What IAA regulation means in the UK, and how to check it

What it permits

• Giving immigration advice in the UK at one of three levels. Level 1 covers straightforward applications; Level 3 covers appeals and complex casework. The level matters — an adviser regulated at Level 1 cannot lawfully take on Level 3 work.
• The Immigration Advice Authority took over this role from the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) in 2024; older material and older adviser websites still say OISC.
• Solicitors and barristers are regulated separately, by the SRA and the Bar Standards Board, and do not appear on the IAA register.

What it does not tell you

The limits matter as much as the permissions. A licence answers one question precisely and says nothing about the others.

• Whether the adviser has any involvement in school admissions. UK immigration advice and independent-school placement are almost entirely separate trades.
• Which level of work they actually do day to day, only the maximum level they are permitted.
• Anything about an education agent or placement consultant, who fall outside the regime entirely unless they also give immigration advice.

How to check one yourself

1. 1Open the adviser register at immigrationadviceauthority.gov.uk.
2. 2Search by organisation name or adviser name.
3. 3Check the regulated level against the work you are asking them to do.
4. 4If the firm says 'OISC registered', that is not automatically out of date — it is the predecessor body — but confirm the entry still appears on the current IAA register.
5. 5If they claim to be a solicitor instead, check the Solicitors Regulation Authority register rather than this one.