Appeals
If your application is refused, you may have a right of appeal against a refusal. This appeal can take place in the UK, or you may need to leave the UK in order to attract the right of appeal. We need to avoid the latter wherever possible.
A right of appeal in the UK often is often only attracted now in refusal of an EEA case, or a refusal of a human rights case. I have had a lot of success in cases that don’t meet the Immigration Rules in ensuring that any Human Rights element is incorporated into an application, so that a right of appeal ensues following any refusal of that application. This is preferable to any challenge by Judicial Review, that would be necessary if any refusal did not attract a right of appeal.
I am a well respected advocate and appear frequently at the First Tier Tribunal and Upper Tier Tribunal. I have appeared for over ten years in this capacity. I also have a specialist network of barristers for cases that involve a particular specialism.
Please do give me a call if you would like me to talk through your prospects in any appeal.
Application Checking Services
It is very common for applicants to want to prepare the application to the Home Office themselves but want a lawyer to give it a once over to check for any errors in the application. I offer this service for a fixed fee of £600.
During your meeting I will look at your form with you and highlight errors or omissions. I will also look at the documents you are submitting with your application and let you know that these meet the requirements and whether any documents are missing.
The appointment takes on average one hour, but can take longer with complex applications. Entrepreneur extension applications will take at least two hours.
One off advice session
From £300 I offer a one off advice session where clients come to me wanting advice on their case. This differs from a case that I’m taking on and is more for someone that is looking for affirmation of other advice, or someone that wants an assessment of their circumstances without a view to completing an application with me.
British Citizenship
I love a complex nationality query, but a lot of British Citizenship applications are straightforward and you don’t really need a lawyer. For example if you have:
- Been in the UK for at least five years and have had indefinite leave for one of these years (practically this is usually six years in total),
- You have your life in the UK test here and
- You have your English language which you may have by reason of a degree, your nationality or by doing a test: here (This is just one of many providers; Level B1).
- Your absences aren’t excessive (preferably not more than 450 days in 5 years and not more than 90 days in the last year – although there are exceptions or no more than 270 days in three years if you’re married to a British national).
- You have no criminality, or illegality in your immigration history.
You may be able to complete the application yourself. I do recommend getting this checked.
Other British Citizenship applications
The easy applications are one thing, but many people are entitled to naturalise or Register as British nationals. The more common types of Registration and Naturalisation are listed below:
- Registration: Where a child is born in the UK and after birth a parent acquires Indefinite Leave to Remain or British nationality.
- Registration: Where a child is born in the UK and lives in the UK for the first ten years of their life.
- Naturalisation: Applications on the basis of membership of the armed forces.
Complex nationality
In other instances, birth in a commonwealth country and a connection to the UK may mean that you are entitled to British Citizenship or an adopted child may be entitled to British citizenship. There is a wide discretion in nationality cases, so please do consult me if you want me to consider the facts of your case and outline your chances of success.
EEA/EUSS Applications
New arrivals from the European Economic Area are now required to apply under the Immigration Rules. Those already in the UK should have applied for Settled Status under Appendix EU of the Immigration Rules by 30 June 2021. Those that have failed to do will need to apply out of time to the Home Office giving reasons as to why they were unable to apply before the deadline.
If you want more information on settled status, the government has website where you can sign-up for more information available here: Settled Status alternatively, you can contact me.
If EEA nationals are coming to work or study in the UK, they will need sponsorship as with other nationalities. See the skilled worker and student categories for more information.
Employers, employing EEA nationals will now need to ensure that they have copies of their settled status, or pre-settled status documents to enable them to legally continue to employ them. Arrivals after 1 January 2021 from countries in the European Economic Area will need sponsorship. We can assist in ontaining a sponsorship licence.
Home Office approach to the EEA Regulations
The Home Office have very much taken a stance that the EEA Regulations now fail to apply and that you will have to fit in the Immigration Rules relating to the EU Settlement Scheme. Watch this space for considerable litigation on this approach.
General Grounds of Refusal
The General Grounds of Refusal are reasons that can apply to almost any type of application made to the Home Office.
The reasons allow the Home Office to refuse an application, even where all the other requirements are met, where one of these general reasons is triggered.
The general grounds include:
- Significant criminality;
- Overstaying in the UK;
- Deception in a previous (or current) application;
Amongst other reasons.
If you are refused for one of the general grounds of refusal, it is very important that you seek advice straight away as a refusal under the General Grounds on one occasion may well affect future applications for leave to enter or remain in the UK.
Judicial Review
I am one of very few OISC practitioners sufficiently proficient in Judicial Review cases to enable me to have an OISC JRCM endorsement. This allows me to conduct Judicial Reviews of Home Office decisions to refuse, or delay decision making.
Any OISC company undertaking Judicial Reviews to undertake litigation must instruct a barrister. I use only extremely well-respected barristers, who I have worked with successfully on many occasions previously.
If you have been refused your application and you do not have a right of appeal, then I can help in any other reviews that can be undertaken, and pre-action protocol required and in preparing the Judicial Review application itself.
Immigration for High Net Worth
High net worth. (Tier 1 Investor). £2,000,000 capital required. Extensions only as route closed
This immigration category is now closed for new applicants. If you are already on this route we can assist with extension applications.
Entrepreneurs:
This category is now closed to new applicants. However, if you already have an entrepreneur visa then you may continue on this route, applying initially to extend and then to apply for indefinite leave to remain.
Start up and Innovator Routes:
After a rocky start to these routes they are now in full swing and attracting a lot of interest.
The start up route is, on paper, geared more toward the budding entrepreneur, however in practice it is used regularly by persons with all levels of experience.
The innovator route requires level B2 in English and investment of at least £50,000 in the business. The process is two stage: an endorsement is obtained by a Home Office approved endorsing body and once obtained the visa is applied for. In reality the high fees most endorsing bodies, mean that more money will need to be set aside.
The innovator visa is granted for three years initially and there is a possibility of applying for indefinite leave to remain after three years. As such it is an attractive prospect for many entrepreneurs.
Sole Representative Visa/ Expansion Worker Visa
The Sole representative visa is for organisations that have a business overseas and are looking to set up a UK entity. The Sole Representative route is now closed, however Expansion worker is the replacement. The Expansion worker allows you to come to the UK without English language skills for 12 months, renewable for a further 12 months. This enables you set up the business and obtain a licence which enables you to remain in the UK and achieve settlement.
Refusal Immigration
If you are worried because you have been refused and don’t know what to do next, I can help. There are a lot of options following a refusal.
Administrative Review
Most Points-based system applications attract a right of ‘Administrative Review’ this is a right to challenge the decision of the Home Office by the Home Office. These Administrative Reviews are most likely to be successful if there is an obvious error by the Home Office, such as they have used the wrong Immigration Rule to make a decision or they have failed to review a document that was submitted.
In genuineness cases, the Home Office are not as likely to overturn a refusal, although it is still possible.
If your original application was in-time, then an administrative review application will extend your right to remain in the UK.
Administrative Review is not available for human rights cases or visit visas.
Right of appeal
If you have made a human rights application and your application has been refused, then you will usually have a right of appeal against the decision. You will not have a right of appeal if the decision was certified (more below).
In some instances, you may have made an application which on the face of it, is not a human rights application but contains human rights reasons for remaining, or the Home Office may have refused citing human rights Rules. In this case, although not obvious from the refusal, you could still have a right of a appeal to the Tribunal. It is quite possible to lodge an appeal against a decision of the Home Office and leave it up to the Tribunal to get back to you in respect of whether they are happy to list the case for hearing.
What else
In some instances, you will not have a right of appeal or administrative review (visit visas for example). In other instances, you might have had your administrative review application refused. In these instances, it is still possible to lodge a pre-action letter and secondly a Judicial Review application to challenge a decision which is incorrect. Please see the Judicial Review page for more information.
Student Immigration
There are a number of different types of student that come to the UK.
If you wish to come to the UK to study, then I recommend talking to your Student sponsor (the university or college) first. They will often have a department that assists students with their visa applications, saving you money on instructing a lawyer. If your application is more complex, for example if you’ve been refused before, or you are undertaking a course at the same level and need to show academic progression, it might be that I can help you.
I also provide a checking service for applications if you don’t want to pay for the full service.
Genuine student
Refusals of student visas on this basis are very common due and have been on the increase in recent years. It can often be difficult to challenge this, but there are ways.
The first action to take with a refusal on the basis of not being a genuine student is to obtain a copy of the interview record, the refusal letter often quotes from an interview record, but experience shows these quotes can be taken rather out of context and not convey the full meaning. It is also fairly common to show a student an interview record and for them to say ‘I didn’t say that’. It is best practice to therefore take a statement from the student with a corrected record of interview. This will be sent with legal representations addressing the reasons for refusal as part of the Administrative Review application.
The Home Office review is unsuccessful, then often the litigation team at the Home Office will overturn a decision like this. If not, the final challenge would be lodging a judicial review application.
More information for students
The Home Office maintain a list of establishments that hold a licence. To check your sponsor is on that list, visit the site here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/register-of-licensed-sponsors-students
The charity UKCISA also offer advice to international students visit their site here: https://www.ukcisa.org.uk/
If you have a query relating to a student visa or a refusal, then don’t hesitate to contact me.
Skilled Worker Immigration
I can prepare applications for licences for persons wanting to apply for a migrant to join their company.
The Stages:
Stage 1: Licence
We will assist you with the completion of the application form and ensuring the correct documents are submitted, we’ll also assist you in ensuring that your processes are in order to enable you to become a licenced Sponsor.
Stage 2: CoS and visa
An application for a CoS can be defined or non-defined and depends, largely, on whether a person is in the UK or outside. There are other relevant factors however. In short, an undefined CoS is usually easier faster and easier to obtain, over a defined CoS which can take a bit longer. Following issuing of the CoS, this can be assigned to your candidate on the same day. They can then apply for their visa in the UK or outside immediately on receipt of this.
Call me if you’d like to chat through the prices and timings for your business.
The major change in these Rules came in January 2021 is the need for sponsorship of EEA nationals arriving from January 2021.
