A York restaurant has retained its licence after the Home Office abandoned an attempt to have it revoked, but the business has been ordered to adopt stricter employment checks following a raid last year that uncovered an illegal worker.
Local owner says staff and customers were left anxious
The City of York Council licensing hearing on 16 October approved conditions proposed by the Home Office’s Immigration, Compliance and Enforcement (ICE) team, rather than the more severe step of stripping the licence from the Goodramgate premises.
The current owner of Yakamoz, Akwan Irani, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service he was not responsible for the conduct of the restaurant’s previous operator and said the prospect of losing the licence had caused considerable upset among his team.
“When we received the letter about the hearing it was really embarrassing, I consider myself professional. I felt very relieved and happy with the decision which recognis[ed]…”
Mr Irani said the uncertainty surrounding the licence had made staff uncomfortable and prompted customers to speculate about whether the restaurant would remain open. He warned that 12 employees could have lost their jobs if the Home Office’s initial bid to revoke the licence had succeeded.
Conditions imposed and background to the raid
Under the conditions approved by the licensing panel, Yakamoz must conduct right-to-work checks on all prospective employees, retain documentary evidence from those checks for inspection, and be able to produce the documents promptly when requested by authorities.
- Right-to-work checks must be carried out for all potential employees.
- Documents obtained during checks must be retained for inspection.
- The business must be able to promptly produce those documents on request.
The licensing hearing followed a raid by ICE officers at Yakamoz in September of last year, when an individual was discovered working at the restaurant without the legal right to do so. Investigations found that the man had entered the UK illegally in 2023 and never held permission to work.
Company history and outstanding penalty
The restaurant’s previous operator, Yakamoz York Ltd, entered liquidation in July. Companies House records show the company owed £60,911 at the time it was wound up, a figure that includes a £45,000 fine levied by the Home Office — a penalty that, according to the available record, remains unpaid.
| Event | Date / Detail |
|---|---|
| ICE raid at Yakamoz | September last year – illegal worker found |
| Illegal entrant’s arrival to UK | 2023 – entered UK illegally |
| Company liquidation (previous operator) | July – Yakamoz York Ltd owed £60,911 |
| Licensing hearing | 16 October – conditions applied rather than revocation |
Council records and statements from ICE, represented at the hearing by Richard Garbutt, indicate the department recognised Mr Irani had not been involved with the business at the time of the immigration enforcement activity. That assessment appears to have influenced the decision to seek conditions rather than pursue licence revocation.
Implications for the local hospitality sector
Licensing decisions of this kind highlight the intersection of immigration enforcement and local regulation, and their potential impact on jobs in York’s hospitality sector. Restaurateurs and licence-holders told colleagues and neighbours that such proceedings can damage customer confidence even when a new operator is not implicated in past wrongdoing.
For Yakamoz, the hearing’s outcome allows the business to continue trading on Goodramgate, but it will face increased administrative scrutiny. The conditions placed on the licence are intended to reduce the risk of illegal employment recurring, but they also require time and resource to implement — a demand felt by small businesses across the city.
With the outstanding fine still recorded against the former company and the history of immigration enforcement at the address, the restaurant will now need to demonstrate robust employment checks to preserve its place on York’s high street and reassure both staff and patrons.
