Almost as soon as a court has provided substantive guidance on a particular area of immigration law, the law seems to change. So it is
In a unanimous decision the Court of Appeal have allowed the appeal of an Ahmadi who was unable to demonstrate that his case fell within
The Court of Appeal has ruled that the regulations on the detention of asylum seekers subject to the Dublin III removal procedure comply with EU
Bhandari & Anor v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2019] EWCA Civ 129 considered some fairly elderly Upper Tribunal case law on fairness
With so much focus on whether an asylum seeker has established a well founded fear of persecution in their country of origin, the question of
The judgment in SSHD v SS (Jamaica) [2018] EWCA Civ 2817 continues a trend in which ‘foreign criminals’ who had been successful in their initial
In the case of R (Akturk) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWHC 297 (Admin), Mr Justice Holman had granted the claimant’s judicial review
The Court of Appeal has reluctantly but unanimously agreed with the Home Office’s decision to refuse a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) application for further leave to
Brexit notwithstanding, 2018 is likely to be remembered as the year the lid was blown on the government’s hostile environment policy. The debate about how
The Court of Appeal has ruled that appeal decisions made using the 2005 Fast Track Rules are not necessarily unfair and unlawful, even though the
Many of us have been in the situation where, having challenged the opening of a removal window without a decision having made on an outstanding
AM (Iran) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2706 demonstrates the Court of Appeal’s increasing tendency to find any reason
In MM (Malawi) [2018] EWCA Civ 2482 the Court of Appeal has again confirmed that there is indeed a discrepancy between the domestic law on
A client’s statement “I was foolish to…” in a witness statement is sometimes the starting point for the submission “My client is not clever enough
R (Lucas) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2541 is about re-detention following the grant of immigration bail by the
In the case of KV v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2483 the Court of Appeal accepts that future statelessness
The Home Office considers some foreign nationals living in the UK to be a threat to national security. Sometimes, to deport those individuals (as the
Invalid applications: in recent years, this has become one of the trickiest and dense parts of our immigration law. It’s one of my favourite areas
In Chanda v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2424 the Court of Appeal grappled with paragraph 322(1A) of the Immigration
The Court of Appeal in Secretary of State for the Home Department v Christy [2018] EWCA Civ 2378 has comprehensively rejected an argument by the Home
In AS (Guinea) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2234, the Court of Appeal has in effect rebuffed an attempt
Thousands of people may have been unlawfully held in immigration removal centres in recent years, the court of appeal has ruled. This opening sentence from
This is the second of two Court of Appeal cases this year about whether the Home Office behaved unlawfully towards vulnerable child asylum seekers during
In the case of Pathan & Anor v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA 2103 the Court of Appeal reminds us, once again,
A British citizen can be deprived of his citizenship if he shows disloyalty to the state, the Court of Appeal has found in the case
MS (Pakistan) TD and X (A Child) (Jamaica) [2018] EWCA Civ 1776, a case about the minimum income requirement for sponsoring a family member under
If there is one piece of advice practitioners take away from this post, let it be this: in ANY application you prepare, take the time
R (Singh) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1669 is about how the transitional provisions in the Immigration Rules apply
The Court of Appeal has found that it is “sufficiently arguable” that conditions in Gaza are attributable to “the direct and indirect actions of the
In a deeply unsurprising turn of events (see posts passim), the Court of Appeal has overturned a favourable deportation decision in Secretary of State for
The decision in Khan & Ors v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1684 brings to an end the long-running ETS
Macastena v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1558 highlights the difference between extended family members’ rights and family members’ rights
The Upper Tribunal does not take kindly to the assertion that it operates “unwritten rules”, as was argued in the recent case of SS (Sri Lanka)
The new case of R (QR (Pakistan)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1413 is yet another example of fallout from
In R (Gedi) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2016] EWCA Civ 409 the Court of Appeal reversed a High Court decision that the words “restriction
R (Connell) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1329 is about whether the Home Secretary has a duty, imposed by
In the case of R (Nesiama & Ors) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1369, the Court of Appeal found
What should the repercussions be if the Home Office accidentally splashes the personal details of asylum seekers all over the internet? If your answer is
In R (TDT, by his litigation friend Tara Topteagarden) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1395 the Court of Appeal
Baigazieva v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1088 is about what happens to a non-EEA citizen spouse if they divorce
In a unanimous decision the Court of Appeal have allowed the appeal of an Ahmadi who was unable to demonstrate that his case fell within the relevant country guidance decision of MN and others (Ahmadis- country conditions- risk) Pakistan CG [2012] UKUT 389 (IAC). The case is WA (Pakistan) v...
The Court of Appeal has ruled that the regulations on the detention of asylum seekers subject to the Dublin III removal procedure comply with EU law. Background: detaining migrants before return to another EU country The International Protection (Detention) (Significant Risk of Absconding Criteria) Regulations 2017 (SI 2017 No. 405)...
Bhandari & Anor v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2019] EWCA Civ 129 considered some fairly elderly Upper Tribunal case law on fairness and the Points Based System, and in particular a decision of Mr Justice Blake in Patel (Revocation of Sponsor Licence: Fairness: India) [2011] UKUT 211...
With so much focus on whether an asylum seeker has established a well founded fear of persecution in their country of origin, the question of whether their appeal falls to be allowed under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights is often given only cursory attention. However, it...
The judgment in SSHD v SS (Jamaica) [2018] EWCA Civ 2817 continues a trend in which ‘foreign criminals’ who had been successful in their initial tribunal appeals against deportation have had those decisions overturned in the Court of Appeal. Free Movement has covered cases like this multiples times in recent...
In the case of R (Akturk) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWHC 297 (Admin), Mr Justice Holman had granted the claimant’s judicial review on traditional public law grounds of unfair decision making. He had also held that the abolition of the right of appeal in Turkish...
The Court of Appeal has reluctantly but unanimously agreed with the Home Office’s decision to refuse a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) application for further leave to remain based on a factual issue of specified documents not being submitted. It rejected arguments that evidential flexibility should apply. The case is Harpreet Singh...
Brexit notwithstanding, 2018 is likely to be remembered as the year the lid was blown on the government’s hostile environment policy. The debate about how difficult we want the lives of migrants unlawfully in the UK to be has now caught the attention of the mainstream media. It is therefore...
The Court of Appeal has ruled that appeal decisions made using the 2005 Fast Track Rules are not necessarily unfair and unlawful, even though the procedural rules generated an inevitable risk of unfairness in a significant number of cases. This means that the potential unfairness in each appeal decision must...
Many of us have been in the situation where, having challenged the opening of a removal window without a decision having made on an outstanding human rights claim, an 11th hour decision comes from the Secretary of State, along with submissions that our claim is now academic. Where the decision...
AM (Iran) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2706 demonstrates the Court of Appeal’s increasing tendency to find any reason to reject the appeals of foreign criminals. AM is an individual deserving of no sympathy. He has been convicted of raping a 17 year old...
A client’s statement “I was foolish to…” in a witness statement is sometimes the starting point for the submission “My client is not clever enough to lie/to lie to the extent alleged by the Respondent”. It is an uncomfortable submission to make in the presence of a client but it...
R (Lucas) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2541 is about re-detention following the grant of immigration bail by the First-tier Tribunal under the now repealed provisions of the Immigration Act 1971. The Court of Appeal ruled that tribunal bail finishes once the person has...
In the case of KV v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2483 the Court of Appeal accepts that future statelessness is a relevant consideration in an appeal against deprivation of British citizenship obtained on the basis of fraud. The court also gives guidance on the...
The Home Office considers some foreign nationals living in the UK to be a threat to national security. Sometimes, to deport those individuals (as the government no doubt prefers) would be unlawful, because of how they would be treated on return to their country of origin. Perhaps the most notorious...
Invalid applications: in recent years, this has become one of the trickiest and dense parts of our immigration law. It’s one of my favourite areas because it’s so interesting and technical (as those of you who attended the Immigration Law Masterclass Conference will know!). You might ask what the big...
In Chanda v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2424 the Court of Appeal grappled with paragraph 322(1A) of the Immigration Rules. The court looked briefly at the considerations that arise out of a false document and a finding of deception, stressing that the two issues...
The Court of Appeal in Secretary of State for the Home Department v Christy [2018] EWCA Civ 2378 has comprehensively rejected an argument by the Home Office seeking to limit the obligation to consider “Surinder Singh” applications by extended family members. Ben Collins QC appeared pro bono for Ms Christy....
In AS (Guinea) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2234, the Court of Appeal has in effect rebuffed an attempt by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to make it easier to establish statelessness. The court ruled that the standard of proof for determining a...
Thousands of people may have been unlawfully held in immigration removal centres in recent years, the court of appeal has ruled. This opening sentence from a Guardian article the other day refers to the case of R (Hemmati & Ors) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA...
This is the second of two Court of Appeal cases this year about whether the Home Office behaved unlawfully towards vulnerable child asylum seekers during and after the demolition of the Calais refugee camp in 2016. The first appeal, R (Citizens UK) v SSHD [2018] EWCA Civ 1812, concerned children...
A British citizen can be deprived of his citizenship if he shows disloyalty to the state, the Court of Appeal has found in the case of Pham v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2064. The case is interesting, thought-provoking and concerning in equal measure. Taking...
MS (Pakistan) TD and X (A Child) (Jamaica) [2018] EWCA Civ 1776, a case about the minimum income requirement for sponsoring a family member under the Immigration Rules, shows that sometimes starting over with an immigration application and waiting a little longer for a decision is the right way to...
If there is one piece of advice practitioners take away from this post, let it be this: in ANY application you prepare, take the time and the effort to fully explain and particularise your client’s circumstances in your letter of representations. In applications for leave to remain under Article 8,...
R (Singh) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1669 is about how the transitional provisions in the Immigration Rules apply to online applications which must be supported with further evidence sent later by post. The appellant argued that an application made online without supporting evidence...
The Court of Appeal has found that it is “sufficiently arguable” that conditions in Gaza are attributable to “the direct and indirect actions of the parties to the conflict” for a fresh decision to be made in the case of a Palestinian family contesting removal. This important judgment means that...
In a deeply unsurprising turn of events (see posts passim), the Court of Appeal has overturned a favourable deportation decision in Secretary of State for the Home Department v MR (Pakistan) [2018] EWCA Civ 1598. MR, a citizen of Pakistan, entered the UK in October 2002 as a student and...
The decision in Khan & Ors v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1684 brings to an end the long-running ETS saga, so called after the Educational Testing Service company that discovered large-scale cheating on its Home Office-approved English exams. In a previous case the Court...
Macastena v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1558 highlights the difference between extended family members’ rights and family members’ rights under EU law, as well as the extent of the tribunal’s statutory remit. Background to the case The appellant is a Kosovan national who came...
The Upper Tribunal does not take kindly to the assertion that it operates “unwritten rules”, as was argued in the recent case of SS (Sri Lanka) [2018] EWCA Civ 1391. The points before the court related to delay in promulgating a decision where credibility is in issue and whether a...
The new case of R (QR (Pakistan)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1413 is yet another example of fallout from last year’s Supreme Court judgment in Kiarie and Byndloss, relating to the infamous “deport first, appeal later” policy. The QR judgment itself doesn’t give...
In R (Gedi) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2016] EWCA Civ 409 the Court of Appeal reversed a High Court decision that the words “restriction as to residence” in paragraph 2(5) of Schedule 3 to the Immigration Act 1971 empowered the Secretary of State to impose a...
R (Connell) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1329 is about whether the Home Secretary has a duty, imposed by Parliament, to deport foreign criminals even if they are EEA nationals. The Court of Appeal ruled that the legislation on automatic deportation includes an exception...
In the case of R (Nesiama & Ors) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1369, the Court of Appeal found that “residence” in the UK means “physical presence”, such that continuous residence in an application for indefinite leave to remain may be broken by too...
What should the repercussions be if the Home Office accidentally splashes the personal details of asylum seekers all over the internet? If your answer is “compensation”, congratulations: you are at one with the Court of Appeal. The case is Secretary of State for the Home Department & Anor v TLU...
In R (TDT, by his litigation friend Tara Topteagarden) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1395 the Court of Appeal considered the threshold at which the duty to protect trafficked persons under article 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights comes into play and...
Baigazieva v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 1088 is about what happens to a non-EEA citizen spouse if they divorce their EEA citizen partner. Article 13(2) of the Citizens Rights Directive 2004 lays down a set of criteria on how the non-EEA citizen can retain...
