In a recent decision, Mohammed Ismael Suliman Abdullah for judicial review [2024] ScotCS CSOH_8, the Court of Session clarified that when a young person is seeking for a court to make a finding in relation to their age in Scotland, the action should be raised as a declarator of age...
The short answer is “yes, criminals can be denied refugee status.” There is a moral dimension to the Refugee Convention. But the criminal offence or offending must be particularly serious in nature. The offending or behaviour must be serious in nature because denying refugee status to a person and sending...
In Geddes v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWHC 66 (Admin) the High Court has said that a pending application to the Supreme Court does not act as an barrier to deportation on the basis that the appeal has not yet been finally determined. Background In 2007,...
I’ve just read an excellent analysis by Chris Rowe of the Supreme Court’s judgment on the minimum income requirement for spouses in the MM case and the prospects for bringing a challenge to the higher threshold the government is set on introducing: £29,000 in the spring and £38,700 at some...
Earlier this month we considered a High Court judgment which upheld the Home Office’s decision to revoke a large care home operator’s sponsor licence due to several non-compliance issues. The High Court has now handed down its judgment in Supporting Care Ltd, R (On the Application Of v Secretary of...
The Home Secretary has been unlawfully operating a secret policy preventing victims of trafficking from being granted the leave that they were entitled to while their asylum claim was pending. The case is XY v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWHC 81 (Admin). This article is a...
In the case of R (On the Application Of Medical Justice) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWHC 38 (Admin), handed down on 12 January 2024, the High Court allowed a judicial review brought by the charity Medical Justice to a Home Office policy of seeking a...
In our December 2023 round up, Colin and Sonia discuss the latest developments with Home Office evictions and withdrawals, as well as the new Rwanda legislation. We also cover the government’s five point plan to reduce net migration as well as the latest case law and Tribunal statistics. If you...
This month Sonia and Colin discuss the latest developments with the Home Office evictions and withdrawals, as well as the new Rwanda legislation. They also cover the government’s five point plan to reduce net migration as well as the latest case law and Tribunal statistics. If you would like to...
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 Court of Session has concluded in SOOY v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] CSOH 93 that the Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022 has been effective in removing the ability to bring a Cart/Eba judicial review of Upper Tribunal permission to appeal decisions, except in very...
A compilation of top content on UK immigration law and policy, updated weekly. Immigration as contract: care visas and international students – Colin’s Substack, 15 December Bibby Stockholm asylum seeker who died in suspected suicide is named – The Guardian, 18 December One person dead after refugee boat in Channel...
The Safety of Rwanda (Immigration and Asylum) Bill has been published. There is no explanatory memorandum that I have seen, so I have done my best without that to explain what is in the Bill. As was the case with the Illegal Migration Bill, it begins with a declaration by...
The text of the UK’s new treaty with Rwanda to relocate people seeking asylum here to Rwanda instead has been published. For reference, the previous memorandum of understanding is here. Much of the treaty is just an expanded version of the memorandum, for example Article 11 in both deals with...
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...
Changes have been made to the evidence refugees need to apply for Universal Credit and they should now be able to access this with their grant letter and Asylum Registration Card (ARC). We have previously covered the issue of Home Office changes to the notice period for stopping asylum support...
The royal prerogative derives from the ancient customary powers of the Crown. Today, it is the discretionary authority of the executive branch of government or, put another way, everything the government can legally do without explicit statutory authority from parliament. Classic and undisputed examples of exercise of the royal prerogative...
Our October immigration round up is here and as we recorded shortly after the Supreme Court’s decision in the Rwanda litigation we included discussion of that at the beginning. Do keep listening after that though, as Colin and I cover everything from fishing to legal aid shortages via eSports, medico-legal...
This month Sonia and Colin discuss the Supreme Court’s decision in the Rwanda litigation. As well as that, they cover everything from fishing to eSports, legal aid shortages, medico-legal reports, public funds and the shortage occupation list. If you would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and...
This post reflects on Wednesday’s momentous Supreme Court decision in the Rwanda litigation. You can read Colin’s initial take on the judgment here. The Supreme Court’s decision To recap, the Supreme Court decided that there are substantial grounds for believing that the removal of any asylum seeker to Rwanda under...
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...
The “sole responsibility” immigration test comes into play where one of the parents of a child is relocating to the United Kingdom and one parent remains abroad. The United Kingdom’s immigration rules effectively presume that a child should remain outside the country with the other parent, unless the parent moving...
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....
The Court of Appeal has dismissed the government’s appeal in Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v AT (AIRE Centre and Independent Monitoring Authority intervening) [2023] EWCA Civ 1307, meaning that people with pre settled status under Appendix EU are able to access universal credit in circumstances where they...
Draft regulations have been laid which will add India and Georgia to the list of ‘safe’ countries at section 80AA of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002. The Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 (Amendment to List of Safe States) Regulations 2024 need to be voted through by both...
An Iranian refugee who, according to MI5, holds an Islamist extremist mindset and is supportive of ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant), has won his appeal against revocation of his refugee status. If the Home Office decides to revoke a person’s refugee status, there is a right of...
The Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) has concluded that the guidance given by the Supreme Court in Begum v Special Immigration Appeals Commission & Anor [2021] UKSC 7 on how deprivation decisions should be made is not limited to cases involving national security, it also applies where a person has...
The Court of Appeal has reiterated the process that should be followed in article 3 medical treatment cases in relation to the shifting burden of proof, as set out in AM (Zimbabwe) v SSHD [2020] UKSC 17 and in the headnote to the Upper Tribunal’s consideration of the case. This case...
Visitors are those who come to the UK for a short time and intend to leave the UK at the end of their visit. Where to find law and policy on visitors Appendix V to the Immigration Rules sets out the legal requirements for visitors. The Home Office also publishes...
Diego Garcia did not have any sort of asylum system in place when it received its first asylum seekers in 2021. Following litigation, the British Indian Ocean Territory has for the first time put in place processes for protection claims to be lodged and decided there. What happens to people...
Our September roundup is here, featuring the latest statement of changes and new parts of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 being brought into force. We also discuss the Brook House inquiry, the Rwanda litigation, new immigration fees and illegal working fines and have an impromptu book club. If you listen...
Last week, the Supreme Court heard an argument that the Rwanda policy breaches retained EU law, which the president Lord Reed described as a potential “knock out” blow in the Rwanda litigation. Under the Rwanda policy, asylum seekers arriving by small boat or other illegal clandestine means would be flown...
This month Sonia and Colin cover the latest statement of changes, new parts of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 being brought into force, the Brook House inquiry, the Rwanda litigation, new immigration fees and illegal working fines. If you would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and...
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...
Judicial review is only viable where a claimant can persuade a court or tribunal that there are grounds for judicial review. These are categories of legal error, and are often summarised as illegality, irrationality, procedural unfairness and disproportionality (although they can be broken down into a much longer list). Illegality...
Deportation proceedings pit the rights of the individual against those of the state, appointed guardian of the public interest. And as very clearly stated in primary legislation, the deportation of foreign criminals is in the public interest. The law in this area is rent through with politics, shifting relentlessly with...
Readers of this blog will have noticed that the fairness of the Home Office’s procedure for deciding who to send to Rwanda is not among the issues being argued in the Supreme Court in October. This post highlights the important findings made by the Court of Appeal on procedural fairness...
The impact of age assessment decisions on unaccompanied asylum seeking children coming to the UK is huge. As we explored in this earlier article, an age assessment decision will affect a young person’s entitlement to social work support and care. It will also have implications on how their asylum claim...
Introduction British citizenship can be acquired in three ways: There are many myths and misconceptions about British nationality law. Some of the most common ones are: I want to apply for my British passport. Non-British clients who are seeking to become British citizens will often say this. There is a...
