Released under investigation (RUI): what it means and what happens next

What "released under investigation" actually means

There is no section of PACE called "released under investigation". The College of Policing's statutory guidance says: "The process whereby a suspect is RUI is not specified in law." It describes RUI as release "from custody without charge, not subject to no further action and not on bail" (para 13.1).^[11] The CPS uses the same description: release without bail, "or release under investigation/RUI as it is commonly known".^[12]

The legal basis is PACE s.37. If the custody officer decides there is not enough evidence to charge, the person must be released on bail if the pre-conditions for bail are satisfied (s.37(2)). If they are not, s.37(2A) says "the person arrested must be released without bail".^[1][12]

The pre-conditions are in s.50A(1): the custody officer must be "satisfied that releasing the person on bail is necessary and proportionate in all the circumstances", having regard in particular to any conditions that would be imposed, and must have "considered any representations made by the person or the person's legal representative". The decision is the custody officer's.^[2][11][12]

RUI compared with pre-charge bail

Sources for the table: PACE ss.37, 46A, 47ZB to 47ZG, 47ZZA and 50A^{[1][2][3][4][6][19]}, checked against the CPS bail guidance^[12] and the College of Policing guidance.^[11]

How long can RUI last?

There is no statutory maximum. The CPS guidance says the pre-release conditions in s.50A and the time limits in ss.47ZA to 47ZM "do not apply to releases without bail".^[12] The College of Policing guidance says the same in substance.^[11]

What does exist is guidance. The College of Policing issues statutory guidance on pre-charge bail under PACE s.50B,^[20] and section 13 of that guidance deals with RUI. It says:^[11]

• RUI should only be used where the bail pre-conditions are not met and there is little or no risk identified, and the decision should be justifiable and documented (para 13.3).
• Suspects or their legal representatives can expect regular updates, and forces are recommended to say in writing how often updates will come (para 13.5).
• There should be a clear investigative plan, and the investigation should be conducted as quickly as a bail case (para 13.9).
• The investigator's supervisor should set an initial expected finish date (para 13.10).
• There should be a documented supervisory review at least every 30 days until the investigation is finished (para 13.11).

This is guidance about how the police should work. It does not give you a deadline you can enforce. In practice, though, a long silence is a good reason to ask for an update and for the expected finish date.

The six-month limit for summary-only offences

This is the one hard time limit that often matters in RUI cases. For a summary-only offence, s.127(1) of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 says that, "except as otherwise expressly provided by any enactment", the court shall not try the case unless proceedings were started "within 6 months from the time when the offence was committed".^[13] The CPS guidance adds that "the day on which the offence was committed is not included".^[14][21] Time runs from the date of the offence, not from your arrest or release.^[13][21]

It does not apply to either-way or indictable-only offences, and it does not mean the case simply goes away. Proceedings can be started in time by a written charge (see below).

For comparison: the pre-charge bail time limits

If you are on bail rather than RUI, the time limits are set out in PACE and repeated in the College of Policing guidance. The rules below are the current ones. The 2022 changes came into force on 28 October 2022, and each one "applies in relation to a person arrested for an offence only if the person was arrested for the offence after the coming into force of that amendment" (Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 s.45(3)). The CPS keeps separate guidance "for pre-charge bail following arrests before 28 October 2022".^{[27][12][3][4][11]}

• Initial applicable bail period: three months, starting the day after arrest. It is six months in cases investigated by the SFO, FCA, HMRC or NCA (s.47ZB).^[3][11]
• Standard cases: an inspector can extend to six months from the bail start date (s.47ZD), and a superintendent can then extend to nine months (s.47ZDA).^[4][11][12]
• Exceptionally complex cases: only after a superintendent's extension, and only if "the Director of Public Prosecutions" has designated the case "as being an exceptionally complex case" (s.47ZE(2)). A commander or assistant chief constable, who "must consult the Director of Public Prosecutions" first (s.47ZE(5)(b)), can then extend to twelve months.^[24][11]
• SFO, FCA, HMRC and NCA cases have their own route: a designated senior decision-maker in that agency can extend from six to twelve months (s.47ZDB).^[23][12]
• First court extension (s.47ZF): in a standard case, a magistrates' court can extend to twelve months from the bail start date, or to eighteen months if the investigation or charging decision is unlikely to be completed otherwise. In a case already extended under s.47ZE or s.47ZDB, the court can extend to eighteen months, or to twenty-four months on the same basis.^[25][12][28]
• Further court extensions (s.47ZG): the court can then extend by three months at a time, or six months where that is needed. Section 47ZG(7) says "a qualifying applicant may make further applications", and the College of Policing guidance says there is "no legislative limit to magistrate extensions".^[26][11][28]

Before an inspector or superintendent decides whether to extend, you or your lawyer must be told that a decision is to be made and given the chance to make representations.^[4][11] If you are bailed so that the CPS can make a charging decision (s.37(7)(a)), the bail clock does not run, but it starts or resumes running if the CPS asks the police for more information (s.47ZL).^[5][12][28]

What can still happen while you are RUI

You may be asked back for interview

The police may invite you to a further interview as a volunteer. Code C para 3.21 says a person attending voluntarily "may leave at will unless arrested". You are entitled to free and independent legal advice, and to an interpreter if you need one.^[10][18] If you are later arrested and held in custody, PACE s.58(1) says you are entitled, if you ask, "to consult a solicitor privately at any time".^[9][10] See my guide to voluntary interviews.

You may be re-arrested

If you were released because the 24-hour detention limit ran out (s.41(7)), s.41(9) says you "shall not be re-arrested without a warrant for the offence for which he was previously arrested unless, since the person's release, new evidence has come to light or an examination or analysis of existing evidence has been made which could not reasonably have been made before" your release.^[7][12]

The police can keep seized property

Anything seized can be kept "so long as is necessary in all the circumstances", including for use as evidence at trial or for forensic examination. Section 22(4) says "nothing may be retained" for evidence or forensic purposes "if a photograph or copy would be sufficient for that purpose" (PACE s.22(1), (2) and (4); Code B paras 7.14 to 7.15).^[8][22] If property is not returned, a magistrates' court can make an order under the Police (Property) Act 1897 (s.22(5); Code B Note 7A).^[8][22] See can the police take my phone?

An enhanced DBS check could include police information

An enhanced certificate can include, as well as convictions and cautions, information which "the chief officer reasonably believes to be relevant" and which, in the chief officer's opinion, "ought to be included in the certificate" (Police Act 1997 s.113B(4)).^[16] The Statutory Disclosure Guidance confirms this can include non-conviction information, subject to the statutory test.^[17] Whether an open investigation is disclosed depends on the facts. Nothing is automatic.

How RUI ends

• No further action (NFA). The investigation ends without a charge. Ask for confirmation in writing and keep it.
• Referral to the CPS. If you are arrested or interviewed again and the custody officer decides there is enough evidence to charge, you can be bailed (or kept in detention) so that the CPS can make the charging decision (s.37(7)(a)), or charged.^[1][12]
• Written charge. The police can start proceedings by issuing a written charge with a requisition or single justice procedure notice, which must be served on you. You may get a court date without going back to the police station (Criminal Justice Act 2003 s.29).^[15][14]
• Interview, arrest or charge in person. The police may invite you back, or arrest you if the legal tests are met.

What I would do if I were RUI

1. Keep the paperwork. Keep any RUI notice, property receipt and the custody record reference. Note the officer in the case and the crime reference number.
2. Keep your address up to date with the police. A written charge and requisition must be served on you (Criminal Justice Act 2003 s.29).^[15][14]
3. Preserve evidence that helps you. Messages, photographs, receipts, location data and the names of witnesses can be lost over time. Keep copies safe.
4. Do not contact the complainant or witnesses about the case. Even without bail conditions, contact can be misread, and it can lead to a further allegation.
5. Stay off social media about it. Anything you post can end up in evidence.
6. Ask for updates at sensible intervals. Ask about the expected finish date and the next review.
7. Get advice before any further interview. Do not attend a voluntary interview without a solicitor. Advice for the interview itself is free.
8. For a summary-only allegation, note the six-month date. It runs from the date of the alleged offence, not from your arrest.

Illustrative scenarios

These are invented examples to show how the rules work. They are not real cases and are not advice on your situation.

Scenario 1: a summary-only allegation

A driver is arrested for a summary-only offence, interviewed, and released without bail. Nothing happens for five months. The six-month limit under s.127 runs from the date of the alleged offence, so the police must start proceedings (for example by a written charge and requisition) before that date. If they do not, and no other statute extends the time, the magistrates' court cannot try that offence. The driver should not assume the case is over until the date has passed and, ideally, NFA is confirmed in writing.

Scenario 2: bail switched for RUI

A suspect is on bail with conditions. At three months, an inspector considers an extension. The suspect's solicitor is told and makes representations that the conditions are no longer necessary. One of the tests for an extension is that further release on bail is necessary and proportionate (condition D in s.47ZC). If the inspector is not satisfied, there is no extension, and the investigation can continue with the suspect released without bail. The conditions fall away, but so does the timetable that bail provided. The solicitor should ask for the expected finish date.

Scenario 3: a phone kept for months

A suspect's phone is seized and they are RUI. The phone is only needed for its data. The suspect asks whether a copy would be enough, because s.22(4) stops the police keeping the item for evidence or forensic purposes if a copy would suffice. If the police still refuse, one route is an application to the magistrates' court under the Police (Property) Act 1897.

Common mistakes

• Thinking RUI means the case is closed. It is not NFA.
• Assuming the police must finish by a set date. There is no statutory limit for RUI, only guidance.
• Moving house without telling the police, then missing a requisition.
• Contacting the complainant because "there are no conditions".
• Attending a voluntary interview without advice because it feels informal.
• Assuming nothing will appear on an enhanced DBS check. It depends on the facts.