All Articles: domestic abuse

Since 31 January 2024, victims of transnational marriage abandonment can apply for a visa to return to the UK. This follows the landmark case of R on the application of AM v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWHC 2591 (Admin). This post looks at how to make...

19th February 2024
BY Nath Gbikpi

The Home Office has made changes to the Destitute Domestic Violence Concession by publishing new guidance and a new application form today. There is a new acronym for practitioners to learn as the concession has been re-branded as the Migrant Victims of Domestic Abuse Concession (MVDAC). The big change is...

16th February 2024
BY Nicole Masri

Domestic violence is a serious infringement of someone’s rights. While most often perpetrated against women, it can affect people from any background and part of society. Migrants can be particularly vulnerable and unwilling to seek help because of their precarious status in the UK. This article looks at in country...

15th February 2024
BY Nicholas Webb

The Court of Appeal has re-affirmed that the domestic violence provisions in the immigration rules are restricted to certain categories of partners and is not open to partners of Points Based System dependants, even if they have in fact suffered domestic abuse. The case is SWP v Secretary of State...

28th April 2023
BY Bilaal Shabbir

There is no good reason to treat victims of transnational marriage abandonment differently from victims of domestic abuse in the UK. So found Lieven J in the case of R on the application of AM v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWHC 2591 (Admin). Background Avid readers of...

20th October 2022
BY Nath Gbikpi

A mother of three British children has lost her appeal against the decision of Amber Rudd to take away her British citizenship in 2017. The judgment of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) makes for very grim reading. The woman, anonymised as “U3”, was born in the UK with British...

10th March 2022
BY Fahad Ansari

Singh (EEA; EFMs) [2021] UKUT 319 (IAC) is the latest instalment from the Upper Tribunal on EU free movement law in outstanding cases from before Brexit — specifically, retained rights of residence for “durable partners”. Mr Singh had a residence card on the basis of a durable relationship with his...

10th January 2022
BY Sarah Pinder

The Court of Appeal has given its long-awaited decision in the case of MY (Pakistan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] EWCA Civ 1500. Unfortunately, it confirms that the Home Office can refuse to engage with a human rights claim for permission to stay in the UK...

21st October 2021
BY Nath Gbikpi

Regulation 9 of The National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015 provides that the NHS in England cannot charge overseas visitors for treating a condition caused by torture, female genital mutilation, domestic violence or sexual violence. This is provided the overseas visitor did not travel to the UK...

23rd July 2021
BY Christine Benson

In FA (Sudan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] EWCA Civ 59, the Court of Appeal has confirmed that someone applying to stay in the UK under the domestic abuse rules must have had permission to remain as a partner. This appeal was a bold challenge to...

1st February 2021
BY Bilaal Shabbir

Following years of discussion and consultation, the government’s draft Domestic Abuse Bill was eventually published in January 2019. Now, nearly two years later, the bill comes before the House of Lords on Tuesday 5 January. Campaigners and survivors alike know that this so-called “landmark” legislation continues to fall short— specifically...

4th January 2021
BY Anonymous

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...

8th October 2020
BY Mary Atkinson

The UK’s long-awaited Domestic Abuse Bill has reached the House of Lords stage of its progress towards becoming law. In the House of Commons, MPs had considered an amendment to lift the no recourse to public funds rule for migrant survivors of domestic abuse. This amendment was proposed to fill...

17th August 2020
BY Sulaiha Ali

If you can say one thing about the Home Office, it’s that they have questionable priorities! In the middle of a pandemic, with thousands of migrants not knowing whether or not they will have to leave the UK in just over two weeks, the department has decided to publish a...

15th May 2020
BY Nath Gbikpi

The case of MY (refusal of human rights claim) Pakistan [2020] UKUT 89 (IAC) represents yet another cutback in the rights of migrant victims of domestic abuse, and in appeal rights more generally. The Upper Tribunal has ruled that the Home Office can simply refuse to engage with a human...

30th March 2020
BY Nath Gbikpi

Whilst survivors and campaigners welcomed the reintroduction of the Domestic Abuse Bill in parliament last week, there is a clear consensus amongst us that the government’s “landmark” legislation fails to protect migrant victims. In order for the UK to comply with its domestic and international obligations, the Bill must include...

9th March 2020
BY Anonymous

The case of R (Suliman) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] EWHC 326 (Admin) is a welcome reminder to the Home Office that there may be an array of reasons for a victim of domestic abuse not to tell the authorities. Mr Suliman is a Sudanese citizen...

4th March 2020
BY Nath Gbikpi

In OA v Secretary of State for Education [2020] EWHC 276 (Admin), the High Court has ruled that the student loan regulations unlawfully discriminated against migrant victims of domestic violence and abuse. The rules required three years’ lawful residence in the UK to qualify for a student loan but failed...

2nd March 2020
BY Alex Schymyck

The domestic violence concession allows victims of domestic abuse access to public funds while they make an application for settlement. The High Court has now made clear that this concession only applies to those who are already on the route to settlement as a partner in the case of FA...

22nd January 2019
BY Nicholas Webb

A statement of changes to the Immigration Rules was published today, 11 December 2018. The main changes are to introduce the pilot scheme for short-term agricultural workers that was announced earlier this year, and to expand the domestic violence settlement scheme to cover refugees. The more fundamental changes to Tier...

11th December 2018
BY Nath Gbikpi

A v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2016] CSIH 38 is an important 2016 decision from the Court of Session in Scotland, the full impact of which has still to be felt. It concerns the Immigration Rules, as they apply to spouses of refugees, where the spouse has...

23rd November 2018
BY Frank Jarvis

Since April 2015, only very limited types of immigration case can be appealed. In the case of R (AT) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWHC 2589 (Admin), the High Court found that despite what the Immigration Rules say, an application for indefinite leave to remain on...

22nd November 2017
BY Nath Gbikpi

Last week the Court of Justice of the European Union gave judgment in the case of NA C-115/15 on the vexed issue of retained rights of residence for victims of domestic violence. It is hard to care given the result of the Brexit referendum but it is a very important...

6th July 2016
BY Colin Yeo
Login
Or become a member of Free Movement today
Verified by MonsterInsights