The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration’s report ‘An inspection of the use of deprivation of Citizenship by the Status Review Unit’ contains some interesting points around the high number of Albanian decisions, proposed solutions for what happens to a person after deprivation and some fairly troubling use of...
Closing Date: 13-May-2024 Lead Immigration Lawyer We are looking for a dynamic and committed solicitor (or barrister with authorisation to conduct litigation) to join our legal team as Lead Immigration Lawyer. This is an exciting role, and will suit someone who enjoys using the law creatively and working collaboratively. ATLEU...
Welcome to the weekly Free Movement newsletter! “Election vanity scam” (as coined by someone who seemingly works for the Home Office) is probably the most accurate description of the Rwanda plan at this point. As I have said before, best case scenario for the government surely has to be that any...
Our monthly update course is available to Free Movement members. It is based on the articles we’ve published over the last month and on our immigration law update podcast. If you are not already a member, you can join here and access not just this course but all of our courses. Membership starts...
This month Sonia and Colin discuss the latest with Albanian cases as uncovered in the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration’s report on asylum casework, the recent changes to the Ukraine schemes, as well as a reminder of the existence of Hamid cases and how to avoid being on...
In the March roundup, Sonia and Colin discuss the latest with Albanian cases as uncovered in the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration’s report on asylum casework. We cover articles looking at recent changes to the Ukraine schemes, as well as a reminder of the existence of Hamid cases...
During judicial review proceedings it has been disclosed that around 80 children were evacuated from Afghanistan and separated from their families and a new route is to be put in place to facilitate the reunion of these families shortly. The case is R (HR & Ors) v Secretary of State...
The Appendix FM minimum income requirements for spouse and partner visas can catch out even those with enough money to meet them. Having the money only takes you so far: the income must come from a specific source, must be calculated in a certain way, and specified evidence must be...
In other posts we have looked at the requirements to be satisfied by a spouse or partner who seek leave to enter or remain. Under Appendix FM, the sponsor can be a British citizen, a settled person, a refugee, or someone with humanitarian protection, limited leave under Appendix EU, Appendix...
Spouses and partners of British citizens or people settled in the UK can apply for a visa to join or remain with their loved ones. These applications are dealt with by the Home Office under the immigration rules. Specifically, the part of the rules that applicants need to navigate are...
On 10 April 2024 the Home Office introduced a fee waiver process for those applying to extend their leave in Appendix Hong Kong BN(O) however the new process introduces barriers that do not exist for other routes and will be insurmountable for some applicants, through no fault of their own....
Today The Court and Tribunal Fees (Miscellaneous Amendments) Order 2024 was laid before Parliament, this sets out increases to fees including immigration judicial reviews in both the Upper Tribunal and Administrative Court as well as for applications to the Court of Appeal. For the Upper Tribunal, Article 10 of the...
The Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (’OISC’) has published their response to last year’s consultation on the code of standards. Under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 it is a criminal offence to give immigration advice unless you are properly regulated. For those who are not practicing solicitors, barristers...
Welcome to the weekly Free Movement newsletter! On the asylum front, things are still relatively quiet but this is very much the calm before the storm, as the Rwanda Bill is expected to pass next week. We will then hopefully at least get some clarity as to how the government intends to...
On 13 March 2024, in AUS v R [2024] EWCA Crim 322, the Court of Appeal quashed the 2010 conviction of a Somali citizen who was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment for possession of a false identity document, contrary to s25(1) of the Identity Cards Act 2006. The applicant was...
Closing date Friday 26 April 17:00 About OTB Legal OTB Legal are a specialist UK immigration Law Firm, recognised by the Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners. At our core, we defy the conventional cliché of Solicitors. Our commitment lies in transforming complex immigration laws into simple solutions with the...
The Upper Tribunal has found that Appendix EU (Family Permit) requires those coming to the UK under these rules to be joining the relevant EEA national, and that it is not enough to be in the same country and joining their spouse only. The case is MD and Others (‘joining’,...
If a European national receives a criminal conviction arising from conduct which took place before the Brexit cut-off date, how can they rely on those previous EU rules in an appeal against deportation? The question is important because of the very large difference in the protections afforded by the previous...
The Court of Appeal has told the Ministry of Defence that they must reconsider whether an Afghan former Supreme Court judge is eligible for resettlement to the UK under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP). This was following an unsuccessful appeal by the Home Secretary and the Defence Secretary...
It is ten years since I launched Free Movement membership. In that decade, I’ve strived to offer exceptional resources at great value. I’ve increased the cost just once, in 2022. Two years later, it is time for another increase. The new prices will take effect for all renewed subscriptions and...
In recent months two cohorts of young people, those granted ‘Calais leave’ and those granted leave under section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016, have begun to reach the end of five years’ limited leave to remain. The immigration rules currently provide a route to either further limited leave or...
CLOSING DATE: 25 April 2024 JOB TITLE: Children and Young People’s Asylum Solicitor/ Caseworker LOCATION: Asylum Aid Office (London) RESPONSIBLE TO: Immigration Supervisor CONTRACT: Permanent, full time (37.5 hours) – part-time working considered (minimum 30 hours per week) SALARY: £34,000 p.a. (pro rata if part time) BENEFITS: 27 days holiday plus 4% matched […]
...Welcome to the weekly Free Movement newsletter! Over the weekend, the number of people who have crossed the Channel to the UK by small boat reached 5,435. This is a 43% increase from the same time last year. Although all of these arrivals would be blocked from the asylum system if...
This article explains how to make a successful change of conditions application where a person needs to lift the no recourse to public funds restriction (NRPF) from their grant of leave. This article is written for applicants as well as for the lawyers and advisors who may be assisting in...
The Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) has published its annual report for the year 2022/23. One of the key points made is that the number of new immigration advisers is said to be rising, but not rapidly enough to meet even-faster rising demand for immigration law advice. This...
The High Court has dismissed a judicial review raised by an Albanian national challenging a negative reasonable grounds (first stage) decision in his trafficking claim, finding that his employer did not have the intention to exploit him at the point of recruitment. The case is R (MT) v Secretary of...
The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration’s report An inspection of the immigration system as it relates to the social care sector’ has been published and has identified some serious shortcomings in the sponsor licence process for the sector, while noting that the Home Office has started putting systems...
A consultation has been launched by the Home Office on a major increase to OISC registration fees. The deadline for responses is 5 June 2024. Fees currently bring in around £1.3 million and the OISC costs around £2.2 million to run. The increase is intended to close that gap so that...
The High Court has heard three Hamid referrals, two of which concerned asylum cases and one of those resulted in a referral to the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Given the professional implications, any practitioner reading this should already be well aware of the Hamid jurisdiction, which is essentially a disciplinary process...
The Court of Appeal has upheld the Upper Tribunal’s decision that those who applied for the wrong type of family permit before the end of the Brexit transition period cannot benefit from the EU Settlement Scheme or the EU Withdrawal Agreement. The decision is Siddiqa v Entry Clearance Officer [2024]...
The Upper Tribunal has held that a person who was on immigration bail is unable to rely on the exemption from needing to hold a relevant document (showing that the Home Office had already recognised residence as a durable partner) where a person otherwise had a lawful basis of stay...
On 14 March 2024 the government published its latest statement of changes to the immigration rules, which included changes to a number of UK immigration categories. The most significant changes were to implement the plans laid out by the Home Secretary in December. These include raising the minimum income requirements...
The Upper Tribunal has dismissed the appeal of an Iraqi man who had falsely claimed to be Iranian in his first asylum claim. The appellant had returned to Iraq in 2012 when that claim was unsuccessful, before returning to the UK and making a fresh claim in January 2020. He...
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Home Training Immigration Law Webinars We run regular one hour webinars on all sorts of topical immigration law and practice issues. We bring in top lawyers and other experts to deliver our training and always conclude with a Q&A. Our webinars are a great way to make sure you are...
