The number of illegal immigrants caught working in Courier Country has doubled in the past year, it has emerged.
The Courier can reveal 31 people were found to be working illegally last year, up from 16 in the previous year.
The number of civil penalties issued to businesses for employing illegal workers has also increased from nine in 2012/13 to 22 last year.
The majority of illegal workers found last year after raids were in the DD postcode area, which covers Dundee and Angus.
The latest figures were released by the Home Office in response to a freedom of information request from The Courier.
They cover the DD (Angus, Dundee, Tayport, Newport), PH (Perthshire), KY (Fife) and FK (Central) postcode areas which form Courier Country.
Fifteen illegal workers were discovered in the DD postcode area last year compared to just two during 2012/13.
There were nine in the Central area compared to five the previous year, while Fife saw a drop from nine in 2012/13 to three last year.
There were no illegal workers found in the Perth area during 2012/13 but four were encountered during raids last year.
The measures in place to tackle illegal working were introduced by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.
Under this legislation, employers can face liability for a civil penalty of up to £10,000 for every illegal worker found.
There are proposals to strengthen and simplify the civil penalty scheme which include increasing the maximum civil penalty from £10,000 to £20,000.
North East MSP Alex Johnstone said: “This is a very sharp increase in the number of businesses being fined.”
“I have spoken to several business owners, especially in the north-east, who can only operate their firms effectively because of the availability of migrant workers.
“From this perspective, I am very supportive of the contribution that migrant workers make to our economy.
“Having said that, it is extremely important that employees have undergone the appropriate checks to ensure they are eligible to work here. There is, of course, another side to this.
“Where a firm is deliberately employing illegal immigrants, it may be the case that these workers are also being mistreated and taken advantage of, for example through low pay, unfair pay deductions or being given substandard accommodation.
“I am of the view that taking action against those who deliberately employ illegal immigrants can also give a measure of protection to the immigrants themselves.”
Just last year, a series of joint Border Agency and police raids were carried out across Angus.
Three Chinese men were found to be working illegally and more than £25,000 in “dirty cash” was found during a raid in Arbroath.
Businesses and a number of homes in Kirriemuir, Monifieth, Forfar, Montrose and Fife were also raided by the UK Border Agency (UKBA) and police.
A Home Office spokesman said: “The legislative changes to civil penalties are part of a wider package of reform to the way in which we prevent illegal working.
“This includes significantly increased operational enforcement activity, reform of the way in which we administer civil penalties and reform of the way in which we recover unpaid penalties administratively.
“This is to ensure there are real and enforced consequences for employers who repeatedly exploit illegal workers.”