The law and courts for the Life in the UK test: police, rights, tax and driving

Criminal law and civil law

Everyone in the UK must obey the law, whoever they are and wherever they come from. Everyone is equal before the law. There are two main kinds of law.

Criminal law

Deals with crimes. Crimes are usually investigated by the police, but also by bodies such as councils or HM Revenue & Customs, and they are punished by the courts.

Civil law

Settles disagreements between people or organisations. Examples are housing disputes (such as a landlord and tenant disagreeing over repairs), consumer rights, employment disputes and debt.

Examples of crimes

• Carrying any weapon in public, including a knife, even if you say it is for self-defence.
• Selling tobacco or alcohol to anyone under 18, or buying alcohol for someone under 18.
• Buying or selling illegal drugs, and drink-driving.
• Racially or religiously motivated crime, such as harassing someone because of their ethnic origin or religion.
• Smoking in almost all enclosed public places.
• Drinking in public in an alcohol-free zone. The police can take the alcohol away or move people on, and offenders can be fined or arrested.

The police

What the police do

Protect life and property, keep the peace, and prevent and detect crime.

Chief Constable

Each police force is headed by a Chief Constable. The police are independent of the government. They must obey the law themselves, and corruption or misuse of their powers is punished severely.

If you are arrested

You are told the reason, and you can ask for legal advice at the police station.

PCSOs

Police Community Support Officers patrol the streets, work with the public and help police officers at crime scenes and major events. They do not have full police powers.

Police and Crime Commissioners

Directly elected in England and Wales, first in November 2012. They set local policing priorities and budgets and appoint the Chief Constable. The government plans to abolish the role in 2028.

Complaints

Go to a police station or write to the Chief Constable. In England and Wales you can also complain to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). In Northern Ireland, complaints go to the Police Ombudsman's Office.

Terrorism and extremism

If you suspect terrorism, or someone tries to recruit you to extremism or terrorism, tell the police, for example through the confidential Anti-Terrorist Hotline.

Judges

• Judges are together called the judiciary. They interpret the law and make sure trials are fair.
• Judges are independent of the government. If they find that the government has acted unlawfully, the government must change its policy or ask Parliament to change the law.
• Judges can order a public body that ignores people's legal rights to change how it works and/or pay compensation.

Criminal courts

Magistrates' courts

Hear minor criminal cases in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, minor cases go to Justice of the Peace Courts.

Magistrates and Justices of the Peace

Usually unpaid volunteers with no legal qualifications. In Northern Ireland, these cases are heard by paid, legally qualified District Judges or Deputy District Judges.

Crown Court

Hears serious criminal cases in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a judge and a jury.

Sheriff Court and High Court (Scotland)

Serious criminal cases in Scotland go to a Sheriff Court. The most serious crimes, such as murder, go to the High Court.

Juries

A jury has 12 members in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and 15 in Scotland. Jurors are picked at random from the electoral register.

Verdicts

Juries find a defendant guilty or not guilty. The handbook says Scottish juries can also return 'not proven'. Since 2026, that verdict has been abolished for new trials in Scotland.

Jury service

Compulsory unless you are ineligible (for example, because of a criminal conviction) or have a good reason such as ill health. It applies to people aged 18 to 75 in England and Wales, and 18 to 70 in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Youth courts

Hear cases of young people aged 10 to 17 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, before a District Judge or up to three specially trained magistrates. The public cannot attend, and the young person's name and photo must not be published.

Children's Hearings System

Scotland's way of dealing with young people who commit offences. Northern Ireland also uses youth conferencing.

Civil courts

County courts

Hear civil disputes in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, such as debts, divorce, family matters, personal injury and breaches of contract. Since 2014, England and Wales have had a single County Court.

Sheriff courts (Scotland)

Hear most civil disputes in Scotland.

Serious civil cases

Go to the High Court in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and to the Court of Session in Edinburgh in Scotland.

Small claims procedure

An informal way to settle minor disputes without a lawyer. In England and Wales it covers claims under £10,000. In Scotland it is now called the simple procedure.

Getting legal advice

• Solicitors give legal advice and represent clients. They usually charge for the time they spend on a case, so ask at the start what it may cost. Citizens Advice gives free advice.
• To find a local solicitor and their specialist areas, ask Citizens Advice or the Law Society (England and Wales), or its equivalents in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Fundamental rights

Where rights come from

Britain's tradition of individual rights goes back to Magna Carta, the 1689 Bill of Rights and the Habeas Corpus Act.

1950

The UK is one of the first countries to sign the European Convention on Human Rights. British lawyers and diplomats helped to write it. It was drawn up by the Council of Europe, not the European Union.

Human Rights Act 1998

Made the rights in the Convention part of UK law. Public authorities, including the government, the police and the courts, must respect them.

Rights protected

The right to life, liberty and security, and to a fair trial; freedom of expression; and freedom of thought, conscience and religion. Torture, slavery and forced labour are banned.

Equality

• The Equality Act 2010 protects people in England, Scotland and Wales from unfair treatment in all areas of life, not just at work. Northern Ireland has similar laws of its own.
• Protected characteristics include age, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, and marital status.
• Men and women have equal rights at work and in property, marriage and divorce.
• In England and Wales, the Equality and Human Rights Commission and Citizens Advice can give you information if you face discrimination.

Protection at home and in marriage

• Violence towards a partner is a serious crime, whether the couple are married or living together. A man who forces his wife to have sex can be charged with rape.
• Refuges, or shelters, give people escaping domestic violence a safe place to live. In an emergency, always ring the police.
• Female genital mutilation (FGM) is illegal. It is also a crime to take a woman or girl overseas to have it done.
• A marriage needs the free and full consent of both people. Arranged marriages, where both people agree, are lawful. Forcing someone to marry is a crime.
• Since 2023 in England and Wales, no one under 18 can marry, and doing anything to bring about the marriage of an under-18 is the crime of forced marriage, even if they agree.
• Forced Marriage Protection Orders protect people at risk of forced marriage. They began in 2008 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and in November 2011 in Scotland. The handbook says breaking an order is contempt of court, with up to two years in prison. Since 2014 in England and Wales, it has also been a crime, with up to five years in prison.

Taxation

What taxes pay for

Public services such as roads, education, the police and the armed forces.

Income tax

Paid on wages, profits from self-employment, pensions, taxable benefits and income from property, savings and dividends.

PAYE

Pay As You Earn: for most employees, the employer takes income tax from their pay and passes it on.

Self-assessment

Self-employed people pay their own tax by completing a tax return.

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC)

The government department that collects taxes.

National Insurance

Nearly everyone in paid work, including self-employed people, pays National Insurance contributions. They help pay for state benefits, the state retirement pension and the NHS. If you pay too little, you may not get some benefits or a full state pension.

National Insurance number

Young people are sent their number just before they turn 16. Anyone working in the UK needs one, but you can start work before you receive it.

Driving

Minimum ages

17 to drive a car and 16 to ride a moped.

Driving licence

Learners need a provisional licence. To get a full licence, you must pass a theory test and a practical driving test.

'R' plate

In Northern Ireland, newly qualified drivers must show an 'R' (restricted) plate for a year after passing their test.

Licences from other countries

You can drive on a licence from another country for up to 12 months. After that you need a full UK licence.

Insurance

All drivers must have valid motor insurance. Driving without insurance is a serious criminal offence.

Vehicle tax

Vehicle Excise Duty (road tax) must be paid on most vehicles. It cannot be passed on to a new owner when a vehicle is sold. A vehicle kept off the road must be declared to the DVLA with a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN).

MOT test

In Great Britain, vehicles over three years old need an MOT test every year. In Northern Ireland, the first test is at four years. Driving without a valid MOT certificate is an offence.

Age 70

A driving licence must be renewed at 70, and then every three years.