal workers frequently used to facilitate this.
"These bosses will face the full force of the law. We will close your business and send you to prison."