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Migrant
A Migrant is someone who leaves one country for another. Anyone seeking to work in another country is an Economic Migrant.
Other definitions
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An Immigrant is someone who comes to a country in which they were not born with the intention of settling there. Immigrants include Refugees, Asylum Seekers, Economic Migrants and the spouses of UK citizens.
A Refugee is someone who has come to another country, fearing or fleeing persecution in his or her home country because of his or her race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion.
The right of Asylum is an ancient, juridical notion in which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs, or fleeing serious harm in his or her own country, may be protected by another country.
Asylum is a fundamental right and granting it is an international obligation.
Asylum protection is given under the 1951 UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. Check out the full Convention and Protocol
The UK is a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights which prohibits sending someone to a country where there is a real risk that he or she will be exposed to torture or inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Asylum seeker
A refugee becomes an Asylum Seeker as soon as he or she applies for asylum in another country. It is up to that person to prove that his or her claim is well-founded.
Check out the UK Border Agency explanation of Asylum
Refused or Failed Asylum Seeker
Someone whose application to remain in this country has been refused and is therefore liable to deportation.
Illegal immigrant
An Illegal Immigrant is someone who has entered the country evading passport controls, for example, by hiding in lorries or trains, or who has stayed on after his or her visa or leave to remain has expired.