What’s on the horizon for UK immigration in 2022? – EIN Blog

Posted January 5th, 2022 in government departments, immigration, news, visas by sally

‘2021 wasn’t a year of great upheaval in the Immigration Rules. Major changes such as the overhaul of the Skilled Worker sponsorship system took effect just at the end of 2020, as did the Frontier Worker Permit scheme for EU nationals remaining in employment (but not residence) in the UK. That is not to say that 2021 was quiet; the Graduate route was introduced in the summer, Global Talent has continued to be tweaked and expanded, and the deadline for EU Settlement Scheme applications has come and gone during the year.’

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EIN Blog, 4th January 2022

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Home Office U-turn on Sri Lankan scientist’s asylum claim – The Guardian

‘The Home Office has U-turned on plans to deport a leading scientist carrying out groundbreaking research into affordable forms of solar energy and allowed him and his family to remain in the UK.’

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The Guardian, 1st December 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Ex-soldier’s wife found guilty of murdering baby abandoned in woods – The Independent

‘The wife of a former soldier has been found guilty of the murder of her newborn baby by abandoning him in woodland after she discovered she was pregnant too late to have an abortion.’

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The Independent, 30th November 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

British MPs call for law changes to help young Hongkongers flee to UK – The Guardian

‘More than nine in 10 people who have faced protest charges in Hong Kong are too young to access a UK visa scheme dedicated to helping Hongkongers flee to Britain, according to advocates and MPs calling for new laws to assist them.’

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The Guardian, 28th November 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Not able to meet the financial requirement of Appendix FM? Do not despair – EIN Blog

Posted November 9th, 2021 in benefits, disabled persons, families, immigration, news, visas by tracey

‘Financial requirement for the partner visa is satisfied if the sponsor, the British partner, has income of at least £18,600 per year or if the couple have savings of at least £62,500 (slightly more if there are non-British children to be sponsored in the same application). It is possible to meet the financial requirement through a combination of savings and income. The rules are quite prescriptive about the sources of income and the documentary evidence required in support of the application. The evidential requirement depends on the source of income and one of the most common reasons for refusal of an application is failure to meet the evidential requirement.’

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EIN Blog, 8th November 2021

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Young Hong Kongers who fled police brutality ‘languishing’ in UK asylum system due to arbitrary age cut-off – The Independent

‘Young Hong Kong nationals who fled police brutality are “languishing” in the UK asylum system because they are arbitrarily excluded from a Home Office settlement route due to their age.’

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The Independent, 24th October 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Trafficking victims should be granted leave to remain in UK, high court rules – The Guardian

‘Thousands of victims of trafficking who have been left to languish in the immigration system for years should be granted leave to remain, the high court has said in a landmark ruling.’

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The Guardian, 12th October 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

If my child is British, can I stay in the UK? – EIN Blog

Posted October 4th, 2021 in children, families, immigration, news, parental responsibility, visas by tracey

‘If you are a foreign national with a British child and have made the decision to move to the UK, it is vital that you understand the immigration options available to you. Under the UK’s immigration rules, the principal visa route for foreign nationals who want to join their family members is outlined in detail in Appendix FM (FM stands for “family members”). This popular immigration route is intended for anyone who wishes to come to the UK on the basis of their family life with a British national or a person who has settled permanently in the UK. In this article, we will explain how a foreign national with a British child can stay in the UK by applying through the family member (FM) route.’

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EIN Blog, 1st October 2021

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Case backlog for EU citizens to settle in UK ‘may be cleared by Christmas’ – The Guardian

Posted September 17th, 2021 in brexit, delay, government departments, immigration, news, statistics, visas by tracey

‘New government figures suggest the backlog of applications by EU citizens and their families received by the Home Office for the post-Brexit settlement scheme could be cleared by Christmas.’

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The Guardian, 16th September 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

‘Please save us’: UK ministers facing legal challenge over failure to help female MP and judge trapped in Kabul – The Independent

Posted September 3rd, 2021 in Afghanistan, asylum, government departments, immigration, judges, news, visas, women by tracey

‘The UK government is facing legal action over its failure to respond to requests for help from a progressive female Afghan MP and a leading woman judge who are both in hiding in Afghanistan and fearing for their lives.’

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The Independent, 3rd September 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Switching immigration category while present in the UK – EIN Blog

Posted August 23rd, 2021 in immigration, news, visas by tracey

‘Switching from one immigration category to another, from inside the UK, is not always straightforward. Certain routes allow you to stay in the UK under the Immigration Rules by switching visa category, whilst others do not. The updated Points-Based System (PBS), introduced at the end of 2020, has opened more visa categories to in-country switching.’

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EIN Blog, 17th August 2021

Source: www.ein.org.uk

500,000 EU citizens left ‘in limbo’ awaiting decision over right to stay in UK – The Independent

Posted August 13th, 2021 in brexit, delay, government departments, immigration, news, statistics, visas by tracey

‘More than half a million European citizens living in the UK are still awaiting a decision over their status six weeks on from the June deadline for the settlement scheme.’

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The Independent, 12th August 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Right-to-work regime – Law Society’s Gazette

‘The Home Office has issued new right-to-work guidance as the Brexit transitional arrangements for EU workers in the UK came to an end on 30 June 2021.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 2nd August 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Time spent in the UK as a visitor counts as ‘residence’ for ILR – EIN Blog

‘On the important subject of indefinite leave to remain (ILR) on the grounds of 10 years’ continuous residence, the Court of Appeal has held that the SSHD had erred in refusing an ILR application made by Mr Chandra Mungur – a citizen of Mauritius – because it could not be said that he had “left the United Kingdom in circumstances in which he had no reasonable expectation at the time of leaving that he would lawfully be able to return” during the period relied upon as 10 years’ continuous residence. While Mr Mungur had left the UK in 2001 following expiry of his visit visa, he had done so with the intention and expectation of lawfully returning as soon as possible under a student visa. Mr Mungur had obtained a visitor visa valid from 22 March 2001 to 22 September 2001. He entered the UK as a visitor on 16 April 2001 and left on 1 September 2001 “to return to Mauritius to apply for Entry Clearance as a student”. That application was granted on 25 September 2001 and was valid until 25 September 2003. On 5 October 2001, he entered the UK again and by a succession of applications he applied for and was granted further leave to remain successively first as a student and then as a work permit holder. He remained lawfully in the UK from 25 September 2003 until 13 July 2011. He overstayed for 1,947 days when his leave to remain expired on 13 July 2011 until 10 February 2016.’

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EIN Blog, 23rd July 2021

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Fijian-born soldiers given right to live in UK despite legal battle loss – The Guardian

Posted July 12th, 2021 in armed forces, colonies, Fiji, government departments, immigration, news, visas by tracey

‘A group of Fijian-born soldiers who sued the government after being classified as illegal immigrants have been granted leave to remain in the UK, despite losing their legal battle against the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the Home Office.’

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The Guardian, 11th July 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

“Powerful reasons” doctrine is no longer good law – EIN Blog

‘As to the seven year rule saga, the Court of Appeal has held that in a situation where a child whose parents had no entitlement to leave to remain in the UK applied for leave to remain pursuant to paragraph 276ADE(1)(iv) of the Immigration Rules on the basis that they had seven years’ continuous residence and it would not be reasonable to expect them to leave, the starting point is that it would be reasonable to expect them to leave with their parents. Overstayers “NA” and “SB” were a married couple and were Bangladeshi nationals whose children “YS” and “YA” were born in the UK. The family appealed against a decision of the Upper Tribunal upholding the SSHD’s refusal of their application for leave to remain in the UK. In April 2018 the family applied for leave to remain. YS had made his claim under paragraph 276ADE(1)(iv) on the basis that he had lived continuously in the UK for at least seven years and it would not be reasonable to expect him to leave. His parents and brother had no entitlement to remain under the rules but contended that their removal would interfere with their rights pursuant to article 8 of the ECHR. The decision-maker refused all four applications. In May 2019, FTTJ Bart-Smith dismissed the appeals and UTJ Stephen Smith subsequently found an error of law in the FTT’s decision but re-made it by again dismissing the appeal in November 2019.’

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EIN Blog, 6th July 2021

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Hundreds of thousands of EU citizens ‘scrabbling’ to attain post-Brexit status before deadline – The Guardian

Posted June 28th, 2021 in brexit, citizenship, EC law, immigration, news, statistics, time limits, visas by tracey

‘EU citizens are struggling to apply for post-Brexit settled status as the Home Office reaches “breaking point” coping with a last-minute surge in applications. With three days before the deadline of the EU settlement scheme this Wednesday, campaigners say late applicants are being stuck in online queues as others find it impossible to access advice on the government helpline.’

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The Guardian, 26th June 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Limited leave to remain does not knock out a Zambrano claim – EIN Blog

‘R (Akinsanya) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] EWHC 1535 (Admin) (09 June 2021). Mostyn J has held that the SSHD had erred when formulating in Annex 1 paragraph (b) of Appendix EU to the Immigration Rules the definition of a “person with a Zambrano right to reside” as “a person … without leave to enter or remain in the UK, unless this was granted under this Appendix”. His Lordship held that it is clear from the decision of the CJEU in Ruiz Zambrano v Office National de l’Emploi (C-34/09), [2012] QB 265, that the holding of a limited national leave to remain and a wider right to remain could and would co-exist in many cases. Furthermore, the natural, fair, reasonable and plain meaning of the words set out in regulation 16 of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2016 entitles an applicant for a derivative right to reside to have the application determined by reference to the prescribed eligibility criteria set out in the regulation rather than being struck out peremptorily. A Nigerian national, Olorunfunmilayo Oluwaseun Akinsanya arrived in the UK in 2006. She had four children, one of whom, C (aged 10), is a British national and she is C’s sole carer. Akinsanya had a six-month visitor visa. She then had a two-year family visit visa. When C was one year old, she applied for a derivative residence card as the Zambrano carer of C. The application was refused, but Akinsanya was successful in her appeal to the FTT and she was then issued with a five-year derivative residence card in September 2014.’

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EIN Blog , 21st June 2021

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Citizens of somewhere: ‘Zambrano’ carers and the EU Settlement Scheme – Doughty Street Chambers

‘The High Court found the Secretary of State erred in law when framing her definition of a “person with a Zambrano right to reside” under the EU Settlement Scheme (“EUSS”). Mostyn J held that (contrary to Home Office policy) a primary carer of a UK citizen child may have a derivative right to reside on Ruiz Zambrano grounds even where they are entitled to limited leave to remain on another basis, such as under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.’

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Doughty Street Chambers, 14th June 2021

Source: insights.doughtystreet.co.uk

EU Settled Status scheme – what to expect if you miss the deadline – EIN Blog

Posted June 9th, 2021 in brexit, EC law, immigration, news, visas by sally

‘If you are an EU national resident in the UK before Brexit you can protect your right of residence. All you need to do is make an application for settled status or pre-settled status. This application is made online and, if you avoid technical difficulties, will take only a few minutes to complete. The deadline is 30 June 2021.’

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EIN Blog, 7th June 2021

Source: www.ein.org.uk