We are a bit behind the times this month, catching up from the summer. This time Sonia and I cover not one but two statements of changes, the Illegal Migration Act, asylum withdrawals, the massive increase in fees, several legal updates on the rights of EU citizens and a load of cases, including one from the Supreme Court on Palestinian refugees.
Statement of changes
Statement of changes HC 1715: visa regime imposed on Dominica, Honduras, Namibia, Timor-Leste and Vanuatu
Statement of changes HC 1496: asylum, EU Settlement Scheme, and restrictions on students
Asylum
The Illegal Migration Act 2023: what has changed?
Briefing: why and how is the Home Office treating more asylum claims as “withdrawn”?
What safe and legal routes are available for refugees to come to the United Kingdom?
OISC
OISC amends judicial review practice note to prevent advisers conducting litigation
EU
New law confirms British citizenship for children of EU citizens born in UK before 2 October 2000
How does absence from the UK work under the EU settlement scheme?
A glitch or a feature? Systemic problems with digital proof of immigration status
Immigration
Massive increases to immigration fees announced
Briefing: the rules on returning residents with indefinite leave to remain (ILR)
Points Based System
How to apply for a Global Business Mobility: Secondment Worker visa
Cases
Supreme Court finds exclusion of Palestinians from resettlement scheme not unlawful
Asylum seekers don’t need ‘direct evidence’ they’re being covertly monitored
‘Minded to cancel’ process applies to dishonesty allegations at the UK border
Airport detainee wrongly denied a solicitor in immigration interview
Upper Tribunal reminds parties to identify the issues in an appeal
Tribunal must consider Home Office decisions in full even when not explicitly relied on by representative
High Court rejects challenge to EU Settlement Scheme dependency rules for children
Upper Tribunal rules post-Brexit Zambrano appeals can continue
Home Office withdraws objective evidence test for trafficking decisions
8/9/2023
35:42
Immigration roundup: June 2023
This month Sonia and I discuss the Rwanda judgment (we're saving that to the end as our good news story), a couple of fairly lengthy immigration and asylum history blog posts I've been working on for a while, several asylum developments and also our Refugee Week content, some procedural updates, a bunch (carousel?) of cases and a few other things too. There's quite a lot to go over, so we're just highlighting some of it rather than going into much depth.
The podcast follows the running order below.
A short guide to the legal position and history of the Windrush generation
A short history of refugees coming to Britain: from Huguenots to Ukrainians
Last traces of Nationality and Borders Act 2022 erased with abandonment of “differentiated status” for refugees
Data shows Ukrainians in the UK continue to face homelessness crisis
Is Rishi Sunak’s “Stop The Boats” plan really working?
Rwanda impact assessment looks hopelessly optimistic
United Nations Refugee Agency identifies problems in asylum screening processes
Briefing: the state of the UK asylum system
What is the legal definition of a “refugee”?
Should refugees claim asylum in the first safe country they reach?
Preparing foreign language witness statements
So-called mandatory grounds for refusal will not always be mandatory
Briefing: the Seasonal Worker visa
Reaction economy: the Home Office’s use of social media
Will I need Electronic Travel Authorisation to enter the UK?
Briefing: what is the Common Travel Area and how does it work?
New country guidance on Democratic Republic of the Congo
Scottish inquiry finds immigration detention centre death was avoidable
Supreme Court finds golden visa scheme unlawful
Trafficking victims wrongly denied financial support in lockdown
Court declines to take legal guardianship of refugee children missing from hotels
Court of Appeal finds Rwanda plan unlawful as Rwanda is not a safe third country
14/7/2023
35:19
Immigration roundup: May 2023
This month Sonia and I start with the Big Free Movement News (spoiler: Sonia is joining the team as the new Editor) and then cover a bunch of visa news and updates, a load of case law and several policy developments.
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5/6/2023
36:51
Immigration roundup: April 2023
This month we talk more about the Illegal Migration Bill and its potential consequences, the right way to go about tackling the asylum backlog, Colin's suggestion of a new British Citizenship Act, the resumption of hostile environment bank account closures, we run through a load of cases and end by talking about some business immigration issues.
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The podcast follows the running order below.
How does the Illegal Migration Bill breach the Refugee Convention?
Illegal Migration Bill: helping force refugees into illegality and danger
Could ‘safe and legal routes’ stop the boats?
If the Illegal Migration Bill is unworkable, what can the government do instead?
Amendments to the Illegal Migration Bill attack basic legal rights and processes
Two ways to address the asylum backlog and improve access to justice
It is time for a new British Citizenship Act for the post-Brexit era
Home Office resume bank account closures
High Court rejects challenge by Afghan families to hotel move
High Court dismisses challenge to family reunion rules for refugee children
Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022 ouster clause found effective
Court of Appeal re-affirms restrictive parameters of domestic violence provisions in immigration rules
Exceptional circumstances in a spouse or partner visa application under Appendix FM
How to apply for a Senior or Specialist Worker visa
Reporting hybrid working patterns: new sponsor obligations
Visit visa operations are “refreshingly well run”
5/5/2023
36:40
Immigration roundup: March 2023
For this month's roundup podcast, Sonia and I manage to rattle through a huge volume of updates in a mere 36 minutes. We cover a load of cases, some important asylum policy updates and then several developments in immigration law as well. We're sorry it is a little later than usual; the Easter holidays intervened. And I am sorry if you can hear scaffolders poles bouncing off the pavement outside the block of flats opposite my house...
If you are a lawyer and would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and listening to this podcast, sign up here as a Free Movement member. There are well over 100 CPD hours of training materials available to members. You can find all the available courses here.
The 30-minute podcast follows the running order below.
Permission granted on additional grounds in the Rwanda case in the Court of Appeal
Court of Appeal emphasises absence of corroboration is not fatal in asylum cases
Court of Appeal dismisses appeal against criminalising small boat arrivals
Legal challenges against GPS tagging for people on immigration bail
High Court considers how the loss of work may engage article 8
No recourse to public funds policy found unlawful (again)
“High hurdle” for hotel accommodation challenges?
Refusals of naturalisation on good character grounds can only be challenged by irrationality
Amended data protection exemption for migrants declared unlawful
UK spends one third of international aid budget on domestic asylum costs
Are the new asylum questionnaires fit for purpose?
Assisting with the new asylum questionnaires: OISC Level 1 caseworkers and volunteers
Home Office publishes guidance on streamlined asylum processing for children
Home Office’s approach to family reunion applications condemned by immigration inspector
Borders Inspector “frustrated” by lack of action from Home Office
New statement of changes to the Immigration Rules HC1160
Spring budget migration announcements
New ‘Appendix Adult Dependent Relative’ to the immigration rules
All families matter: An inquiry into family migration
Government Authorised Exchange: one visa, 40 options