Immigration News Weekly Roundup – 21 February 2025
UK government’s recent change to citizenship rules, preventing refugees who arrived through irregular routes from becoming British citizens, continues to be a subject of debate this week. The rule has faced its first legal challenge brought forward from a young Afghan refugee. The case highlights a significant shift in immigration policy, where the ‘good character’ requirement now excludes those who entered irregularly, regardless of their subsequent conduct or integration.
The policy change, effective from February 2025, appears to conflict with international obligations under the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and raises complex legal questions about the intersection of domestic immigration control and international refugee protections.
The case, brought by a 21-year-old who arrived at age 14 and has since established a positive record in the UK. Exemplifying the broader implications for tens of thousands of refugees who, despite meeting traditional citizenship criteria, may now be permanently barred from naturalisation based solely on their method of entry. The challenge argues the policy misinterprets the British Nationality Act 1981 and potentially breaches both human rights and equality legislation.
However, in another case decision by the Upper Tribunal’s refusal to allow parents (EK and SK) to withdraw their judicial review claim challenging their denial of entry to reunite with their children in the UK reflects the discouragement of taking dangerous journeys.
In this significant ruling, the Upper Tribunal has rejected a judicial review from Turkish Kurdish parents attempting to reunite with their children in the UK following their separation during a Channel crossing attempt. The Tribunal’s decision upholds the Home Office’s stance that granting entry could incentivise smugglers to deliberately separate families, potentially endangering more children. The case has drawn attention to the complex balance between family reunification rights and deterring dangerous Channel crossings.
Despite having refused the parents’ attempt to withdraw their case and their subsequent entry clearance applications, the Tribunal agreed with the Home Office that family reunification could feasibly occur in France. However, this decision has resulted in the children remaining separated from their parents for more than six months, highlighting the human cost of immigration policy enforcement.
In light of the recent developments on ‘good character’ requirement and measures to curb migration, the Labour Party faces significant internal dissent over its migration and asylum policies, with more than 900 of its own party members signing a statement criticising the government’s approach as mirroring Conservative ‘performative cruelty’.
The critique highlights a fundamental tension within Labour between appeasing Reform UK-influenced voters and maintaining traditional Labour values on migration, with notable figures including Unison’s general secretary and Church of England bishops warning that such policies could exacerbate social division and potentially breach international obligations.
The Court of Appeal has temporarily suspended the legal challenge to the Illegal Migration Act in Northern Ireland, emphasizing its unique constitutional status under the Windsor Framework. The case, originally brought by a 16-year-old Iranian asylum seeker and the NI Human Rights Commission, had successfully argued in the High Court that the Act was incompatible with post-Brexit arrangements.
The current pause reflects uncertainty caused by Labour’s proposed new border laws to repeal Rwanda legislation, while government lawyers are concerned about the potential broader implications for UK immigration control if they abandon the appeal.
On the professional conduct front, proceedings of utmost importance for practicing solicitors has emerged this week. The recent Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal decision to suspend a solicitor flags the necessity of maintaining professional boundaries and adherence to regulatory guidelines. Despite a 33-year career and numerous character references, the solicitor’s actions of mixing legal work with counselling services and improperly handling client money resulted in a six-month suspension, highlighting the importance of compliance to protect clients and the legal profession’s integrity.
This decision emphasises not just the need for regulatory compliance but also the critical role this plays in both professional advancement and the insight to the compliance expected of aspiring solicitors. Upholding the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) guidelines is essential to ensuring the protection of clients and preserving the reputation of the legal profession.
For those looking to build a solid foundation in compliance and regulatory adherence, HJT’s live online comprehensive one-day training for IAAS Casework Assistant and Senior Caseworker is an invaluable opportunity. Led by expert practitioner Gabriella Bettiga, the training will cover key aspects of immigration and asylum law and the important code of conduct as expected by the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s.
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For the full list of updates on media news, reports and Home Office Guidance and Policy updates, SEE BELOW
Immigration News
Planned change in British citizenship rules faces first legal challenge – The Guardian
Plans to prevent refugees who arrive in the UK on a small boat, lorry or via other “irregular” means from becoming a British citizen are facing their first legal challenge. The challenge is being brought by a 21-year-old Afghan refugee who arrived in the UK aged 14, after fleeing the Taliban and being smuggled to Britain in the back of a lorry. He was granted refugee status and after five years was granted indefinite leave to remain. For full report, click here
Leftwing activists less likely to work with political rivals than other UK groups, study finds – The Guardian
Leftwing activists in Britain are less likely to work with their political opponents than other groups and more likely to think those holding different views have been misled, a study has found. The study by the polling group More in Common finds that 8-10% of the population, whom they classify under the heading “progressive activists”, hold strikingly different views on a range of issues than the rest of Britain. For full report, click here
Top judge ‘deeply troubled’ by PMQs exchange on Gaza family’s right to live in UK – The Guardian
Lady Sue Carr, the lady chief justice, criticised the Conservative leader’s questions about the case, in which a family from Gaza had applied through a scheme designed for Ukrainian refugees. For full report, click here
Architects warn post-Brexit visa rules hindering recruitment – The Guardian
Architecture firms are calling on the home secretary, Yvette Cooper, to urgently review the post-Brexit visa salary rules, claiming they are choking an industry that is trying to help meet Labour’s housing targets. They say there were hit by a double recruitment whammy when the rules changed last April, with architecture removed from the shortage occupation list and the minimum salary to get a visa increased from just over £26,000 to £45,900. For full report, click here
More than 900 Labour figures decry party’s migration and asylum policy – The Guardian
A group of more than 900 Labour members and trade unionists, including MPs and peers, have accused the government of copying the “performative cruelty” of the Conservatives in its migration and asylum policy. In a joint statement, they singled out the Home Office’s decision, revealed last week, to refuse citizenship to anyone who arrives in the UK via “a dangerous journey” such as a small boat over the Channel. For full report, click here
Fall in overseas students fuels threat to English universities despite rise in fees – The Guardian
A fall in international students applying for visas risks prolonging the existential threat facing some of England’s universities, sources in higher education say, amid warnings that an increase in tuition fees has already been “wiped out” by the government’s tax rises. Despite the decision by ministers to increase fees for UK students this year to £9,535 – the first rise in eight years – figures across the universities sector said the financial situation remained dire, with further course closures and redundancies being widely considered. For full report, click here
One dies in attempted Channel crossing after small boat sinks off Calais coast – The Guardian
One person has died trying to cross the Channel in a small boat that sank off the coast of Calais, while 69 were rescued during what French authorities said was a very busy night for crossings. Only half of those on board had life jackets. The French navy’s Dauphin helicopter was also involved in the rescue operation.
For full report, click here
Ministers ‘mission-washing’ spending plans in effort to avoid cuts – The Guardian
Sources have told the Guardian that secretaries of state and their officials are looking for ways to link their spending to one of Labour’s main priorities – growth, net zero, crime, education, immigration and the NHS – in order to avoid sharp budget cuts this summer. For full report, click here
Illegal Migration Act appeal paused by NI court – BBC News UK
The government’s attempt to overturn a court ruling that found parts of the UK Illegal Migration Act were unlawful in Northern Ireland has been paused by judges. The act was introduced by the last government in a bid to stop people coming to the UK in small boats by giving authorities the power to send migrants to Rwanda. For full report, click here
How many people cross the Channel in small boats and how many claim asylum? – BBC News UK
The government has announced measures to tackle people smuggling, including a new criminal offence of endangering the lives of others at sea. Almost 37,000 people crossed the English Channel in small boats in 2024. For full report, click here
Case Law
Mlundira v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2025] EWHC 189 (KB)
The case highlights the critical importance of following proper procedural rules in costs litigation, even as a litigant in person. Mr Mlundira, who had won his judicial review against the Home Office, subsequently mishandled the costs proceedings by failing to submit a proper bill of costs and refusing to engage constructively with the opposing counsel’s attempts to rectify the situation. His procedural errors and uncooperative approach led to him being ordered to pay 80% of the Home Office’s costs (£1,880). His subsequent appeal to the High Court was unsuccessful, resulting in further costs of £4,596.48, effectively consuming most of his original costs award from the judicial review.
For full decision, click here
R (EK & Others) v Secretary of State for the Home Department, JR-2024-LON-002556
The Upper Tribunal dismissed a judicial review involving Turkish Kurdish parents seeking to reunite with their children in the UK after being separated during a Channel crossing. The tribunal upheld the Home Office’s position that allowing the parents entry would create a dangerous precedent encouraging smugglers to send unaccompanied children across the Channel. Despite the parents’ attempts to withdraw the judicial review following earlier entry clearance refusals, the tribunal refused withdrawal consent, citing public interest. The court found no breach of Articles 3 and 8 by the Home Office’s failure to admit the parents, agreeing that the family could potentially reunite in France, though this has left the young children separated from their parents for over six months.
For full decision, click here
AA (Morocco) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2025] EWCA Civ 144
The Court of Appeal ruled that the Upper Tribunal was correct to remit the entire case of AA (Morocco) back to the First-tier Tribunal for a complete rehearing. The court found that the First-tier Tribunal judge had made significant legal errors by failing to assess each of AA’s claims (asylum, humanitarian protection, Article 3 and Article 8 rights) separately and systematically, instead improperly considering all evidence “in the round”. The judge had also failed to properly apply the legal tests from the AM (Zimbabwe) case regarding health-based human rights claims and had not adequately assessed whether AA’s family in Morocco could provide support. The case highlights the importance of tribunals addressing each type of immigration claim distinctly, even where evidence overlaps, and following the correct legal frameworks for assessment.
For full decision, click here
Secretary of State for the Home Department v PG [2025] EWCA Civ 133
The Court of Appeal allowed the Home Secretary’s appeal against the Upper Tribunal’s decision that had prevented PG, a Sri Lankan gay man convicted of sexual offences, from being deported. The court found that Upper Tribunal Judge Perkins had failed to properly analyse whether there were sufficiently strong grounds to depart from the existing country guidance case (LH & IP) regarding the treatment of gay men in Sri Lanka. The judge had not provided adequate reasons for concluding that PG would face persecution either as a gay man generally or due to his specific circumstances. The court remitted the case back to the Upper Tribunal for fresh consideration, emphasising that any departure from country guidance requires careful analysis of evidence beyond what was previously considered when the guidance was established.
For full decision, click here
ETX, R (On the Application Of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2025] EWHC 294 (Admin)
The High Court allowed a judicial review brought by a victim of modern slavery, finding that the Home Office’s decisions to refuse his re-entry into the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) support were legally flawed. While the Court rejected claims regarding funding for ESOL classes and Article 4 ECHR breaches, it held that the Home Office had irrationally concluded that ‘Reach-In’ support services could adequately meet the claimant’s mental health treatment needs. The judgment clarified that mere signposting to mental health services (provided through Reach-In) was insufficient compared to the active assistance available through the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract (MSVCC). However, the Court declined to make a mandatory order requiring immediate re-entry into MSVCC support, instead directing the Home Office to reconsider the matter expeditiously with updated evidence.
For full decision, click here
Home Office Guidance and Documents Policy Updates
Collection: Archive: Immigration Rules has been updated on 19th February 2025. To view the updated Collection, click here
Guidance: Immigration Rules archive: 13 February 2025 to 17 February 2025 has been updated on 19th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Immigration Rules archive: 4 February 2025 to 12 February 2025 has been updated on 19th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Register of licensed sponsors: students has been updated on 19th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Register of licensed sponsors: workers has been updated on 19th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Apply for a visa under the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme has been updated on 18th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: UK visa support for Ukrainian nationals has been updated on 18th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Apply for a Ukraine Family Scheme visa has been updated on 18th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Applying to the Ukraine Permission Extension scheme has been updated on 18th February 2025. To View the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Kenya: country policy and information notes has been updated on 18th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Collection: eVisa support videos has been published on 18th February 2025. To view the Collection click here
Promotional material: How to travel with your eVisa: video has been published on 18th February 2025. To view the promotional material, click here
Promotional material: How to create a UKVI account and access your eVisa: video has been published on 18th February 2025. To view the promotional material, click here
Promotional material: What is an eVisa: video has been published on 18th February 2025. To view the promotional material, click here
Promotional material: How to recover your UKVI account: video has been published on 18th February 2025. To view the promotional material, click here
Promotional material: How to view and prove your online immigration status: video has been published on 18th February 2025. To view the promotional material, click here
Promotional material: How to update your UKVI account details: video has been published on 18th February 2025. To view the promotional material, click here
Guidance: India Young Professionals Scheme visa: ballot system has been updated on 18th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Diplomatic visa arrangement: caseworker has been updated on 18th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Collection: Visitors (immigration staff guidance) has been updated on 18th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here Guidance: Prove your English language abilities with a secure English language test (SELT) has been updated on 17th February 2025. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Written by Shareen Khan – Legal Content Writer, HJT Training
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