Making an early application to beat the immigration health surcharge increase
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

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
As anyone who has ever battled the Home Office over whether a client has “sole responsibility” over a child’s upbringing or whether their exclusion is
This week, the Supreme Court brought us the (hopefully) final instalment of the long residence cases, R (Afzal) v Secretary of State for the Home
In yet another Afghan evacuation case, the court in KBL v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] EWHC 87 (Admin) looked at whether
Let’s say you made a normal application for settlement on the UK Ancestry route five months ago and you are still waiting for a decision.
In the clause “had that citizenship by his birth, adoption, naturalisation or registration in the United Kingdom”, does the requirement for it to be in
The High Court has confirmed that the Home Office is obligated to consider exercising discretion to waive or delay the requirement to enrol biometrics before
Marepally v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWCA Civ 855 is yet another long residence case, this time concerning a defective refusal
This was the unsurprising finding of the Upper Tribunal in R (Ashrafuzzaman) v Entry Clearance Officer (precedent fact; general grounds refusal) [2022] UKUT 133 (IAC).
For a UK immigration application to be considered at all, it must be valid. Whether an applicant meets the criteria is a moot point if
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...
As anyone who has ever battled the Home Office over whether a client has “sole responsibility” over a child’s upbringing or whether their exclusion is otherwise undesirable will know, this requirement is antiquated, outdated and causes a lot of unnecessary stress and hassle while separating children from their parents. Paragraph...
This week, the Supreme Court brought us the (hopefully) final instalment of the long residence cases, R (Afzal) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] UKSC 46. Immigration lawyers have followed the long series in this line of cases the way we followed Game of Thrones: they both...
In yet another Afghan evacuation case, the court in KBL v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] EWHC 87 (Admin) looked at whether the guidance issued for the benefit of potential beneficiaries of the evacuation, known as “Operation Pitting”, created a legitimate expectation that Afghans in similar circumstances...
Let’s say you made a normal application for settlement on the UK Ancestry route five months ago and you are still waiting for a decision. You receive word that a family member abroad is sick and you need to travel home urgently. There’s no option for retroactively upgrading the outstanding...
In the clause “had that citizenship by his birth, adoption, naturalisation or registration in the United Kingdom”, does the requirement for it to be in the United Kingdom apply to just registration or all of the other means of acquiring citizenship on the list? This was the question before the...
The High Court has confirmed that the Home Office is obligated to consider exercising discretion to waive or delay the requirement to enrol biometrics before considering an application in R (KA and others) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWHC 2473 (Admin). Ordinarily, individuals applying for entry...
Marepally v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWCA Civ 855 is yet another long residence case, this time concerning a defective refusal notice. The appellant wanted to rely on the defect to argue that he had achieved ten years’ continuous lawful residence in the UK by operation...
This was the unsurprising finding of the Upper Tribunal in R (Ashrafuzzaman) v Entry Clearance Officer (precedent fact; general grounds refusal) [2022] UKUT 133 (IAC). The exception is where human rights are involved (more on that later). Although the case concerned a refusal under the old paragraph 320(7A), the findings...
For a UK immigration application to be considered at all, it must be valid. Whether an applicant meets the criteria is a moot point if this first, fundamental requirement isn’t met. Validity is a bit like oxygen: all things being well, it is invisible and unnoticeable. You only notice it...