Becker was sentenced last week to two years and six months in prison under the Insolvency Act for hiding millions of pounds’ worth of assets after being made bankrupt in June 2017. He is required to serve half of the full term. The immediate legal consequence of this conviction is the initiation of a deportation review, a process that legal experts describe as uncharted territory due to the timing of the alleged offenses relative to Brexit.
The central legal ambiguity lies in determining which version of the UK Borders Act 2007 applies to Becker’s case. The Brexit withdrawal agreement, implemented on 31 December 2020, made immigration laws for EU citizens more stringent. Becker, who is not believed to have taken British citizenship, faces a potential classification of his criminal conduct as either pre- or post-December 2020. If the court determines the offending behavior continued after that date, immigration barrister Colin Yeo noted that Becker would be subject to “automatic deportation” because his sentence exceeds 12 months. Conversely, if the conduct is deemed to have occurred before the cutoff, he would benefit from the protections of the EU-UK withdrawal agreement, affording him a stronger legal case for remaining in the UK.
Consultant solicitor Christopher Cole stated that this is the first case he has seen to test this specific legal landscape, where courts must decide which side of the legal dividing line the offending behavior occurred. Cole added that despite potential weak legal grounds, the Home Office frequently makes deportation decisions under political pressure, often anticipating that the individual will appeal to a tribunal. Senior solicitor Zeena Luchowa added that if the conduct is deemed post-2020, deportation can be ordered if it is found “conducive to the public good,” a standard that grants the Home Office significant discretion.
Becker faces significant financial and procedural hurdles in opposing a potential deportation order. Legal experts estimate that hiring counsel for these proceedings could cost up to £30,000. Given his financial status, Becker may be required to represent himself as a “litigant in person,” a complex and generally discouraged legal strategy. Barrister Leon Glenister noted that while appeals on human rights grounds or based on compassionate circumstances are possible, such processes typically take six to 12 months to process and are costly. The presumption, according to experts, is that a deportation order will be issued, with any subsequent appeals likely to challenge the decision on private and family life grounds.
