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Update on Home Office appeal against spouse minimum income judgment

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I’ve had quite a few queries asking for updates on the spouse minimum income case, MM & Ors v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2013] EWHC 1900 (Admin). The challenge to the rules essentially succeeded in the High Court but the Home Office have appealed to the Court of Appeal (blog post: “High Court finds minimum income rules disproportionate and unjustified“). Sanjeev Sharma of JM Wilson Solicitors in Birmingham is the leading solicitor in the case and the Home Office appeal in the Court of Appeal is to be heard between 3 and 5 March 2014. Judgment is likely to come some time after that.

[UPDATE: blog post on how the hearing went here]
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Colin Yeo

Colin Yeo

Immigration and asylum barrister, blogger, writer and consultant at Garden Court Chambers in London and founder of the Free Movement immigration law website.

Comments

15 Responses

    1. No, that would get you in trouble. You need to make submissions through the solicitor dealing with the case if you want to be a party to these proceedings.

  1. Thats good news and hope the courts upholds the earlier decision put in favour of us well meaning members of the public against a dictatorship government claiming to be a democratic government. I have been affected by the income requirement despite meeting the requirement, my family entry clearance was still refused. Is there a way we can create a blog like this and send it to the courts so they can understand the grief and misery the dictators have placed on hard working people of the society?

  2. My baby is due any time before 20th of Nov and high commission has put my husband’s application on hold. It’s so stress ful for me. I’m alone I got no one to help me during after my pregnancy. I’m sick of all this appeal wait and all the rules.march 2014 is too far away. Even then homeoffice might go to supreme court. I can’t wait I dont know what to do I’m sick of this life I wish I was never born in the UK.

  3. Still many questions on the air for me and my husband, I’m in Mexico with my son(brittish born) and my husband is in Uk, (He is brittish-born too). Our application been put on hold until we will know what coming between HO and Hight Court then what will come to us, how long will take HO to say if I can get my entry clearance or no?! we dont have that minimum income so we will have a chance to re united, my husband served in the armed forces, after he worked very hard over 15 years in other companies but, he had a very bad accident, it made he be disable, so my question it’s disable person like my husband dont have an opportunity to have a family if we dont have that income or savings? Hope somebody can give an advice please.

  4. I have an appeal hearing coming on Nov 29. Does it mean I have to wait for March 2014 regarding the decision on the financial threshold. pls enlighten me

    1. It depends. I had a similar appeal that went ahead and which we won a couple of weeks ago but in some cases the Home Office withdraws the decision on the day of hearing and you end up going back into the queue, highly frustratingly.

    2. Hope my hearing will push through as scheduled. Its a long agonizing wait. Thank you for your reply.

  5. Hi, my situation is very similar to the above, except we have yet to apply. Which I don’t see the point until the court made a decision. I’m British, we have a British daughter, my husband is Sri Lankan and we are expecting twins in Feb 2014. He has been here on leave to remain in 2010 for a year, but we went back to Sri Lanka for a while. I think we will try and get a family visit visa so he can be here when the babies are born, BUT he has been refused that twice before back in 2006 and 2007. I appealed the second time and went to court against the home office, and won. They have now removed the right to appeal on a family visit visa, so if he was refused again that would leave us separated. I now have finished work due to the twin pregnancy, am unable to get any maternity due to having been in Sri Lanka earlier this year, and also unable to claim benefits as I’m married to someone who is unable to access public funding, even though he is not here. So actually right now the only income I have is child tax credit and child benefit, and they are not counted towards the £18,600. So I’m at the point now where I feel we can not actually do anything. If he is unable to get a visa, then I will be forced to inform them we are separated (which we are not) in order to get some financial help (benefits). If they let him come on leave to remain he would support our family of 5, and we we cost the government nothing! All very frustrating…………any advise please

  6. Hi, my wife’s visa has been put on hold in Chennai (India) embassy. I have met all the requirements and have a salary above the £18,600. But still they put the visa on hold saying the accountant letter of confirmation for my private ltd company was not provided. But I had given that document along with the application.

    They also said, if I provide the document they will re-process the application. It has been 3 months I provided the documents again and they have not processed it yet. They keep telling the application is yet to be processed and it is in the queue.

    Any help will me much appreciated.

  7. My husband and I applied for our spouse visa earlier this year which was refused due to the income. It’s been such a struggle to find a full time job earning the wage we need. Let’s all hope and pray that by March 2014 the right decision to take away the minimum income threshold will be made and reunite all the families who should be together.

    1. Is it hoped that the decision will result in reducing the income requirement to a more reasonable amount or to get rid of it altogether? If to a more reasonable amount, how would that be calculated?