Regulation 2 of these Regulations amends the Allocation of Housing and Homelessness (Eligibility) (England) Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/1294) (“the Eligibility Regulations”). The amendments ensure that certain persons who were residing in Israel, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, the Golan Heights or Lebanon immediately before 7th October 2023, and left there in connection with the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel on 7th October 2023 or the violence which rapidly escalated in the region following the attack, are eligible for an allocation of housing accommodation and for housing assistance in England. Such a person subject to immigration control will be eligible, whether or not they satisfy the habitual residence test, if they have been given leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom in accordance with the immigration rules made under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 (c. 77), provided that their leave is not subject to the condition that there must be ‘no recourse to public funds’ and that their leave was not granted because of a maintenance undertaking which is still applicable. The amendments also exempt persons who are not subject to immigration control, and who left Israel, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, the Golan Heights or Lebanon in those circumstances, from the habitual residence test in regulations 4 and 6 of the Eligibility Regulations.
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