As promised, I have taken the Law Society’s Immigration and Asylum senior caseworker reaccreditation exam. I passed but definitely have some notes on where a
The Home Office can impose entry bans on people who have previously breached immigration law or used deception in their application for leave. Bans can
Biometric residence permits (BRPs), all issued with expiry dates no later than the end of December 2024, are being replaced with “eVisas“. To get their
As someone who is in the UK with leave to remain, I recently tried the new eVisa system for myself and thought it would be
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has published two reviews as part of their ongoing work in the sector, one is a review of asylum legal services
In R (SM) v The Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWHC 1683 (Admin), the High Court found a reasonable grounds (first stage)
This post is for those who are new to the area of Windrush compensation claims, or who would like to submit their own claim, and
Currently a comfortable 23 points ahead in opinion polls with just under three weeks to the general election, the Labour Party has published its election
The British National (Overseas) citizens immigration route opened on 31 January 2021. This article sets out the rules for the BNO visa scheme, including recent
There was a notable omissions from last year’s immigration application fee increase, namely limited leave to remain applications (i.e. under Appendix FM). The Immigration, Nationality
An appellant did not act dishonestly when he applied for British citizenship and answered ‘no’ when asked whether there was anything that might cast into
The latest immigration and asylum statistics have been published today. We have highlighted some of the interesting data below on asylum, EU Settlement Scheme, fee
As trailed previously, a statement of changes has been published today removing the rights of care workers to bring dependants to the UK. What was
The government has launched a formal and anodyne-sounding “Consultation on reforms to social housing allocations“. It proposed a new series of bars to being allocated
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
With the news that the immigration health surcharge will be going up dramatically, potentially in the next few weeks, it makes sense for people already
The Senior President of Tribunals has published his 2023 annual report which includes updates from the Immigration and Asylum Chambers of both the First-tier Tribunal
Every year I try to take stock, look back at the year that was and look ahead to the year that will be. I also
The Independent Monitoring Boards have published their National Annual Report for 2022 on the immigration detention estate and concerns have been raised in relation to
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
It has been a bumper day for statistics, as the Office for National Statistics and the Home Office have published their latest quarterly figures covering
She managed longer than 43 days this time. But achieved little if anything more the second time around. Braverman forced the Illegal Migration Act 2023
On 27 September 2023 the Solicitors Regulation Authority published a “warning notice” for solicitors carrying out immigration work, causing some alarm within the sector. Specifically,
The House of Lords’ Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee has published a report criticising the Home Office on two fronts. This is in relation to Draft
Changes made by section 43 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 will have a wide-ranging effect on UK maritime sectors and risks some vessels
In this article we look at how foreign eSports (competitive video gaming) competitors can use the visitor route to participate in UK competitions and what
Back in “Small Boats Week” during the summer, the government announced the tripling of employer penalties for illegal workers to £45,000 per worker. The immigration
The Home Office annual report for 2022 has belatedly been published. It shows an additional £3 billion had to be allocated to pay for unexpected
In AB and NB v Secretary of State for the Home Department (PA/07865/20119), the First-tier Tribunal found that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency
The government has published the new application fees previously announced earlier this year. The statement describes the increase as being made “to pay for vital
The most recent Border Force People Survey reveals “a dissatisfied workforce which is a breeding ground for insider risk to grow and become insider acts,
Rishi Sunak’s visit to Delhi for the G20 has prompted more reporting on the UK India free trade agreement, where negotiations have apparently been slowed
A new statement of changes has been published along with the explanatory memorandum and a written statement from the immigration minister. The biggest change is
Today is the latest publication of quarterly statistics on various parts of the immigration and asylum system, covering the period April to June 2023. The
The latest trafficking statistics show a huge increase in both refusals and delays, suggesting the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 had had a disastrous impact
I was away on holiday when the Daily Mail published its article with allegations of serious misconduct by immigration solicitors. It is a shocking article
The Illegal Migration Act 2023 has now been published, after receiving Royal Assent on 20 July 2023. Previously, we have covered the provisions of what
The second Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules this week landed today: HC 1715. It adds Dominica, Honduras, Namibia, Timor-Leste and Vanuatu to the
On 17 July 2023, a new statement of changes to the Immigration Rules was published. As usual, it is accompanied by an Explanatory Memorandum. Also
The government has announced massive increases in immigration fees and the immigration health surcharge. Abolition of some fees has also been announced. The normal rate
As promised, I have taken the Law Society’s Immigration and Asylum senior caseworker reaccreditation exam. I passed but definitely have some notes on where a couple of questions could be improved (Law Society – call me!). Below I explained a bit more about how it works and have set out...
The Home Office can impose entry bans on people who have previously breached immigration law or used deception in their application for leave. Bans can last one year, two years, five years or ten years. Generally speaking, and except for some minor exceptions, the person will not be allowed to...
Biometric residence permits (BRPs), all issued with expiry dates no later than the end of December 2024, are being replaced with “eVisas“. To get their eVisa, people need to register and set up an online account (see our step by step guide for help with this) so that they can...
As someone who is in the UK with leave to remain, I recently tried the new eVisa system for myself and thought it would be useful to share my experience. Biometric residence permits produced in the past few years have “31 December 2024” as the expiry date. This reflects the...
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has published two reviews as part of their ongoing work in the sector, one is a review of asylum legal services and the second a review of training records. These reviews contain some important points and should be read carefully by solicitors working in immigration and...
In R (SM) v The Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWHC 1683 (Admin), the High Court found a reasonable grounds (first stage) trafficking decision to be unlawful as it failed to consider all the relevant evidence and context in the claimant’s case. This is an interesting and...
This post is for those who are new to the area of Windrush compensation claims, or who would like to submit their own claim, and is designed to be a beginner’s guide to the application process. Background to the scheme In April 2018, the news that long-term lawful residents, including...
Currently a comfortable 23 points ahead in opinion polls with just under three weeks to the general election, the Labour Party has published its election manifesto. Sectors of the economy hit by a massive recent hike in salary thresholds for sponsoring skilled workers will be poring over the manifesto for...
The British National (Overseas) citizens immigration route opened on 31 January 2021. This article sets out the rules for the BNO visa scheme, including recent changes. The Home Office abbreviation is “BN(O)”, which we will use where it forms part of the official title of a route, but otherwise stick...
There was a notable omissions from last year’s immigration application fee increase, namely limited leave to remain applications (i.e. under Appendix FM). The Immigration, Nationality and Passport (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2024 will bring in increases to those applications from 24 July 2024 and several others, including some that were increased...
An appellant did not act dishonestly when he applied for British citizenship and answered ‘no’ when asked whether there was anything that might cast into doubt his good character. This was despite him being arrested four weeks after citizenship was granted and later pleading guilty to an offence that took...
The latest immigration and asylum statistics have been published today. We have highlighted some of the interesting data below on asylum, EU Settlement Scheme, fee waivers and student and work routes. Asylum As many have been predicting for a while now, the asylum grant rate has dropped substantially in the...
As trailed previously, a statement of changes has been published today removing the rights of care workers to bring dependants to the UK. What was not mentioned in advance was that this statement of changes would also close the Ukraine Family Scheme with immediate effect (from 3pm 19 February 2024),...
The government has launched a formal and anodyne-sounding “Consultation on reforms to social housing allocations“. It proposed a new series of bars to being allocated certain types of social housing, including a “UK connection test” which would be passed by being a British citizen, EEA citizen with equal treatment rights,...
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...
With the news that the immigration health surcharge will be going up dramatically, potentially in the next few weeks, it makes sense for people already in the UK or looking to move here soon to look at whether an early application is possible. As a reminder, the increase is from...
The Senior President of Tribunals has published his 2023 annual report which includes updates from the Immigration and Asylum Chambers of both the First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal. Apart from reporting on the extensive preparation work that has been required for both the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 and the...
The Independent Monitoring Boards have published their National Annual Report for 2022 on the immigration detention estate and concerns have been raised in relation to several areas, many of which will be familiar to anyone working in this area. People are still being detained for too long, including one person...
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...
It has been a bumper day for statistics, as the Office for National Statistics and the Home Office have published their latest quarterly figures covering all aspects of immigration and asylum. Contrary to the government’s line that their Rwanda deal and Illegal Migration Act are reducing small boat crossings, we...
She managed longer than 43 days this time. But achieved little if anything more the second time around. Braverman forced the Illegal Migration Act 2023 through Parliament in record time on the basis that it was desperately urgent. Almost all of the legislation has not yet been brought into force....
On 27 September 2023 the Solicitors Regulation Authority published a “warning notice” for solicitors carrying out immigration work, causing some alarm within the sector. Specifically, concerns were raised about the SRA stating that solicitors should be taking steps to authenticate a client’s account and evidence, without any further explanation of...
The House of Lords’ Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee has published a report criticising the Home Office on two fronts. This is in relation to Draft Immigration (Age Assessments) Regulations 2023 and linked Draft Justification Decision (Scientific Age Imaging) Regulations 2023, and the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations...
Changes made by section 43 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 will have a wide-ranging effect on UK maritime sectors and risks some vessels unintentionally incurring illegal working fines. This is because the changes alter some long established and fundamental concepts of UK immigration law concerning what it means...
In this article we look at how foreign eSports (competitive video gaming) competitors can use the visitor route to participate in UK competitions and what the rules say about earning prize money. We also look at options for gamers looking to apply their trade in the UK on a long-term...
Back in “Small Boats Week” during the summer, the government announced the tripling of employer penalties for illegal workers to £45,000 per worker. The immigration minister said that the increase was necessary because “making it harder for illegal migrants to work and operate in the UK is vital to deterring...
The Home Office annual report for 2022 has belatedly been published. It shows an additional £3 billion had to be allocated to pay for unexpected asylum system expenditure. An extra £1.6 billion had to be allocated because of “pressures within the asylum system” — the asylum backlog, basically — and...
In AB and NB v Secretary of State for the Home Department (PA/07865/20119), the First-tier Tribunal found that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) was unable to provide “protection and assistance” to a severely disabled Palestinian child living in Lebanon. As a direct consequence of that he was...
The government has published the new application fees previously announced earlier this year. The statement describes the increase as being made “to pay for vital services and allow more funding to be prioritised for public sector pay rises”. The explanatory memorandum provides a bit more detail: “an increase of 15-20%...
The most recent Border Force People Survey reveals “a dissatisfied workforce which is a breeding ground for insider risk to grow and become insider acts, enabled by privileged access”. That is according to a new report from the Independent Chief Inspector for Borders and Immigration that looks at how internal...
Rishi Sunak’s visit to Delhi for the G20 has prompted more reporting on the UK India free trade agreement, where negotiations have apparently been slowed down by Indian requests for more visas. I worked for the Home Office between 2003 and 2011 and as an Assistant Director covered policy relating...
A new statement of changes has been published along with the explanatory memorandum and a written statement from the immigration minister. The biggest change is the removal of administrative review from decisions made under the EU Settlement Scheme. Many of the changes are minor technical or drafting changes. It is...
Today is the latest publication of quarterly statistics on various parts of the immigration and asylum system, covering the period April to June 2023. The Home Office summary page is here but in my view their summaries should be used with some caution depending on what you are looking for....
The latest trafficking statistics show a huge increase in both refusals and delays, suggesting the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 had had a disastrous impact on the protection of survivors of modern slavery. Most of the trafficking provisions of the legislation came into effect on 30 January 2023. Changes were...
I was away on holiday when the Daily Mail published its article with allegations of serious misconduct by immigration solicitors. It is a shocking article and accompanying video. The Solicitors Regulation Authority agrees and has intervened at three of the four named firms, closing them down for further investigation. You...
The Illegal Migration Act 2023 has now been published, after receiving Royal Assent on 20 July 2023. Previously, we have covered the provisions of what was then the Illegal Migration Bill in detail, so for the purposes of this article we look at what substantive changes have been made during...
The second Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules this week landed today: HC 1715. It adds Dominica, Honduras, Namibia, Timor-Leste and Vanuatu to the list of countries whose nationals require a visa to travel to the UK as a visitor. The change has been introduced with immediate effect, from...
On 17 July 2023, a new statement of changes to the Immigration Rules was published. As usual, it is accompanied by an Explanatory Memorandum. Also as usual, it is largely concerned with cracking down on those perceived as abusing immigration law. There are, though, one or two positive changes. Asylum...
The government has announced massive increases in immigration fees and the immigration health surcharge. Abolition of some fees has also been announced. The normal rate for the immigration health surcharge will increase from £624 to £1,035 per year. This will be paid by workers entering for a period of six...
