In Limbo

[alchimiste]

Hi All,

Your input is highly appreciated.

A friend of mine found himself in a tricky situation. His 5 years visa has expired while he was in the middle of a legal procedure (high court) vs the H.O. The judge had given both parties the right of appeal but the H.O did not do so after the 5 days deadline given by the judge. Now according to his solicitor he's automatically entitled to a residence card but it might take a while until it's issued as the H.O are extremely busy (some similar cases took up to a year to be sorted). His employer asked him to leave his previous job two months ago because of the expired visa and once contacted the H.O confirmed to the employer and later to his local MP that he's not allowed to work until his situation is dealt with.

The fact that he was allowed to pursue legal procedure (appeal,hearing,..) isn't it in itself an admission of legal stay hence the ability to work until the stay is no longer legal ? Why the H.O is refusing to let him work (He was always working) knowing all the dire consequences of being unemployed without any possibility of help ?

Is there any legal way to challenge the decision of the H.O to not allow him temporarily to work until his visa is issued ?


Thank you so much.

[vinny]

More information about his circumstances may be helpful.

How was he residing under the EEA regulations?
What were the UKVI's objections?

[alchimiste]

Thanks Vinny,

He was granted 5 years visa as the spouse of a european national then they divorced after three years and a half. He applied for a residence card but the H.O refused (many reasons mainly missing documents and other issues) then it was taken to court 1st time, the H.O asked on the day of the court hearing to withdraw the case for reconsideration as they did not consider some supporting documents when they first dealt with the case. Then after months the H.O refused again and an appeal has been launched.After a court hearing again judge decided my friend had the right to appeal ... (the rest in previous post)

I hope this will help

Cheers

[vinny]

Did he have trouble getting documents from his ex wife?

[alchimiste]

Hi Vinny

Not really up to a certain date when the contact with her has been lost but the main documents he had them all along. This is not the issue now I think. The situation after the latest hearing is clear : the H.O did not appeal after the 5 days and automatically he's won the case. Isn't it ?

[appealalready]

I believe the Home Office delays and/or refuses to issue the documentation as part of a strategy to get people to leave the UK.

If I am correct, dealing with them is probably not going to work and your best bet is to either involve your local MP and Parliamentary Ombudsman, or go to court via judicial review or CMCC.

[alchimiste]

Hi Appealalready,

Thank you.

The MP could not do anything unfortunately with all his good will. I need to check the Parliamentary Ombudsman route as i have no clue what that means. The same thing with the CMCC. I wonder why his solicitor seems so hopeless ? she's not willing to explore any other options.

[alchimiste]

Hi All,

Any more suggestions ? This is really a tricky situation. No visa, no work, no help . Anywhere my friend can ask for help until his situation sorted.

Thanks

[appealalready]

Hi Appealalready,

Thank you.

The MP could not do anything unfortunately with all his good will. I need to check the Parliamentary Ombudsman route as i have no clue what that means. The same thing with the CMCC. I wonder why his solicitor seems so hopeless ? she's not willing to explore any other options.

Hi alchimiste,

a.) What did the MP do?

b.) Welcome to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman: Our role is to investigate complaints that individuals have been treated unfairly or have received poor service from government departments and other public organisations and the NHS in England...Please fill out a complaint form and pass it to an MP to refer your complaint to us. Having your complaint sent to us by an MP is a legal requirement. If you don't know who your local MP is, go to findyourmp.parliament.uk for more information or contact the House of Commons Information Office on 0207 219 4272.

c.) If you are not happy with your solicitor, why not get a new one?

Sometimes clients can get legal aid even though their case is not in the scope of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO). This is known as exceptional case funding (ECF) and these cases are dealt with by an ECF team within the Legal Aid Agency (LAA). https://www.gov.uk/legal-aid-apply-for- ... se-funding