Very Interesting but strange ( Urgent help required )

[talija]

Hi,
I urgently need some help on my case. I applied for IGS before my current leave to remain as student expired. Unfortunately, I filled the form's payment section by debit card. After 2 weeks they sent me my application back stating fee fetching problems.
So, I again applied by postal orders but at that time my leave to remain as student expired and after two weeks of my second application, they refused my application on grounds of " No valid leave to remain at time of application " and they even didn't give me my passport and asked me to leave the country ASAP.
I contacted my bank and asked them why the payment was not made. They replied, there was no such query from Home office of such payment and on my bank statement, the money is more than their required fee on dates when I applied and they refused my first application.
So, I contacted my local MP and told her the whole story. She already had written letter to Minister responsible for BIA and asked him to investigate this matter and not to take any enforcement action against me as she feels that BIA has behaved shamefully in my case.
Now, after waiting for 2 weeks still there is no response from Home Office or from Minister. My overstaying period of 28 days will be ending on 28/02/2008. My question is

1) Should I leave the country volunterly before 28 days of my overstaying period after their Removal Notice OR
2) Should I wait till any further response from HO, Minister or MP.

I m very confused and frustrated. Any best help/option from anyone will be nice for me.

Thanks in advance.

[ishaanchandra]

Sorry to hear your situation.... I would suggest you to go and see a immigration consultant (who should be a registered solicitor with the HO), explain the situation and show the proof of your first application you made, and appeal for the visa in the court against the Home-Office......
which ofcourse you can do so...

But the consultation fees with a immigration consultant varies from 500£ to 3000£ and make sure you find the right person who can get the job done for you......

Good Luck

[talija]

Thanks for your help/Advise. Actually, they didn't even give me right to appeal.
So,is it still possible for me to go against HO through court.

Cheers

[ishaanchandra]

Thanks for your help/Advise. Actually, they didn't even give me right to appeal.
So,is it still possible for me to go against HO through court.
Cheers

I am not sure if they didnt give you the right to appeal.... better go and get some advice from any immigration consultant....

there are some consultants available, who gives free advise.....

you just need to look around

[Jeff Albright]

I think it is not a matter of appeal, rather it is a matter of complaint.

Home Office errors is not your responsibility so you should take it up with the relevant managers there.

Suggest you first approach BIA Customer Focus Team about this problem. It is good that your MP has written, however, experience shows that it is not a very efficient method.

Taking this matter up with Customers Focus Team is better. You can find the CFT's contact details on the BIA's website. Just write to them explaining them the situation, stating your reference number, nationality and date of birth. You should get a response pretty quickly, faster than your MP gets one.

Good luck!

[olisun]

I think it is not a matter of appeal, rather it is a matter of complaint.

Home Office errors is not your responsibility so you should take it up with the relevant managers there.

The OP hasn't mentioned what was the "fee fetching errors" as reported by the HO...

Without which I believe it will be very difficult to appeal / argue about his case...

[Jeff Albright]

The OP hasn't mentioned what was the "fee fetching errors" as reported by the HO...
Without which I believe it will be very difficult to appeal / argue about his case...

Correct. If the Home Office were unable to collect the payment due to their own problem, then this is a complaint matter and they should sort it out. If the person did not provide correct details or made an error himself, then he is responsible.

[talija]

Thanks Jeff Albright,
It seemed to me that this approach will be better. But I m wondering if I contact them, what possible reaction can I expect and If I leave it on MP, wat possible response is expectable from their point of view.

Thanks again for your help.

[Jeff Albright]

The help that MP can provide you with is very limited - the best they can do is to write to the MP Correspondence Section and await a response. The response can take anything between 1 and 6 months and will only reiterate the status of your case. Nothing will change.

If you take a matter in your hands, this will open many ways in which you can deal with it.
The starting point here is your complaint to CFT. The CFT is specifically employed to deal with complaints. Because the Home Office does all its work in extreme secrecy, you cannot get the details of the responsible people/managers who handled your file. The CFT's job is to send your complaint directly to them, as they have all the information on people handled your file.

You can expect to receive a response within a week or two. This is much faster than your MP. If you do not get a response you will simply call CFT using the number and they will update you on the progress.

Another way of dealing with it is to get a copy of your Home Office file. This, however, takes long, usually over a month. When you receive it, you will then be able to track it down to a particular deparment who made an error and then contact them yourself. Although they will erase all the contact details and names before they hand a copy of your file to you, you will still be able to track down the department, as they do not usually erase the name of the department or a team. So you can then send a letter/email directly to the manager of that section, which will be the most efficient way of sorting things out.

When I was still in the UK dealing with the Home Office because of their errors on my file I used both methods at the same time - CFT and contacting the department directly. I was also struggling getting responses until I eventually emailed and telephoned directly the manager of that section and all the problems were sorted out within a day.

For example, the Home Office delayed implementing the successful appeal outcome in my case and granting status for 4 months until I actually got hold of the relevant people and they sorted it out within a week. All I did was simply sending a letter to the manager and email to the support person there and they then called me back themselves. The Home Office staff are usually quite helpful if you talk to them directly and they do their best to help you. But to begin with, you need to get a clear picture who made an error on your file, if of course, the error was on their part.

Good luck!

[talija]

Once again thanks u so much Jeff Albright for your welcomed help and I will do so as u described. But here I have still question in mind.
As u know, the HO has refused my application and had asked me to leave the country and even holding my passport. If I persue with my query to CFT and wait for their response and as I m already waiting for the response from minister, WHAT WILL BE MY STATUS IN UK during this time or how can i legalize my stay. Also WILL THIS THING MAKE EFFECT ON MY PASSPORT which they r holding at the moment.



Cheers