Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Retention definition

What does Retention mean? In construction contracts, retention is a portion of each interim payment (often 3–5%) withheld by the employer or upstream contractor to secure completion and the remedy of defects. It is a contractual mechanism, not a statutory term, and is widely used across England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland in standard forms (e.g. JCT, NEC, PWC). Typically, half of the retention is released at practical completion (NEC: Completion; Ireland PWC: Substantial Completion) and the balance on expiry of the defects liability/rectification period, usually evidenced by a certificate of making good defects or a defects certificate. Sectional completion may trigger...

Archived pre-Brexit: Home Office retention of passports and valuable documents—legal basis, policy, and options for fresh applications and voluntary departure in UK immigration law

Published by a LexisNexis Immigration expert

Practice notes

Important note—Archived Practice Note

This Practice Note is no longer maintained, as it concerns the position before the rollout of simplified immigration rules and processes around, and leading up to, the end of the Brexit transition period. It is kept as an archive for historic interest.

The Home Office operates a policy of keeping important original documents where an in-country application has been refused or treated as invalid, in cases where the applicant holds no leave other than statutory leave under sections 3C or 3D of the Immigration Act 1971 (IA 1971). Note that IA 1971, s 3D was removed with effect from 1 December 2016. For more detail, see Practice Note: Dealing with curtailment and cancellation.

This approach has caused various practical problems, for example when making a fresh application for leave to remain or arranging voluntary departure. This Practice Note addresses these elements of document retention:

the principal legislation and relevant Home Office guidance
the choices where the Home Office has kept documents after a refusal and the applicant intends to submit a further application
the choices available where the Home Office has

...

To view the latest version of this document and thousands of others like it, sign-in with LexisNexis or register for a free trial.

Christopher R. Cole

DG Legal

Christopher has a degree in Politics and Law from the University of Southampton and a Masters in Human Rights Law from the University of Nottingham. He qualified as a Solicitor in 1998 and has specialised in immigration and asylum law ever since. Having worked in London for a number of years, Christopher moved to Yorkshire in 2001. He headed the Immigration Team at Parker Rhodes before establishing Cole & Yousaf Solicitors in 2007. Christopher specialises in complex asylum and human rights cases, although he has extensive experience across the whole spectrum of immigration law. He is accredited at the highest level of the Law Society's Immigration & Asylum Accreditation Scheme ' Immigration Law Advanced. He has been recognised as a Leading Individual in immigration law by the Chambers UK directory for a number of years having been praised for his 'sharp...

Nathan Woodcock , LL.B.

Woodcock Law

Nathan Woodcock is a Solicitor and Notary Public of England and Wales. He specialises in immigration law, particularly business and corporate immigration. Nathan graduated with First Class Honours in Law from the University of Leicester in 2011 and became a fully qualified solicitor in 2016. Since then, he has assisted clients with a wide range of applications and assisted some clients at appeal stage. Nathan gained valuable experience in immigration law working for firms such as Astons, Fragomen and EY, before establishing Woodcock Law & Notary Public in 2019. Nathan and the team at Woodcock Law specialise in all aspects of UK immigration law, with extensive experience and partnerships with corporate clients and high net worth individuals. The firm also specialises in sponsor licences, certificates of sponsorship, immigration audits, and corporate compliance....

Web page updated on 21/05/2026

Popular documents

Using the Judicial College Guidelines to assess general damages in personal injury claims

When evaluating a general damages claim, the practitioner ought initially to refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG)...

Tomlin orders in England and Wales: CPR guidance on drafting, confidentiality, approval, variation, enforcement, limitation, CCA issues, court-specific requirements, sample wording and precedents

This Practice Note This Practice Note reviews mechanisms used in settling litigation. A Tomlin order consists of a consent order paired with a schedule. It operates to stay proceedings on terms that have been agreed. The provisions contained in the schedule may remain confidential. This Practice Note describes the scope of confidentiality attaching to the schedule and sets out how it differs from a standard consent order. Sample wording for a Tomlin order is included, alongside links to precedents, as well as guidance on court approval. It also addresses varying, setting aside and enforcing a Tomlin order, including the considerations the court will take into account when handling applications for each. Further guidance is provided on interpreting and applying the relevant provisions of the CPR; however, some courts and divisions impose very specific requirements for both drafting and approval, and for approaching the schedule and confidentiality issues. Accordingly, you must consider the particular rules and court guide provisions in the forum where your claim is proceeding when drawing up the Tomlin order...

Precedent: Deed of Surrender of Lease with Optional Premium, Settlement and Release, Landlord, Mortgagee and Guarantor Consents, Reimbursement and HM Land Registry Provisions (England and Wales)

Date [ date ] Parties [ name of Landlord ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Landlord) [ name of Tenant ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Tenant) [ [ name of Guarantor ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Guarantor) ] [ [ name of Mortgagee ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Mortgagee) ] Definitions Within this Deed, the terms below shall be interpreted as follows: [ Annual Rent • the annual sum reserved under the Lease; ] [ Insurance Rent • the Tenant’s share of the Landlord’s costs of insuring the Property (as set out in the Lease); ] Lease • the lease of the Property dated [ date ], entered into between (1) [ the Landlord OR [ name ...

Precedent Statutory Declaration: Standard Wording under the Statutory Declarations Act 1835

I, [ name ], of [ address ], solemnly and sincerely state that: [ Matters to be verified, set out in numbered paragraphs ] I make this solemn statement in good conscience, believing it to be true, and pursuant to the provisions of the Statutory Declarations Act 1835. DECLARED at [ details ] this [ day ] day of [ month and year ] Before me ................................................................................ [ signature of the person before whom the declaration is made ] A [ commissioner for oaths OR [ solicitor OR [ insert other qualification ] ] authorised to administer oaths ]...