Successful applicants under Appendix VDA are granted ‘settlement’, otherwise known as ‘indefinite leave to remain’ (or ‘indefinite leave to enter’ in cases of transnational marriage abandonment). VDA applications are not considered ‘human rights claims’ and do not carry a right of appeal. Instead, the applicant only has a right to...
Migrant victims of domestic abuse are highly vulnerable as a result of their insecure immigration status, especially as they usually have no recourse to public funds and may have limited resources of their own. This often makes it difficult for them to escape their abusive relationship. In recognition of this,...
Relationship requirements Not all people in the UK with permission as a partner qualify for protection under the VDA rules (see VDA 4.1). It is only applicants who currently have, or have last been granted, permission as a: Fiancé(e)s and proposed civil partners are not eligible to apply for indefinite...
The Immigration Rules for Victims of Domestic Abuse (VDA) recognises the vulnerability of spouses and partners coming to the UK to join their British or UK-settled partners who later become victims of domestic abuse. Immigration Rules to protect victims of domestic violence were established in 2002 and most recently were...
CLOSING DATE: 5 MAY 2024 South West London Law Centres is seeking an experienced Asylum/Immigration Solicitor or Caseworker with the appropriate level of accreditation to provide casework together with colleagues in a number of new projects including homelessness and domestic violence cases. You will show care and attention to our...
Closing Date: Sunday 31st March 2024 Hours: 37.5 per week Salary: £26,000 – £29,000 per annum Location: Coventry About the Role As the Immigration Caseworker, you will manage a caseload of clients. You will work closely with other members of the Legal branch to offer the best advice and service...
Legal reform charity JUSTICE has published a report today from their EUSS working group that looks at the ongoing problems with the EU settlement scheme and makes 16 recommendations. The report commends the scheme as being largely successful and for processing a huge number of applications in a relatively short...
As the government’s Rwanda plan continues to court controversy, there is one area of their policy which by their measures could be seen to be succeeding: their efforts to stop Albanians from seeking refuge in the UK. Since 2019, the Migrant and Refugee Children’s Legal Unit at Islington Law Centre...
Your February roundup is here as promised. Colin and I discuss Shamima Begum’s latest appeal, the pause on some asylum cases, a run of decisions involving poor conduct on the part of either the Tribunals or the Home Office, as well as corporate transactions, the sudden closure of the Ukraine...
This month Sonia and Colin cover Shamima Begum’s latest appeal, the pause on some asylum cases, a run of decisions involving poor conduct on the part of either the Tribunals or the Home Office, as well as corporate transactions, the sudden closure of the Ukraine Family scheme and much more....
Although now largely eclipsed by the Illegal Migration Act 2023, the Nationality and Borders Act 2022’s legacy will be its criminalisation of the act of seeking asylum in the UK. This article aims to give an overview of the changes to the law. Entry vs arrival By way of background,...
Welcome to the weekly Free Movement newsletter! The Home Office has announced that Ukrainians who are here under one of the existing schemes will be “permitted to extend their visa”. This process will require an application, and that process will only open early next year. In the meantime, people will continue to...
Since 31 January 2024, victims of transnational marriage abandonment can apply for a visa to return to the UK. This follows the landmark case of R on the application of AM v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWHC 2591 (Admin). This post looks at how to make...
The Home Office has made changes to the Destitute Domestic Violence Concession by publishing new guidance and a new application form today. There is a new acronym for practitioners to learn as the concession has been re-branded as the Migrant Victims of Domestic Abuse Concession (MVDAC). The big change is...
South West London Law Centres are seeking two experienced Asylum/Immigration Solicitors or Caseworkers with the appropriate level of accreditation to provide casework together with colleagues in a number of new projects including homelessness and domestic violence cases. You will show care and attention to our clients and the command of...
Domestic violence is a serious infringement of someone’s rights. While most often perpetrated against women, it can affect people from any background and part of society. Migrants can be particularly vulnerable and unwilling to seek help because of their precarious status in the UK. This article looks at in country...
The Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) is a fee levied on the majority of UK visa applications. The Immigration Health Surcharge is on top of other Home Office immigration fees and designed to land in a different government pocket. Also sometimes known as the NHS surcharge, it essentially adds £1,035 per...
The Court of Justice of the European Union has concluded that women who experience gender-based violence in their country of origin can be regarded as belonging to a ‘particular social group’ and qualify for refugee status. This is as a result of a preliminary reference made to the Court by...
Gender-based violence is an umbrella term used to describe crimes including rape, domestic violence, forced marriage and female genital mutilation. Women who are fleeing gender-based violence from their country of origin and enter the UK can seek protection and claim asylum in the UK on this basis. As practitioners who...
A new statement of changes has been laid today. Most of the changes relate to the EU Settlement Scheme and travel document requirements for school groups visiting the UK from France. There are also three new appendices (taking us up to 81 separate appendices to the immigration rules), Appendix Bereaved...
The Home Office has recently updated its guidance to clarify that leave under the Hong Kong BN(O) route cannot be cancelled because of relationship breakdown. Background Like most other immigration routes, a dependent spouse/ partner under the Hong Kong BN(O) route needs to show the Home Office that they are...
The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal against the deportation of a mother with a British citizen child, finding that their separation would not be “unduly harsh”. The case is FN (Burundi) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] EWCA Civ 1350. Background The appellant is a...
The Supreme Court has today held that Rwanda is not a safe country and that it would be unlawful for refugees to be removed there. The government’s appeal against the Court of Appeal’s judgment has been dismissed. Lord Reed, giving the court’s judgment, emphasised the non-political nature of the court’s...
Britain has a proud history of welcoming refugees. It also has a shameful history of hostility to refugees. Often exactly the same refugees at the same time. As with all real life and real history — as opposed to more transparently ideologically driven accounts — it is a complex story....
Page contentsContriving to frustrate the intentions of the Immigration RulesImmigration law breaches that might trigger refusalReceiving “services or support to which they were not entitled”Aggravating circumstancesDealing with refusalsHelpful casesPast breaches of immigration rules: re-entry bansWhat periods apply and when?When does the ban period start?When do re-entry bans not apply?Can entry...
Only a relatively small number of failed asylum seekers who are appeal rights exhausted are forcibly removed. Government policy is to cut off their accommodation and support and hope that they leave the UK of their own volition. The reality is that some remain in the UK, and some of...
There will be a wide array of topics that will need to be discussed with the client before deciding to proceed with a claim for judicial review. We discuss some of the most common and important here. Page contentsClient objectives and alternative remediesCosts and funding“Strategic” challenges“Academic” challenges Client objectives and...
On the face of it, refugee status and humanitarian protection seem like two sides of the same coin. Both are a form of international protection granted to a person in need. Both result in a grant of five years’ permission to remain in the UK on a pathway to settlement...
While advisers qualified at OISC Level 2 can lodge notices of appeal against immigration and asylum decisions, they are not authorised to do substantive appeals work. This includes paper appeals work and making representations to, or appearing before, the courts or tribunals. In this unit we will look at which...
On the face of it, refugee status and humanitarian protection seem like two sides of the same coin. Both are a form of international protection granted to a person in need. Both result in a grant of five years’ permission to remain in the UK on a pathway to settlement...
Page contentsOverview of family applicationsPartnersSuitability requirementsRelationship requirementFinancial requirementEnglish language requirementAccommodation requirementImmigration status requirementGrant of leave and settlementBereaved partnersVictims of domestic abuse Overview of family applications Family members (“applicants”) of certain people (“sponsors”) can apply to come to, or remain, in the UK on the basis of their family relationship. Such...
Ordinarily, the Administrative Court will only consider judicial review claims where there is a live issue affecting a prospective litigant. At paragraph 6.3.4.1, the Administrative Court Guide states: Where a claim is academic, i.e. there is no longer a case to be decided which will directly affect the rights and...
JOB TITLE: Senior Immigration Caseworker (Statelessness) LOCATION: Asylum Aid Office (London) RESPONSIBLE TO: Statelessness Project Supervisor CONTRACT: Permanent, part-time (22.5 hours per week) (possibility of up to full time – 37.5 hours per week) SALARY: £34,000 p.a. (pro rata) BENEFITS: 27 days holiday (pro rata) plus 4% matched pension contribution...
South West London Law Centres are recruiting (3 x Immigration Solicitor/Caseworker positions) Salary up to £36,377 per annum depending on experience. Hours – Full Time or Part Time Considered South West London Law Centres (SWLLC) is recruiting 3 x new Solicitor/Caseworker (permanent positions), expanding our highly respected and friendly team...
Lawyers do not own the word “refugee”. The term has been in use since the eighteenth century and has its own evocative, wider meaning in the public consciousness. Those fleeing Ukraine or relocating to the United Kingdom from Hong Kong can validly be referred to as “refugees”, for example, even...
Following the abolition of the “not in accordance with the immigration rules” ground of appeal by the Immigration Act 2014, several cases have considered the relevance of the immigration rules in human rights appeals. The Upper Tribunal has neatly encapsulated the current position in a recent case, Caguitla (Paragraphs 197...
This month Colin and Sonia cover the Illegal Migration Bill and its potential consequences, the right way to go about tackling the asylum backlog, Colin’s suggestion of a new British Citizenship Act, the resumption of hostile environment bank account closures, the latest caselaw and some business immigration issues. If you...
This month we talk more about the Illegal Migration Bill and its potential consequences, the right way to go about tackling the asylum backlog, Colin’s suggestion of a new British Citizenship Act, the resumption of hostile environment bank account closures, we run through a load of cases and end by...
The Court of Appeal has re-affirmed that the domestic violence provisions in the immigration rules are restricted to certain categories of partners and is not open to partners of Points Based System dependants, even if they have in fact suffered domestic abuse. The case is SWP v Secretary of State...
Salary: negotiable, based on experience Hours: 3 days per week Benefits: Flexible working including part-remote; parental leave; workplace pension; generous training and development budget; generous annual leave plus public holidays. Location: Hammersmith, London. Duration: Permanent Deadline for Applications: Friday 12th May 2023 Start Date: ASAP Cromwell Wilkes is an outstanding...
