Immigration News Weekly Roundup – 22 March 2024
The Statement of Changes has firmly cemented its position this week as the focal point within the immigration sphere, as advisors grapple with the far-reaching consequences of these pivotal developments.
The new immigration rules introduced by the government through the Statement of Changes will come into effect early April. With the changes for skilled worker visas applicable from the 4th, and the family visa changes taking effect from the 11th. These modifications form part of the government’s five-point strategy, unveiled in December, aimed at curbing family, study, and work-related immigration.
While the income threshold for family/partner visas has been raised to £29,000, the explanatory memorandum clarifies that existing exceptional circumstances and the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children will still be considered.
Applicants who fail to meet the minimum income requirement may still be granted leave in cases where there are insurmountable obstacles to family life with their partner outside the UK, it would be unreasonable for their child to leave the UK, or if exceptional circumstances render refusal a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) Article 8, resulting in unjustifiably harsh consequences for the applicant or their family.
In addition to these changes, the Shortage Occupation List has been replaced by the new Immigration Salary List. Furthermore, amendments have been made to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) route, and several other areas. The Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse (VDA) now includes all partners with pre-settled status under the EUSS, while Appendix AR: Administrative Review EU has been redrafted and simplified. Two new appendices, Appendix Long Residence and Appendix Adoption, have also been introduced.
The UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI) appears to be resolute in its other efforts to curb irregular migration as well by strictly enforcing existing laws and regulations against vulnerable migrants without proper documentation. This stance is evidenced by a significant number of updates to the guidance on deportation, removals, and bail conditions that have been introduced this week. These changes seem to be part of a broader strategy to filter out and potentially remove migrants who lack the necessary legal status or fail to meet the stringent requirements set forth by the authorities.
In a positive development amid the UK’s ongoing immigration debates, a court ruling this week upheld principles of justice. The case of a 28-year-old man born in London to immigrant parents, who faced deportation to Portugal despite never having left the UK or spoken Portuguese. After serving a prison sentence, the Home Office issued the Appellant a deportation order, but a tribunal judge agreed with his representatives that as a British-born citizen, deporting him from his country of birth would be unlawful.
In response to the significant changes and developments impacting skilled worker salary thresholds and family visa requirements, HJT has promptly scheduled a series of courses aimed at equipping immigration advisors with the necessary knowledge and guidance.
Sacha Woolridge will be delivering a live online course Skilled Workers and Global Mobility Visas on 12th June 2024
Additionally, experts Mark Symes and Adam Pipe will be taking the immigration advisors through the updated rules and meeting challenges for family visas on 19th June Winning Family Life Cases and Minimum Income Threshold.
This is a perfect opportunity for the advisors to be full abreast with the latest developments to the Rules. Recognizing the significant impact of these revisions, the courses aim to provide advisors with comprehensive guidance on the updated regulations. Through in-depth analysis and practical strategies, advisors will gain the necessary expertise to support clients effectively within the evolving landscape of UK immigration policies.
For more information on our other live sessions, visit here
For enquiries, contact us enquiries@hjt-training.co.uk or call 075441 64692.
Full list of updates on media news, reported case law and Home Office Policy and other document updates, as reported below
IMMIGRATION NEWS
Rwanda bill likely to be stalled at least until April after seven defeats in the Lords – The Guardian
Rishi Sunak’s flagship Rwanda deportation bill is expected to be put on hold until at least next month after the House of Lords inflicted seven defeats on Wednesday.
The safety of Rwanda (asylum and immigration) bill, which aims to block Strasbourg from halting the removal of asylum seekers to east Africa, is not expected to return to the Commons until after the Easter break.
Any delay could make it increasingly difficult to fulfil the prime minister’s plan to see flights take off for Kigali by the spring.
For full report, click here
Home Office attempt to deport UK-born man was illegal, judge says – The Guardian
The Home Office acted unlawfully in trying to deport a British-born man who has never left the country to Portugal, from where his parents arrived more than 30 years ago, a judge has ruled.
Dmitry Lima, 28, who was born in Lambeth, south London, does not speak Portuguese and has never travelled abroad but in 2022 he was given a deportation order by the Home Office after serving a prison sentence for drugs offences and for carrying a Taser.
After a tribunal, Judge O’Garro agreed with Lima’s lawyers that their client was British as he was born in the UK when his mother and late father had been exercising their EU treaty right of free movement to work in the country.
For full report, click here
Home Office condemns ‘cruel’ Rwanda phone scam targeting asylum seekers- The Guardian
The Home Office has condemned scammers who “cruelly attempt” to trick people by pretending they can help them go to Rwanda in exchange for a £3,000 government payment.
The reported scam is the latest blow to government plans to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.
The main scheme involves forcibly sending some asylum seekers to Rwanda who arrive in the UK via irregular means such as small boats.
For full report, click here.
‘Their system is broken’: the people caught up in Home Office IT chaos – The Guardian
Jorge Gomez, a Nicaraguan refugee, says he has called the Home Office more than 100 times to try to sort out the problems he has had with proving he has the right to work in the UK.
The Home Office initially delayed sending Gomez his biometric residence permit (BRP) for four months, until April 2023. He applied for three jobs but was unable to take up any offers as he had no proof of his right to work. When he eventually received his permit, he was unable to generate a reference number, known as a share code, which allows prospective employers to confirm a person’s legal right to work in the UK. His online account has never worked.
For full report, click here.
Call for refugees in UK to have twice as long to find homes after hotel evictions – The Guardian
Leading homelessness and refugee charities have called on the government to double the number of days that newly recognised refugees are given to find a home before being evicted from asylum hotels, after a near 1,000% rise in rough sleeping among Home Office accommodation leavers since July.
Government statistics released in February showed a 965% increase over about six months in people sleeping rough after leaving asylum accommodation in the UK, jumping from 42 people in July 2023 to 469 by December 2023.
For full report, click here.
Government rejects time limit on holding migrants – The Guardian
A recommendation that migrants are held in removal centres for no more than 28 days has been rejected by the government.
The proposal was a key recommendation made by a public inquiry into Brook House, near Gatwick Airport, triggered by a BBC Panorama investigation into the centre in 2017.
For full report, click here
INDEPDENT REPORTS
Spotlight report No.1 How work visa design is driving exploitation of migrant care workers. Report by Citizens Advice Bureau
Citizens Advice published a report highlighting how the design of the visa system is driving exploitation of care workers recruited from abroad. Their advisers are seeing more migrant care workers on the restrictive Health and Care Worker visa who find themselves in extremely difficult situations they cannot escape. This visa ties their right to live and work in the UK to a specific employer, creating an imbalance of power that prevents them from enforcing rights or leaving exploitative jobs. While restrictive visas are not necessarily problematic for well-paid work, Citizens Advice warns they are increasingly being used for low-paid jobs with poor conditions like care work, exacerbating labour shortages but enabling mistreatment of vulnerable workers.
For full report click here
Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules – 14th March 2024
The Home Office has published new changes to the Immigration Rules, significantly increasing the minimum earnings thresholds for Skilled Worker visas from £26,200 to £38,700, and for family/partner visas from £18,600 to £29,000. These changes, taking effect in early April, are part of the government’s plan announced in December to reduce family, study, and work-related immigration. While existing exceptions remain for insurmountable obstacles to family life outside the UK, reasonableness of a child leaving, or other exceptional circumstances to prevent breach of human rights, the steep income requirement increases create major new barriers for many seeking to come to or remain in the UK through work or family routes.
To view the full Statement of Changes, click here
HOME OFFICE GUIDANCE AND POLICY DOCUMENT UPDATES
Caseworker Guidance: Deporting foreign nationals on conducive grounds has been updated on 20th March 2024. To view the latest Guidance, click here
Register of licensed sponsors: workers have been updated on 20th March 2024. To view the updated register, click here.
Register of licensed sponsors: students have been updated on 20th March 2024. To view the updated register, click here
Guidance: Revocation of a deportation order has been updated on 20th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Conducive deportation has been updated on 20th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Caseworker Guidance: Facilitated return scheme is updated on 19th March 2024. To view the Guidance, click here
Collection: Country policy and information notes has been updated on 19th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here.
Country policy and information notes for Chad has been updated on 19th March 2024. To view the updated report, click here.
Collection: Independent Family Returns Panel reports has been updated on 19th March 2024. To view the updated collection, click here.
Guidance: Sponsor a worker – sponsor guidance part 2 has been updated on 19th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Caseworker Guidance: Returns preparation has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Arranging removal has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Instructions to Get access to your eVisa has been updated on 18th March 2024, to view the updated information, click here
Guidance Using your UK Visas and Immigration account has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Online immigration status (eVisa) has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Immigration bail has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Short-term holding facility rules 2018 has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Reporting and offender management has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Identity management: enforcement has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Detention and case progression review has been updated on 18th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
Guidance: Access to public funds within family, private life and Hong Kong BN(O) routes have been updated on 15th March 2024. To view the updated Guidance, click here
STAY TUNED FOR MORE IMMIGRATION NEWS NEXT WEEK!
