Last year, Nick wrote up the case of MA (Pakistan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2019] EWCA Civ 1252, summarising it as follows: If a foreign criminal wins their deportation appeal, can the Home Office try and deport them again, even where there has been no further...
The European Court of Human Rights has held unanimously that the removal of a Sudanese man by the Belgian authorities – in breach of a court order – violated his rights under Article 3 and 13 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The case involved remarkable procedural defects, including...
The Refugee and Migrant Forum of Essex and London (RAMFEL) is a not for profit organisation led by the needs of the individuals and communities we work with. Our focus is on providing immigration advice, destitution services, integration support and campaigning to improve the lives of refugees, asylum seekers and...
The vice-president of the Upper Tribunal has laid into a more junior immigration judge for a judgment so bad it amounted to a “failure of the judicial process”. Vice-president Ockelton said that the judgment in question, which was littered with errors and irrelevant material apparently copy and pasted from previous...
A new survey of immigration advice in London is launching today, 2 November 2020, looking for data on demand and supply for advice at all levels. The London Immigration Advice Mapping project is researching immigration advice in the capital, commissioned by Paul Hamlyn Foundation and the Justice Together Initiative. The...
In KB (Jamaica) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] EWCA Civ 1385 the Court of Appeal followed the recent decisions of HA (Iraq) v SSHD [2020] EWCA Civ 1176 and AA (Nigeria) v SSHD [2020] EWCA Civ 1296 on the interpretation of the “unduly harsh” test in...
Following the failings identified by the Windrush Lessons Learned Review, Priti Patel promised a “compassionate… people first” Home Office. But over the past few months the Home Office seems to have entertained only the most inhumane immigration policies, such as offshore “asylum processing centres” mirroring Australia’s notorious Nauru detention centre,...
For work-based immigration, last week’s statement of changes to the Immigration Rules was in many ways rather anticlimactic. The last two years have seen a series of reports and policy statements setting out the government’s plans for a ‘new’ Points-Based Immigration System. The major changes therefore come as no great...
New Statement of Changes alert! With the end of EU free movement nearly here and the visitor route likely to see greater use in future, changes to the route have (in the nick of time) now been announced. A new Appendix V will replace the existing version, with a key...
In Hoque & Ors v SSHD [2020] EWCA Civ 1357 the Court of Appeal addressed the issue of gaps in lawful residence in ten-year long residence applications. It found that the previous authority of R (Masum Ahmed) v SSHD [2019] EWCA Civ 1070 – which held that any applicant who...
The Supreme Court held today in R (Pathan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] UKSC 41 that the Home Office’s treatment of a Tier 2 skilled worker, Mr Pathan, was unfair. Mr Pathan had applied for an extension of his visa as a sponsored worker in good time...
The joy of working in immigration law is writing a 4,000 word briefing on the English language requirement, only to see a new provider added to the list three days after it is published, before an entirely new English language section of the Immigration Rules is announced two weeks later...
Lawyers have spent much of this year fighting off controversial changes to legal aid for immigration appeals. In May, the government brought in adjusted legal aid arrangements for cases lodged under a new online appeal system — arrangements that spelled doom for an already under-pressure sector. I spoke to Sonia...
The long-awaited statement of changes giving us more details on the famous “new Points-Based Immigration System” has now been published. It is over 500 pages long and even the explanatory memorandum, which is usually just a few pages long, weighs in at 50 pages. This article is a summary of...
Hot on the heels of this summer’s confected controversy over last minute legal challenges to removals of asylum seekers, the Court of Appeal has ruled that the Home Office’s ‘removal window’ policy is unlawful because it denies the common law right of access to a court. In a timely reminder...
Imagine being accused of a crime. Now imagine you’re not told what that crime is. Then imagine a whole trial taking place without you being told what you’ve done and without you seeing any documents to prove it. Every time the top-secret evidence about you comes up, you and your...
The Home Office has been rolling out new webpages for the public on how to get a visa, in preparation for the new points-based immigration system due to come in from 1 January 2021. One such page was published yesterday, aimed at EU citizens. The overall message is “yes, you...
Immigration lawyers develop thick skins. It’s easy to see why – a quick scan of the political landscape tells you what we have to deal with day in, day out! Nevertheless, there are some still cases where the Home Office’s arguments are so outrageous, it really makes your blood boil....
Accredited Immigration Adviser (OISC level 3 or IAAS level 2) Hours: 37 Salary: £35k pa Type of contract: 6-month fixed term with strong possibility of further extension Location: Citizens Advice Portsmouth head office / remote Our Purpose To provide the information and advice that people need and to improve the...
The Home Secretary has a lot of power over naturalisation, the process by which foreign nationals can acquire British citizenship. The criteria for naturalisation are set out in the British Nationality Act 1981, but that Act also empowers the Home Secretary to waive many of the criteria if she sees...
Home Office Presenting Officers are civil servants who represent the government in immigration appeals. Last month we ran an article by an anonymous HOPO describing how the immigration system looks from that side of the fence and inviting questions by readers. Here are the answers. Thanks to everyone who sent...
In AA (Nigeria) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] EWCA Civ 1296 the Court of Appeal has considered its first deportation appeal since the important case of HA (Iraq) v SSHD [2020] EWCA Civ 1176. It confirms that the “unduly harsh” test set out in KO (Nigeria)...
Welcome to episode 81 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. This month we kick off with a big ruling on deportation law before turning to some draft laws affecting EU citizens in the UK. The visa rules for students changed on 5 October, so we discuss those tweaks before...
EUSS Hub Coordinator £29,628 – £37,092 per annum, pro rata, dependent on experience. (This range is per our pay scale and will be adjusted accordingly). The deadline for applications is 11.59pm Monday 26th October 2020. Contract term: 12 months (with the potential for extension). Looking to ensure EU citizens’ rights...
The end of the continuing professional development year looms (for solicitors in England and Wales at any rate; other professions and jurisdictions are available). Here on Free Movement we have a massive selection of training courses and other online materials that can be used to satisfy CPD requirements and there...
The rise in reports of domestic abuse during lockdown is horrifying. Worldwide, the situation is so bad that it’s been dubbed a “shadow pandemic“. In the UK, calls to domestic abuse helplines have risen by a terrifying 80%. In response, police forces across the country have urged people experiencing abuse...
On 30 September 2020 the Home Office updated its good character policy for naturalisation to make it even harder for EU nationals to become British citizens. The new policy doubles the period of time, from five years to ten years, during which certain EU citizens in the UK must have...
New government guidance sets out additional steps for employers when sponsoring foreign medical workers applying for the new Health and Care Visa. The visa launched on 4 August 2020 as a subcategory of the existing Tier 2 (General) route for sponsored workers. The updated Tier 2 and Tier 5 guidance...
All asylum seekers, including children and young people, find that the starting point for any official making a decision in their case is to doubt their narratives and subject them to disbelief and incredulity. Even in this climate of disbelief, Albanian asylum claims have been singled out for particular hostility....
The Immigration Health Surcharge will increase from £400 a year to £624 a year on 27 October 2020. The Immigration (Health Charge) (Amendment) Order 2020 (SI 2020 No. 1086) was made today, 6 October, and comes into force 21 days later. As a result, UK immigration applications sent in before...
In August, Nath Gbikpi reported for Free Movement on R (Y) (Children In Care: Change of Nationality) [2020] EWCA Civ 1038. In that case, the Court of Appeal found that section 33 of the Children Act 1989 did not entitle the local authority to apply for British citizenship for two...
For many of the Windrush generation it was the hostile environment which signalled the start of their wrongful exclusion from society and, in some cases, the UK itself. For others, the injustice started much earlier. Between 1973 and 1988, many Commonwealth citizens with indefinite leave to remain in the UK...
The Home Secretary, Priti Patel, delivered a keynote speech to the Conservative Party conference yesterday. Around half the speech was given over to what she repeatedly called the UK’s “broken” asylum system. I thought a transcript would be available by this morning but can’t find it, so have created one...
Inspectors observing a Home Office charter flight taking asylum seekers to France and Germany have found that coronavirus precautions were not followed. The report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons also found that pain was deliberately inflicted on three highly distressed people, although it was unable to say whether the use...
Hugo Storey had his last day as a judge on 30 September, having reached the statutory retirement age of 75. The established place the Upper Tribunal now has in the UK judicial system and its high reputation abroad owes much to Hugo’s pioneering role. Lawyer and lecturer Prior to becoming...
The government has launched an Immigration Health Surcharge refund scheme for NHS and social care workers. Migrants working in a hospital or care home who don’t have a Health and Care visa will continue to pay the surcharge up front, but can claim it back every six months. During the...
Digital-only residence permits could make it harder for migrants to access vital services like jobs and housing, a new report warns. Landlords and employers used to physical passports and residence permits may discriminate against migrants whose proof of immigration status only exists online, according to the Public Law Project. Millions...
Under the government’s new Points-Based Immigration System, the minimum salary required to sponsor an overseas worker will be £25,600, unless the worker has a PhD — or is being hired for a role that appears on the Shortage Occupation List. The minimum salary for a shortage job will instead be...
