Alleged checks on Kosovars by BIA?

[clairey]

This may not necessarily be true but I just want to find out if anyone else had heard this. The Albanian tv station Top Channel has reported that the Home Office is conducting an investigation into Kosovars who were granted asylum, ILR and Citizenship due to a large number of possible fraudulent applications. Now, if it were true, I suspect the likes of the Daily Mail would have jumped on this story, yet I can't find any information from any English sources.

Apparently letters are being sent out asking people to come in for interviews and to bring any supporting evidence with them.

I stress that Top Channel is possibly not the most reliable of sources, but I would be interested to know if anyone else has heard anything. It's certainly big news amonst the Albanian-speaking community in London.

[stedman]

Maybe something to do with the recently introduced interviews for first time British passports. Which would apply to everyone, of course, not just Kosovans.

If Top channel is anything like our Sky news, then I'd take whatever they say with a pinch of salt.

[clairey]

It wasn't to do with passports, it was saying that the Home Office were going to check people who'd had British Citizenship for several years. As you said, pinch of salt very probably required, but still, I know many Albanians who are here perfectly legally who are now extremely scared that they'll be deported.

[rogerroger]

surely they cant strip people of citizenship after many years?

[olisun]

surely they cant strip people of citizenship after many years?

yes they can if they found out it was aquired by wrong means

[sakura]

surely they cant strip people of citizenship after many years?

yes they can if they found out it was aquired by wrong means

True, I think they can, and haven't they already done so with some people mentioned in the media (linked to al qaida...sorry for SP!)? Bakri or who now!?

Plus, I do think there are legislations that allow people's citizenship to be revoked if there is proof of fraud....in Holland didn't it happen to Ayaan Hirsi Ali?

[Rozen]

surely they cant strip people of citizenship after many years?

Plus, I do think there are legislations that allow people's citizenship to be revoked if there is proof of fraud....in Holland didn't it happen to Ayaan Hirsi Ali?

It ALMOST did. But the Immigration Minister at the time (Rita Verdonk) buckled under public pressure and u-turned her decision, allowing Ayan to keep her Dutch citizenship after all!

Having said that, the truth will almost certainly out, and the price one is likely to pay for being dishonest will certainly not be worth the risk one took..... (as many situations in this forum have shown). Ayan was lucky to have the support that she did, as it could have worked out very differently...

The lesson to be learnt from this example is that one should just put all their cards on the table, and tell it like it is. As long as one can explain the genuine reasons for doing what they did, and not that they simply thought they were smarter than the system, the result usually works in one's favour.

Honesty is by far the best policy!

[Marie B]

My husband is Albanian and he mentioned to me a couple of weeks ago that he heard this was happening, and he asked me to search the internet to see if I could find any credible news reports (ie. not Albanian) - I didn't find anything, although I can see that if investigations are ongoing the BIA would not want to make the information public.

He heard a slightly different version from Albanian TV to what you posted. As far as he understood the BIA are investigating Kosovans who they believe falsely applied for and were granted asylum after claiming to be Kosovan when they are infact Albanian. The BIA have started investigating after noticing that loads of 'Kosovans' have applied for their parents to come on a visit visa, and in the application have stated that their parents are Albanian, living in Albania. The British Embassy in Tirana (Albania) who have been issuing the visit visas now require the birth certificate of the person sponsoring their parent's / family member's visit, and hey presto - they have proof that the sponsor is infact Albanian and not Kosovan as they claimed when applying for asylum.

As far as we've heard some people have already had their British Citizenship revoked and been returned to Albania with no right of appeal, and now the BIA are writing letters to Kosovans who have at any time applied for visitor visas for albanian parents / family, asking them to come in for an interview.

[avjones]

Hi - I've seen 20-odd letters which accuse people of obtaining leave to remain by pretending they were from Kosovo when they were actually from Albania.

The Home Office is therefore seeking to revoke nationality or ILR, depending on the circumstances of the person.

[Dawie]

There are two problems with this story:

1) The Home Office will find it very difficult to revoke the British citizenship (whether they obtained it legally or not) of any Kosovan/Albanian who does not also hold Albanian/Serbian or any other citizenship. If they did this it would render the person stateless and would in effect place a burden of care on the UK government for that stateless person.

2) How does the Home Office know these people's addresses in order to contact them? In many cases the Home Office wouldn't have had contact with these people for many years and people do not keep the Home Office informed of their current address.

[olisun]

There are two problems with this story:
2) How does the Home Office know these people's addresses in order to contact them? In many cases the Home Office wouldn't have had contact with these people for many years and people do not keep the Home Office informed of their current address.

HO will alert all ports as they will atleast have the passport nos and may try to nab them if they try to leave / enter the country...

[avjones]

There are two problems with this story:

1) The Home Office will find it very difficult to revoke the British citizenship (whether they obtained it legally or not) of any Kosovan/Albanian who does not also hold Albanian/Serbian or any other citizenship. If they did this it would render the person stateless and would in effect place a burden of care on the UK government for that stateless person.

2) How does the Home Office know these people's addresses in order to contact them? In many cases the Home Office wouldn't have had contact with these people for many years and people do not keep the Home Office informed of their current address.

It's not a story, I have quite a few clients in such difficulties! Revoking nationality isn't easy; revoking ILR is a lot less trouble for the SSHD.

Amanda

[Marie B]

There are two problems with this story:

1) The Home Office will find it very difficult to revoke the British citizenship (whether they obtained it legally or not) of any Kosovan/Albanian who does not also hold Albanian/Serbian or any other citizenship. If they did this it would render the person stateless and would in effect place a burden of care on the UK government for that stateless person.

They are trying to track down Albanians who claimed asylum as Kosovans; under Albanian law a person born in Albania to Albanian parents is, and always will be, an Albanian citizen. This citizenship cannot ever be lost or relinquished whether the person holds a current Albanian passport or not or a passport / citizenship from another country. The only proof needed for citizenship is the birth certificate, therefore the person will not be rendered stateless by removing ILR/BC. The person will always be an Albanian citizen first when they are on Albanian soil, so as long as the Albanian government agree that the person can be returned (which they always seem to) BC/ILR which has been fraudulently obtained can be revoked and they can be removed.

My husband's brother-in-law is a government minister in Albania and from what he has said the Albanian government is very willing to help with any kind of immigration situation like this as they want to develop good relations with the UK/EU.

2) How does the Home Office know these people's addresses in order to contact them? In many cases the Home Office wouldn't have had contact with these people for many years and people do not keep the Home Office informed of their current address.

They won't have up-to-date adresses for everyone but the letters I have seen have been sent to people who have either applied recently for visitor visas or haven't moved in years because they are in council housing.

[clairey]

My husband's brother-in-law is a government minister in Albania and from what he has said the Albanian government is very willing to help with any kind of immigration situation like this as they want to develop good relations with the UK/EU.

I think Albania is also very keen to get many of the young people who left home back to help build up the country.

It will be interesting to see what happens when the UN resolution on Kosova comes through - if Kosova is declared independent in all but name, as is predicted, will the BIA send Kosovars with outstanding cases back home?

[tasha75]

There was an article in the Sun today about this scam.

[quote]A VICIOUS pimp and a murderer were given British citizenship after fooling the Home Office with an asylum con.
Luan Plakici and Mane Driza claimed they were refugees fleeing war-torn Kosovo.
In fact they were Albanians living 300 MILES from the nearest fighting in the Balkans.
The pair were just two of a string of Albanian crooks using the ruse to settle in Britain — and build their criminal empires.
All gave false names to get asylum, but the Home Office failed to establish their real identities.
And once handed a British passport, their families got visas to settle here as well. Plakici, 31, arrived in the late 1990s. He then smuggled 60 women into Britain to exploit in the vice trade — but is now serving 23 years for pimping and kidnapping.

Psychopath Driza, 25, is currently serving 20 years in Italy.
Vice squad officers estimate that Albanians now control more than 75 per cent of brothels here.

The citizenship scam was uncovered when some crooks’ relatives used their REAL names on immigration forms. Now officials have sent letters to the guilty Albanians, stripping them of their passports.

But a Home Office source said: “The truth is no one knows how many came here illegally.â€

[clairey]

That's very interesting Tasha, thanks for that.

[clairey]

I've heard that the BIA have done a press release relating to this matter, but I can't for the life of me find it - anyone else fancy looking for it?

[avjones]

nothing on the website that I can see.

[yankeegirl]

I've tried a Google search too but no luck. I seem to remember seeing something about it too but for the life of me I can't remember where.

[clairey]

Thank you - it's not just me being blind then!

[alba29]

Thank you - it's not just me being blind then!

Hi Claire

I know the article. I read it yesterday. I will try and send you the link. It's in albanian language though... it was an interview with an English Barrister and a solicitor... who had real cases of two albanians whose passports were revoked when entring the country.

http://www.forumishoqeria.net/forum/sho ... php?t=4022

since I am not very computer tech... please try and paste the above link in your toolbar and your husband will be able toread you the interview in English... it's very interesting... but I don't think it will every happen...i.e revoking nationalities...
Albaxx

[clairey]

Hi Alba,

Thanks for that, I will ask my husband to translate it for me tonight.

There is also this article on Albanian Mail:
http://www.albanianmail.co.uk/sofra/lex ... om=&ucat=9&

which I'll have to ask him to translate as well! They have a few articles about it in fact.

Faleminderit,
Claire x

[clairey]

It looks like the news has finally got out here:

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/arti ... article.do

[avjones]

Thanks for posting that, Claire, I hadn't seen it.