Immigration Law

The UK Home Office issued guidance on the intended application of facial age estimation (FAE) for disputed-age asylum claims......

The Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford has published a briefing on UK asylum accommodation According to the briefing, the share of asylum seekers placed in hotels has dropped sharply, sliding from 41% at the end of 2023 to 21% by March 2026. This change mirrors both lower overall demand and a move back towards dispersal housing. Over the same window, those receiving accommodation support reduced from 112,000 to 98,000 across the system......

In this issue Key developments UK immigration control: how it works Long residence, discretion and human rights Challenging immigration decisions and enforcement Citizenship applications International Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Key developments Future developments-Immigration calendar and Immigration White Paper. Our Immigration calendar highlights key forthcoming milestones for business immigration advisers. Alongside this, our Practice Note: Immigration White Paper 2025-summary, tracker and resources delivers an updated, panoramic overview of developments linked to the May 2025 White Paper ‘Restoring control over the immigration system’, including the ‘Earned settlement’ plans. It distils the main proposed reforms for business immigration practitioners, offers commentary on their potential effects, and monitors their implementation on a rolling basis. It also provides links to relevant resources. UK immigration control: how it works Home Office issues new immigration statistics for year ending March...

Practice Note This Practice Note provides an eligibility matrix outlining the criteria for settlement-also referred to as indefinite leave to remain (ILR)-for partners or parents under the Immigration Rules, Appendix Settlement Family Life (the ten-year route to settlement). This Appendix was introduced into the Immigration Rules on 20 June 2022 as part of the Home Office initiative to streamline and simplify those Rules. Appendix FM to the Immigration Rules still sets out the provisions for limited leave for partners and parents on the five and ten-year routes, and the rules for settlement via the five-year route. The Practice Note also considers the terms governing settlement for dependent children within the Appendix itself. Alongside reorganising the relevant Rules into a simplified structure and layout, the Appendix contains several policy shifts from the previous ten-year route settlement provisions for partner applicants in Appendix FM,...

HC 535 was published on 29 October 2015, accompanied by an Explanatory Memorandum (EM). Beyond the previously signalled steps of temporarily placing nurses on the shortage occupation list and bringing the Tech Nation visa scheme into the Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) category, the Statement introduces a number of technical amendments across the Immigration Rules. It also makes more substantial alterations to the Rules on asylum (which sit outside the scope of Lexis+® UK Immigration). This overview offers, by category, a bullet-point outline of the key changes for business practitioners, with links to related News Analysis pieces that examine particular issues in greater depth. The EM appears at the end of p. 57 of the Statement. Implementation Unless stated otherwise, these changes apply to applications submitted on or after 19 November 2015. Applications filed before that date will be decided in accordance with the Rules in force on 18...

This Practice Note This Practice Note examines the criteria for applications that rely, wholly or partly, on pension-derived income to satisfy the minimum income threshold for the five-year route to settlement under Appendix FM. As with other acceptable income streams, pension income is placed in a lettered classification (E) within the guidance covering the financial requirement and in the relevant immigration application forms. Although these classifications are not named in Appendix FM or Appendix FM-SE of the Immigration Rules, the underlying requirements that justify the division into categories are set out there. The gross annual amount from any state pension (including the UK basic state pension and the additional or second state pension, or a pension paid by an overseas pension authority) or from a private pension, received by either the applicant partner or the sponsoring partner, can be counted towards meeting the minimum income...

Dear [ Applicant ], Your Skilled Worker visa I am pleased to confirm that your Skilled Worker visa has been approved. [ The visas for your dependant family members have also been approved ] . Initial entry and your eVisa You [ and your dependants ] have been granted immigration permission from [ Start date ] to [ End date ]. The Home Office has issued a visa for you [ and your dependants ] in digital format (also called an ‘eVisa’). Consequently, you [ and your dependants ] will not receive an endorsement in your passport [ s ] or any physical document confirming the grant of permission. [ Your permission is linked to your biometric passport used in your visa application. Please use the same passport to enter the UK. Before you travel to the UK, you will [ each ] need to create a UKVI...

You have been given permission to remain in the UK until [ insert date ] as the partner of someone who holds [ British citizenship OR settled status in the UK OR protection status in the UK OR pre-settled status under Appendix EU ]. [ Your dependant child [ ren ] has/have been issued leave that mirrors yours, and the points set out below for you will equally apply to them, including the requirement to log into their eVisa account and make updates where appropriate. You may administer this account on their behalf. ] This note summarises some of the key conditions attached to your residence in the UK and your duties to the Home Office. It is essential that you are familiar with these conditions and responsibilities. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any queries. Please note that, while the...

[ Insert address of the [ parent OR guardian ] in the home country ] [ Insert the Home Office address to which the application is being sent ] [ Insert date ] Dear [ insert organisation name ] Letter of support for [ insert name, date of birth and nationality of child applicant ] I am [ insert name, date of birth and nationality ], the [ father OR mother OR guardian ] of [ insert name of applicant ]. I hereby state my full support for my child’s application for UK immigration permission within the [ insert immigration category ] category. [ Describe how you are responsible for your child’s care, for example jointly with your child’s other parent, solely following the death of your child's other parent, in line with a custody or guardianship order, or as the person with sole...

Immigration Rules, Appendix ECAA: Extension Of Stay Pursuant to the current Immigration Rules (Immigration Rules, Appendix ECAA: Extension Of Stay) and the applicable guidance (Turkish ECAA guidance: Appendix ECAA extension of stay), holders of the Turkish Worker visa who have been lawfully employed in the UK for at least four years may, from that point, take up any role with any employer. This Appendix took effect at 11pm GMT on 31 December 2020, to encompass those who previously enjoyed rights under Decision 1/80 of the Association Council connected to the ECAA Association Agreement (concluded on 12 September 1963 in Ankara, and later supplemented on 23 November 1970 by the Brussels Protocol). See: Turkey-EEC Association Agreement: Macdonald’s Immigration Law and Practice [6.193]. Immigration Rules Appendix ECAA: Extension Of Stay, paragraphs ECAA 3.1–ECAA 3.2 set out, amongst other matters, that: ECAA 3.1......

Monitoring and reporting migrant activity Under the heading Monitoring and reporting migrant activity, Practice Note, Sponsor duties under Tiers 2 and 5 and adapting human resources systems, confirms that a report must be submitted via the SMS within ten working days whenever a sponsor holds any information indicating that a sponsored......

Refer to the relevant Practice Notes: Applying for a sponsor licence under Workers and Temporary Workers: eligibility and suitability (covering pre-revenue businesses) and Applying for a Workers and Temporary Workers sponsor licence: procedure (concerning licence re-application). Cooling off period and who it applies to If a sponsor licence application is refused, the Home Office will, in most cases, impose a cooling off period. This is typically six months, though in some situations it can be as long as five years. The Home Office may choose not to apply the cooling off period, for example where documents were provided late, or where a representative submitted the application. See Practice Note: Applying for a Workers and Temporary Workers sponsor licence: procedure/cooling-off periods......