Certificates of approval - return of application fees

[mourad]

good people who paid for their certificat of aproval of marriage rejoice the money you paid for the legalisation of infringing on one of your human ,devine rights will be reimbursed.
there`s a catch though read below this is from the UKBA website


31 July 2009


On 9 April 2009 the UK Border Agency suspended the fee for applications to obtain a certificate of approval - a document that is required by many migrants who are subject to immigration control and who want to get married or register a civil partnership in the United Kingdom.

If you applied for a certificate of approval between 1 February 2005 and 8 April 2009, you may now be eligible to have the fee returned to you if you can demonstrate that payment of the fee caused you real financial hardship.



CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL FEE REPAYMENT SCHEME
1.
Following the House of Lords judgment (Baiai v SSHD [2008] UKHL53), the UK Border Agency suspended the fee for Certificates of Approval with effect from 9 April 2009.
2.
If you applied for a Certificate of Approval between 1 February 2005 and 8 April 2009, then you may be eligible to have the application fee returned to you if you can demonstrate that payment of the fee caused you real financial hardship.
3.
This fee repayment scheme will run until 31 July 2010. Requests for the return of the Certificate of Approval fee should be submitted as soon as possible on Form COAFR to:

COA Repayment Scheme
NCC1, 9th Floor, Lunar House
40 Wellesley Road
CROYDON
CR9 2BY

4.
If you and your spouse/civil partner both applied for a Certificate of Approval, and believe you meet the criteria to have both fees repaid, you will each need to complete your own request form.
Eligibility for return of fee
5.
In order to be eligible for return of the COA application fee you will need to demonstrate that paying the fee caused you and your prospective spouse/civil partner to suffer real financial hardship. You will need to demonstrate that this was the case at the time you paid the fee.
Financial hardship criteria
6.
We consider that paying the COA fee may have caused you real financial hardship if for the 6 months prior to the date of your application for a COA you and your future spouse/civil partner meet the criteria in either (i) or (ii) below:
(i)
you were both reliant on public funds for your support (e.g. both in receipt of benefits, such as income support, job-seekers’ allowance or asylum support under Section 4 or Section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999); or
(ii)
averaged over the 6 months prior to your application, you had less than £500 in capital and had a total joint net income1 per week that was less than:
£210 in 2004-5
£217 in 2005-6
£226 in 2006-7
£236 in 2007-8
£236 in 2008-9
1 Figures are based on the DWP publication series Households Below Average Income available at http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/hbai_arc.asp Low income is defined as less than 60% of median household income. The threshold for 2008-9 is based on 2007-8 figures as HBAI figures for 2008-9 had not been published at the time of writing.
V0.4
7.
If one or both of you/your intended spouse/ civil partner had valid limited leave to enter or remain in the UK at the time of the COA application, and your conditions of leave required that you or your spouse/civil partner were able to support and accommodate yourself without access to public funds , UKBA will assume (in the absence of a satisfactory explanation and evidence to the contrary (see Question 10 on the COA fee return request form)) that paying the COA application fee did not cause you to suffer real financial hardship. This is because you were required to support and accommodate yourself in the UK and we consider it was reasonable to expect you to pay a COA fee in the event you wished to marry here.
8.
If you do not fulfil the above criteria, but consider that paying the COA application fee caused you to suffer real hardship, you should set out at question 10 on the COA fee return request form why this was the case. You will need to provide satisfactory evidence of your and your intended spouse’s/ civil partner’s income at the time of the COA application.
Confirmation of identity
9.
We will check your identity against our records. You should supply proof of identity as set out below.
Return of fee
10.
If we agree you meet the hardship criteria, the fee will be returned to you as a cheque, made payable in the name of the applicant for the COA. If you have changed your name since you applied for a COA (for example, if you applied for a COA in your maiden name and changed your name after marriage) you will need to advise us of that and provide evidence in the form of your marriage certificate and a current identity document (see question 6 on the COA fee return request form).
Evidence to be submitted
11.
To qualify for return of the COA fee, you will need to submit, in original form:
•
Evidence of your identity (e.g. current passport, or photo driving licence, or identity card), AND
•
(a) evidence (e.g. a Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) letter confirming payment of the benefit, or (until 28 February 2005) a benefit order book, or a letter from NASS/ UKBA) that you and your intended spouse/ civil partner were both reliant on public funds for support at the time of the COA application.
OR
•
(b) evidence (e.g. P6O form(s) or wage slips covering the relevant period and if one of you was claiming benefits, evidence of that as set out in (a) above) that you and your intended spouse’s/ civil partner’s total joint net income averaged over the six months before you applied for a COA was less than the sum shown, in section 6 above. And V0.4
V0.4
•
your marriage/ civil partnership certificate (We will use this to confirm your original identity if you have changed your name since marriage).
12. If you do not already have a DWP letter confirming payment of the benefit, you should contact the office which dealt with your benefit, and that office will normally be able to issue a confirmation letter. If DWP are unable to provide a letter, please provide confirmation of this, and provide alternative evidence (e.g. bank statements) showing that at the time of the COA application you and your intended spouse/ civil partner relied on public funds for support.
Additional information to be provided
13. You will also need to tell us:
(i)
the date of your application for a COA, and your Home Office reference number if you know it
(ii)
the exact name you put on your application for a COA
(iii)
the full name of the person to whom the cheque returning the fee should be payable if your request for return of the fee is successful.
14. The form requires the original COA applicant and their spouse/ civil partner both to sign the declaration. However, if no marriage or civil partnership ceremony took place or if the relationship has subsequently ended (eg. by divorce), we recognise that the second signature may not be available. In this circumstance, the documentary evidence provided must still relate to the situation of both parties at the date of the COA application.
15. Please ensure the form is fully completed as we may not be able to process your request if information is not included



COAFR
REQUEST FOR RETURN OF APPLICATION FEE PAID FOR AN APPLICATION MADE ON FORM COA
This form should be completed in capital letters using black ink. A separate form should be completed by each person seeking return of a COA fee. Questions 1 – 7 and question 10 must be answered. Questions 8 and 9 should be answered only if relevant.
Please make sure you have read the guidance before completing this form.
Failure to do so may mean that you do not provide the required information and that your request is declined
1. Current family name ….…………………………………………….……………………………….
Forename(s)…………….………………………………….……………………………….
2. Nationality…………………………………………………………………………………….
3. Date of Birth (DD/MM/YY) - -
4. Home Office reference number(s) (if known). The number(s) can be found on your COA decision letter
5. Date of application (if known) (DD/MM/YY)
6 The exact name you want us to put on any cheque. This must be your name or that of your spouse/civil partner. Please make sure this is correct
…………………………………………………………………………………
7. Address, including postcode, to which you want any cheque sent
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
8. Name at the time of your COA application if different from your current name
Family name……………………………………………………………………………………
Forename(s)… …………………………………………………………………………………
9. Address at the time of COA application if different from 7
.…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
.……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
10. Please explain why you are seeking to have the COA fee returned, and any exceptional circumstances in the box below (please attach an extra sheet of paper if needed).
COAFR
As assessment of eligibility is based on the income of both parties at the time of the COA application, both the person seeking return of the fee and their spouse /civil partner should sign the declaration below
Declaration
We [names]
hereby request the return of a Certificate of Approval fee of £135 £295 (please circle amount).
The information I have given in this form is complete and is true to the best of my knowledge.
I understand that
•
If I have provided information which I know is or might be false or misleading I may be liable to criminal prosecution under the provisions of the Fraud Act 2006.
•
All information provided by me to the Home Office will be treated in confidence, but that it may be disclosed to other government departments, agencies, local authorities, the police, foreign governments, and other bodies for immigration purposes, and to enable them to perform their legal functions. If such bodies provide the Home Office with any information about me which may be relevant to this request for a return of the COA fee, it may be used in reaching a decision on this request.
•
My details may in certain circumstances be passed to fraud prevention agencies to prevent fraud and money laundering. I also understand that such agencies may provide the Home Office with information about me. Further details explaining when information may be passed to or from fraud prevention agencies and how that information may be used can be obtained from the UKBA website.
Signature…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Signature of spouse/ civil partner……………………………………………………………………………
Date………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Have you included all required information?
•
Original evidence of ID
•
List the items of documentary evidence that you are enclosing that show paying the COA fee caused you financial hardship at the time and where applicable marriage or civil partnership certificate.
………………………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………………………….
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
Is the name for any cheque (Q6) correct?
Is the address to which any cheque is to be sent correct?
Have you filled in the Certificate of Approval fee in the first line of the declaration above and both signed and dated the declaration?

[bani]

they should pay everyone back. £140 wrongfully taken should be returned, whether or not it caused you financial hardship.

this is particularly sneaky-
7. If one or both of you/your intended spouse/ civil partner had valid limited leave to enter or remain in the UK at the time of the COA application, and your conditions of leave required that you or your spouse/civil partner were able to support and accommodate yourself without access to public funds , UKBA will assume (in the absence of a satisfactory explanation and evidence to the contrary (see Question 10 on the COA fee return request form)) that paying the COA application fee did not cause you to suffer real financial hardship. This is because you were required to support and accommodate yourself in the UK and we consider it was reasonable to expect you to pay a COA fee in the event you wished to marry here.

i hope UKBA get charged with contempt of court over this.

[mourad]

the funniest thing is you have to prove that £295 were a big deal and they proved to be a liability in your life.
i think £10 are a lot of money i`ve been waiting for my eea2 thing to come out for nearly8 months now and wasn`t able to look or find work because my passport is sleeping in their drawers and my certificat of appliction is worthless so i really would do good with that money .

[Rozen]

good people who paid for their certificat of aproval of marriage rejoice the money you paid for the legalisation of infringing on one of your human ,devine rights will be reimbursed.
there`s a catch though read below this is from the UKBA website


31 July 2009


On 9 April 2009 the UK Border Agency suspended the fee for applications to obtain a certificate of approval - a document that is required by many migrants who are subject to immigration control and who want to get married or register a civil partnership in the United Kingdom.

If you applied for a certificate of approval between 1 February 2005 and 8 April 2009, you may now be eligible to have the fee returned to you if you can demonstrate that payment of the fee caused you real financial hardship.



CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL FEE REPAYMENT SCHEME
1.
Following the House of Lords judgment (Baiai v SSHD [2008] UKHL53), the UK Border Agency suspended the fee for Certificates of Approval with effect from 9 April 2009.
2.
If you applied for a Certificate of Approval between 1 February 2005 and 8 April 2009, then you may be eligible to have the application fee returned to you if you can demonstrate that payment of the fee caused you real financial hardship.
3.
This fee repayment scheme will run until 31 July 2010. Requests for the return of the Certificate of Approval fee should be submitted as soon as possible on Form COAFR to:

COA Repayment Scheme
NCC1, 9th Floor, Lunar House
40 Wellesley Road
CROYDON
CR9 2BY

4.
If you and your spouse/civil partner both applied for a Certificate of Approval, and believe you meet the criteria to have both fees repaid, you will each need to complete your own request form.
Eligibility for return of fee
5.
In order to be eligible for return of the COA application fee you will need to demonstrate that paying the fee caused you and your prospective spouse/civil partner to suffer real financial hardship. You will need to demonstrate that this was the case at the time you paid the fee.
Financial hardship criteria
6.
We consider that paying the COA fee may have caused you real financial hardship if for the 6 months prior to the date of your application for a COA you and your future spouse/civil partner meet the criteria in either (i) or (ii) below:
(i)
you were both reliant on public funds for your support (e.g. both in receipt of benefits, such as income support, job-seekers’ allowance or asylum support under Section 4 or Section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999); or
(ii)
averaged over the 6 months prior to your application, you had less than £500 in capital and had a total joint net income1 per week that was less than:
£210 in 2004-5
£217 in 2005-6
£226 in 2006-7
£236 in 2007-8
£236 in 2008-9
1 Figures are based on the DWP publication series Households Below Average Income available at http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/hbai_arc.asp Low income is defined as less than 60% of median household income. The threshold for 2008-9 is based on 2007-8 figures as HBAI figures for 2008-9 had not been published at the time of writing.
V0.4
7.
If one or both of you/your intended spouse/ civil partner had valid limited leave to enter or remain in the UK at the time of the COA application, and your conditions of leave required that you or your spouse/civil partner were able to support and accommodate yourself without access to public funds , UKBA will assume (in the absence of a satisfactory explanation and evidence to the contrary (see Question 10 on the COA fee return request form)) that paying the COA application fee did not cause you to suffer real financial hardship. This is because you were required to support and accommodate yourself in the UK and we consider it was reasonable to expect you to pay a COA fee in the event you wished to marry here.
8.
If you do not fulfil the above criteria, but consider that paying the COA application fee caused you to suffer real hardship, you should set out at question 10 on the COA fee return request form why this was the case. You will need to provide satisfactory evidence of your and your intended spouse’s/ civil partner’s income at the time of the COA application.
Confirmation of identity
9.
We will check your identity against our records. You should supply proof of identity as set out below.
Return of fee
10.
If we agree you meet the hardship criteria, the fee will be returned to you as a cheque, made payable in the name of the applicant for the COA. If you have changed your name since you applied for a COA (for example, if you applied for a COA in your maiden name and changed your name after marriage) you will need to advise us of that and provide evidence in the form of your marriage certificate and a current identity document (see question 6 on the COA fee return request form).
Evidence to be submitted
11.
To qualify for return of the COA fee, you will need to submit, in original form:
•
Evidence of your identity (e.g. current passport, or photo driving licence, or identity card), AND
•
(a) evidence (e.g. a Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) letter confirming payment of the benefit, or (until 28 February 2005) a benefit order book, or a letter from NASS/ UKBA) that you and your intended spouse/ civil partner were both reliant on public funds for support at the time of the COA application.
OR
•
(b) evidence (e.g. P6O form(s) or wage slips covering the relevant period and if one of you was claiming benefits, evidence of that as set out in (a) above) that you and your intended spouse’s/ civil partner’s total joint net income averaged over the six months before you applied for a COA was less than the sum shown, in section 6 above. And V0.4
V0.4
•
your marriage/ civil partnership certificate (We will use this to confirm your original identity if you have changed your name since marriage).
12. If you do not already have a DWP letter confirming payment of the benefit, you should contact the office which dealt with your benefit, and that office will normally be able to issue a confirmation letter. If DWP are unable to provide a letter, please provide confirmation of this, and provide alternative evidence (e.g. bank statements) showing that at the time of the COA application you and your intended spouse/ civil partner relied on public funds for support.
Additional information to be provided
13. You will also need to tell us:
(i)
the date of your application for a COA, and your Home Office reference number if you know it
(ii)
the exact name you put on your application for a COA
(iii)
the full name of the person to whom the cheque returning the fee should be payable if your request for return of the fee is successful.
14. The form requires the original COA applicant and their spouse/ civil partner both to sign the declaration. However, if no marriage or civil partnership ceremony took place or if the relationship has subsequently ended (eg. by divorce), we recognise that the second signature may not be available. In this circumstance, the documentary evidence provided must still relate to the situation of both parties at the date of the COA application.
15. Please ensure the form is fully completed as we may not be able to process your request if information is not included



COAFR
REQUEST FOR RETURN OF APPLICATION FEE PAID FOR AN APPLICATION MADE ON FORM COA
This form should be completed in capital letters using black ink. A separate form should be completed by each person seeking return of a COA fee. Questions 1 – 7 and question 10 must be answered. Questions 8 and 9 should be answered only if relevant.
Please make sure you have read the guidance before completing this form.
Failure to do so may mean that you do not provide the required information and that your request is declined
1. Current family name ….…………………………………………….……………………………….
Forename(s)…………….………………………………….……………………………….
2. Nationality…………………………………………………………………………………….
3. Date of Birth (DD/MM/YY) - -
4. Home Office reference number(s) (if known). The number(s) can be found on your COA decision letter
5. Date of application (if known) (DD/MM/YY)
6 The exact name you want us to put on any cheque. This must be your name or that of your spouse/civil partner. Please make sure this is correct
…………………………………………………………………………………
7. Address, including postcode, to which you want any cheque sent
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
8. Name at the time of your COA application if different from your current name
Family name……………………………………………………………………………………
Forename(s)… …………………………………………………………………………………
9. Address at the time of COA application if different from 7
.…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
.……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
10. Please explain why you are seeking to have the COA fee returned, and any exceptional circumstances in the box below (please attach an extra sheet of paper if needed).
COAFR
As assessment of eligibility is based on the income of both parties at the time of the COA application, both the person seeking return of the fee and their spouse /civil partner should sign the declaration below
Declaration
We [names]
hereby request the return of a Certificate of Approval fee of £135 £295 (please circle amount).
The information I have given in this form is complete and is true to the best of my knowledge.
I understand that
•
If I have provided information which I know is or might be false or misleading I may be liable to criminal prosecution under the provisions of the Fraud Act 2006.
•
All information provided by me to the Home Office will be treated in confidence, but that it may be disclosed to other government departments, agencies, local authorities, the police, foreign governments, and other bodies for immigration purposes, and to enable them to perform their legal functions. If such bodies provide the Home Office with any information about me which may be relevant to this request for a return of the COA fee, it may be used in reaching a decision on this request.
•
My details may in certain circumstances be passed to fraud prevention agencies to prevent fraud and money laundering. I also understand that such agencies may provide the Home Office with information about me. Further details explaining when information may be passed to or from fraud prevention agencies and how that information may be used can be obtained from the UKBA website.
Signature…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Signature of spouse/ civil partner……………………………………………………………………………
Date………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Have you included all required information?
•
Original evidence of ID
•
List the items of documentary evidence that you are enclosing that show paying the COA fee caused you financial hardship at the time and where applicable marriage or civil partnership certificate.
………………………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………………………….
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
Is the name for any cheque (Q6) correct?
Is the address to which any cheque is to be sent correct?
Have you filled in the Certificate of Approval fee in the first line of the declaration above and both signed and dated the declaration?

Is UKBA really going to get away with this NONSENSE? They're havin' a laugh, aren't they? Instead of going round the mulberry bush, why not just say "WE WILL NOT REFUND THE FEES!" It's much more honest and straightforward than all this nonsensical babble!

[Plum70]

Is UKBA really going to get away with this NONSENSE? They're havin' a laugh, aren't they? Instead of going round the mulberry bush, why not just say "WE WILL NOT REFUND THE FEES!" It's much more honest and straightforward than all this nonsensical babble!

Hear Hear!!! The policy is daft, at best, and will hopefully be legally torn to shreds soon!

[freon21]

it's outrageous

[zebra3]

rip off as usual. who has draw this policy?!!!!!!!!

[ouflak1]

I can't believe they won't just give us back our money. If it was wrong to take it in the first, then give it back. Simple.

[wilrules]

sometimes I wonder if its human beings that makes up this policy or machines or animals.
Just Give everybody back their money, why the hassle,

[joe777]

good people who paid for their certificat of aproval of marriage rejoice the money you paid for the legalisation of infringing on one of your human ,devine rights will be reimbursed.

i take it the fee the gov charged was a processing fee ? why then can't I reclaim the £4,000 i've had to pay for visa's for the misses and kids, being a Brit surely this is even more of an infringment on my human rights that it is for some non brit appyling for a COA ?

[meats]

good people who paid for their certificat of aproval of marriage rejoice the money you paid for the legalisation of infringing on one of your human ,devine rights will be reimbursed.

i take it the fee the gov charged was a processing fee ? why then can't I reclaim the £4,000 i've had to pay for visa's for the misses and kids, being a Brit surely this is even more of an infringment on my human rights that it is for some non brit appyling for a COA ?

I completely agree with you. It gets better today too as now the local councils get 'Al Capone' power to seize assets if you're behind with your council tax. I didn't realise we were living in the Soviet Union.

[mourad]

good people who paid for their certificat of aproval of marriage rejoice the money you paid for the legalisation of infringing on one of your human ,devine rights will be reimbursed.

i take it the fee the gov charged was a processing fee ? why then can't I reclaim the £4,000 i've had to pay for visa's for the misses and kids, being a Brit surely this is even more of an infringment on my human rights that it is for some non brit appyling for a COA ?

well i guess all of us had to pay to get visas to go somewhere in a given time in our lives however i think you should only ask the bride if she wants to spend the next 50 years of her life with you and not any governemental body whatever it might be for the "permission" to marry someone you love and payfor it tat is just insane and there is no other country in the world who does this i think.
and if paying for visas is an infringement of human rights so is gaz ,lekki,water road tax ,and also lets keep the dearly beloved shop out of business on this forum,shall we?

[Fairtrade]

Surely this law is illegal?

It's either everyone get their money back or nobody gets their money back. You shouldn't need to prove anything, if money is due to you it's due to you regardless if you were in financial difficulty or not.

[Fairtrade]

To qualify for return of the COA fee, you will need to submit, in original form:
•
Evidence of your identity (e.g. current passport, or photo driving licence, or identity card), AND
•
(a) evidence (e.g. a Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) letter confirming payment of the benefit, or (until 28 February 2005) a benefit order book, or a letter from NASS/ UKBA) that you and your intended spouse/ civil partner were both reliant on public funds for support at the time of the COA application.

If you were on benefits/ financial difficulty then surely the Home Office wouldn't give you permission to bring your partner over to the Uk in the first place.

I thought one of the rules to bring a foreign partner over to the Uk is for you to show that you are not dependent on public funds and that you can look after yourself and your partner without needing public funds.


So basically nobody will be able to prove they were in financial difficulty, therefore the Home Office is not going to pay out to anyone.