HOME OFFICE VISA APPEAL REFUSAL 'INHUMANE'

Rupanjana Dutta Wednesday 12th September 2018 11:44 EDT
 
 

It is now widely accepted from all sections of industries that cutting immigration will hamper economic growth. The Tory government has been on a 'witch-hunt', making immigrants feel 'unwelcome'. They have inexplicably ignored the long-term benefits of immigration, in particular the significant contributions of the skilled migrants to innovation and wealth creation. In fact, in the UK immigrants are twice likely to start their own business than British-born individuals. A new research by the Citi group has suggested if UK immigration was frozen since 1990 then the number of immigrants would have remained constant but the economy would have been smaller by 9%, losing more than £175bn.

Currently the issues of immigration are many. The UK Universities are calling for post-study work visas to be re-introduced for international students as well as ensure they are not included in the net migration figure. On the other hand, many highly-skilled migrants are facing a dead end to their life and career over visa denials. Such cases have taken a worse turn than the 'Windrush scandal', with no 'right to appeal' within the country. People have died, starved, piled up huge financial debts, even lived on streets, awaiting justice. Hence the Highly Skilled Migrants group are now starting a petition to bring back 'within country appeal and work rights for migrants' who are awaiting decision from the Home Office after their Indefinite Leave to Remain visa was rejected.

Bring back appeal & work rights for migrants

The Guardian in a report has said that, "three-quarters of final immigration court appeals brought by the Home Office against rulings allowing asylum seekers and other migrants to stay in the UK are dismissed. In the year from April 2017 to March 2018, 11,974 cases were determined in court, with 4,332 of the Home Office’s decisions being overturned.

"Of those decisions granting leave to remain, the Home Office then referred 1,235 to the upper tribunal for further appeal, with 900 (73%) rejected by an independent judge, according to a freedom of information response.

"The low success rate raises concerns the Home Office is putting people through lengthy and expensive court processes when it has little chance of winning. One lawyer said the figures, which will be associated with the “hostile environment” policy, showed the government was needlessly 'stopping people getting on with their lives'."

Aditi Bhardwaj of the Highly Skilled Migrants group speaking to Asian Voice, said, “We are petitioning to bring back appeal and work rights for people who believe they have unjustly been refused the right to stay in the UK, so they can make their case in court here.

“The 2014 Immigration Act severely restricted access to legal appeals for people who lost the right to be in the UK. Their right to work was also removed or restricted.

“Judicial Review is the only option for these people. But not only it costs thousands, it can take up to a year or more to be decided and migrants can still be left in limbo as the Home office uses a tactic of giving a consent order and could refuse them again. The approach of the Home Office runs contrary to the principles of justice and fairness.”

Those who lose the right to appeal and to work, go from being tax-paying, productive members of society to destitute, piling up huge debts and feeling desperate. They might end up on streets or be forced to work illegally to put food in their children’s mouths.

If these people are allowed to work in the UK while their cases are in the court, they can continue paying taxes and their lives, and those of their children, are not devastated while waiting for what is often, a positive outcome to their case.

The Windrush scandal and the recent cases of Toiec, and Article 322(5) have taught that appeal rights and work rights are desperately important, if unjust decisions by the Home Office are to be challenged.

There is increasing recognition that to deny people the right to appeal and to work, is inhuman. In a recent court ruling, the judge said a seriously ill woman could work while fighting deportation.

“I know people who have been out of work for two years or more. They lose their mental sanity,” said Bhardwaj.

“How they survive is unimaginable. I knew a family who used to mix water in milk to feed their children! The stories are shocking - people who have always worked and never borrowed money are piling up enormous debts, paying huge interest rates, going to food banks, feeding their disabled children out of date food thrown out by supermarkets. The list goes on,” she added.

Recently, in a House of Lords debate, Lord Taverne accused the Home Office of “not only breaking every canon of a civilised society [but] ignoring one of the most basic tenets of the rule of law: the golden rule that someone is assumed innocent until proven guilty”.

Removing and restricting the right to appeal and to work, means innocent people are brutally punished before they’re even proved guilty.

An Indian man, suffering from cancer was denied his ILR on the basis of a small tax discripancy, which he settled with HMRC. In March 2016, after he completed 10 years, he made his application, which was refused in 2018. His appeal was listed to be heard in October 1st week 2018.

He was diagnosed with last stage of cancer in December 2017. His father was struggling after hearing about their young son's health, but the man didn't want to jeopardise his 10 years legal long stay by just going back. He was very hopeful that the judiciary would get him justice but unfortunately he couldn't see that.

He left for India on 7th September 2018 and passed away within 2 days. Before leaving, he did try to raise his ill-health to bring his appeal forward, but the Home Office unfortunately didn't see much compelling reasons in his health conditions.

When he finally decided to go back - the documents were not even returned to him. He infact travelled back using emergency travel documents.

The Highly-skilled migrant group is appealing people to sign a petition, asking for basic rights and fair access to justice for immigrants who have been denied Indefinite Leave Remain. To sign please see: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/bring-back-appeal-work-rights-for-migrants-whose-immigration-applications-gets-refused.

Migration Advisory Committee report rejects a post-study work visa possibility

The Universities UK last week had appealed to the government to reinstate the post-study work visa to attract more international students to the UK. However a report published by the Migration Advisory Committee said the government has clearly no plans to cap student numbers.

However it clarified that removing students from the net migration target would be technically difficult, and if done correctly, would make almost no difference to the net migration figures.

Professor Alan Manning, the Chair, of the study said, “Many of the responses to the call for evidence argued that students should be taken out of the government's net migration target. None suggested a practical in which this might be done and we cannot see a reliable mehod. Eeven if a method was found, it would be unlikely to make much difference to the net migration target, it is with the target itself rather than the inclusion of students in target...”

The study also said that they do not recommend a separate post-study work visa option for international students. However it substantiated by saying that for undergraduates, the four-month period of leave to remain in the UK after their course has ended is sufficient to find a highly-skilled job. But for Master's level students, the study recommends the period of leave to reamin in the UK after studies to be increased to six months for all Master's level students, in line with the current Tier 4 pilot.

They have also recommended PhD students be automatically given a one year's leave to remain after completion of their studies, incorporated into their original visa and would continue to be subject to meeting progress requirements and course completion, for the eligibility purposes.This would replace the doctoral extension scheme that allows the same rights but has to be applied for associated costs.

The advantages of in-country swtiching from Tier 4 to Tier 2 (work permit) are also recommended to be extended to all graduates of UK Higher Education institutions for a period after graduation, perhaps for two years, whether or not they remain in the UK.

Bill Rammell, Vice Chancellor of the University of Bedfordshire, and former Higher Education Minister said, “Today’s report from the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has failed to recognise the impact the current immigration system has on the recruitment of international students. International students have reported they find our immigration system to be complex and hostile and believe they are unwelcome in this country.

 “The MAC had the opportunity to change that rhetoric; to recommend removal of international students from the Government’s net migration targets, and easing of post work study rules. Unfortunately it was a missed opportunity as disappointingly neither feature in the report’s main policy recommendations.”


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