errors in reason for refusal letter

[virus10]

After reading the reasons for refusal for an unmarried partner visa in my partners letter, we have spotted some mistakes that lead us to believe they haven read it properly. For example, they said I (the sponser) ...'british by desent..', well Im British by birth, as stated clearly in the application.
That seems like a serious fact to overlook dont you think? And the fact that they mention this leads me to believe that being British born could possibly effect the outcome.
Also they said they believe he overstayed years ago when he had a 2 year working visa then a 6 month extension. That is simply not true and there is no reason why they would say that when the evidence is clearly on the stamps in his passport, he never overstayed.
I have been reading numerous websites about appeals and complaints and have read that it is possible to write a letter to the ECO to overturn the decision, is this true? I hope so because I have just spent the last 3 hours writing one.
I think that these errors are serious and grounds for a complaint or something? They obviously havent read everything properly.
Any suggestions much appreciated

[SYH]

First of all, without the context of the application and basis of refusal, not excerpts, it is really hard to know if you have any merit on appeal

However the comment about birth and descent, my question would be

Why would being british by birth vs descent make your case stronger?
You can not presume that because they used one over the other in the refusal indicates that the other would have made your case stronger.

The passport is not the only info they may have used to conclude there was an overstay, thus unless he stated on what basis, then you don't know why he said it unless you failed to explain any additional info in the refusal letter.

[Jeff Albright]

...'british by desent..', well Im British by birth, as stated clearly in the application.

Irrelevant. You are still a sponsor and whether you are British born sponsor or British by descent sponsor, makes absolutely no difference.

Also they said they believe he overstayed years ago when he had a 2 year working visa then a 6 month extension.

First of all, as was pointed out to you in the previous post, if his marriage to EU national, which constituted conditions of his admission to the UK, ceased to subsist within the period of his visa, he had no right to remain in the UK in that category. This equally means overstaying. I don't know on which grounds he was given an extension for further 6 months - you never mentioned it before, so it is diffucult to speculate.
Secondly, whether he had overstayed or not, would not have ordinarily pejudiced his application. Previous overstay is usually an indication that the applicant had intention of settling in the UK and therefore the returnability criterion prerequisite for certain types of visas would not be met. Since he was applying as an unmarried partner of someone present and settled in the UK, that application would have been viewed as prospective to settlement, hence the fact of his overstay would not have affected the outcome of his application alone.

I have been reading numerous websites about appeals and complaints and have read that it is possible to write a letter to the ECO to overturn the decision, is this true?

You have the right to complain and can bring your concerns to the ECM or write to the UKVisas headquarters in London. They will endeavour to investigate your complaint and respond as soon as possible and provide answers to your questions.

I think that these errors are serious and grounds for a complaint or something?

From the information you have provided, it is clear that there was no material error of law made by the ECO refusing that application. the ECO decided the application on the information available to them and on the evidence before them. Because the decision was in accordance with the Rules, it was legally correct. If you believe however, that some facts were not properly considered, you can of course, bring this to the attention of the UKVisas. I am sure they always aim to listen to client's comments in order to improve their quality of service and will take the necessary steps to address the issue.

[virus10]

thanx for the posts. The British by birth thing-I guess Im just searching for any possible reason to complain, the main point being though, they didnt read that part properly so maybe I have reason to believe its possible that they overlooked some other details.
The 2 year working visa/6 month extension - he left before the 6 months was up and also left the country before the first 2 year visa expired, he never overstayed and doesnt know why they said that. He would know if he overstayed.
But I guess the main reason is because he was supposed to leave the country when he broke up with his EU national wife. It seems that there absolutely no point in trying to overturn the decision after reading the posts.
Being ignorant of the conditions of the visa doesnt seem like a good enough reason to overturn the decision. He honestly thought that if he got divorced he wasnt entitled to be in the UK anymore, that is why he left and applied for the UPvisa, because his ex-wife requested a divorce.
Its a complete disaster and seems like a waste of time and money continuing, I dont know what we are going to do. thanks for your help

[virus10]

forgot to ask....
Would he be able to get a work permit in Ireland (his friend owns a business)easily? Or does refusal of visa anywhere in the world effect obtaining a visa elsewhere? I guess we could move over there if this doesnt work out, though something would go wrong Im sure.

[Jeff Albright]

But I guess the main reason is because he was supposed to leave the country when he broke up with his EU national wife.

Reason for what? Several users of this forum have explained you several times that it was not the main reason for refusal of his application. The main reason for refusal was because insufficient evidence was submitted that you both have lived together in the relationship akin to marriage for last two years. Therefore one of Rules to qualify for admission to the UK as your unmarried partner was not met and so the application was refused. I am sure the ECO would not have refused his application solely on the grounds of his UK immigration history providing that all the relevant rules in respect of the unmarried partners had been met.

Its a complete disaster and seems like a waste of time and money continuing, I dont know what we are going to do.

This is not a disaster. If you keep viewing it as a disaster, you will never sort this matter out. All you have to do is to calm down, take your time familiarising yourselves with the Immigration Rules, which would apply to the route your boyfriend wants to use in order to come to the UK next time and then make an application and provide all the required evidence. This would be either proof of you living together in the past 2 years or if it is not available, then you may consider getting married and then apply for a spouse visa. If he is skilled person, he might try himself for Work Permit through a UK employer or HSMP. I would also recommend that you read the NZ immigration procedures for yourself if you decide to go there for other reasons than a visit. I am sure the NZ Authorities have similar procedures in place, which may be even stricter (similarly to Australia that requires 10 times more evidence in respect of the unmarried or married couples plus assurance of support, etc.)

Best wishes

JA

[virus10]

Hi, yeah I have looked on the internet for literally hours looking for possiblities, we cant apply for anything else, the HSMP for example-he misses out on 1 point.....
I think we did have enough evidence...bank statements, joint bank statements, evidence of savings from both of us-ie. 'no recourse of public funds', receipt from him of £1000 computer he bought for me-registered in my name, holiday photos, emails dating back 3 years, letters to/from his mother talking about me, I am the registered secretary of his company, print out of 100s of text messages during this time apart.....
maybe we should have bought stuff on HP together for show.We live in a shared house so different peoples names are on the bills, maybe it would have been better if we had lived alone - (but then the bank statements wouldnt have looked too good!)
One thing Im not sure about though is the possibility to reapply straight away, (instead of appeal, which will apparently take about 9 months - bringing us to a total of 15 months apart-which would most likely be considered too long being apart and we wouldnt qualify anymore, knowing our luck)and add a letter from me stating why I think they should grant him the visa, also during the 6 months we have additional joint bank account statements and other mail I could include? Does anybody know the time that must elapse if you are to re-apply?
I am also a NZ citizen, I have dual citizenship, the reason I came to the UK 5 years ago is because of my work, its a creative field and there are just no opportunities in NZ for me. I guess I could include that in a letter as proof of our committment - me effectively giving up my career to move back to NZ to be with James and face a life of being on the unemploymeny benefit. Its not really proof though is it?its just my word,they would say.
Also I was reading from a news source that the NZ BHC has had a huge increase in applicants for settlement this year, Im guessing they have a quota to fill, to weed out the weaker applications.Maybe we would have had a better chance when they werent obliged to reject a certain amount, who knows.
Thanks for replying, this post has given me more useful and accurate information than the 2 lawyers we consulted and paid for, I would be hesitant of using a lawyer for anything again.