Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

R (OAJ) v HMT: High Court (England and Wales) refuses permission - exclusion of NRPF migrants from childcare support justified; ultra vires, irrationality and PSED challenges unarguable

Published on: 03 March 2026

Published by a LexisNexis Public Law expert

Legal News

Article summary

R (OAJ) v His Majesty’s Treasury and another [2026] EWHC 191 (Admin)

What are the practical implications of the case?

The ruling highlights the considerable hurdles in contesting eligibility rules tied to the ‘no recourse to public funds’ approach. The court criticised the claimants’ contention that their exclusion conflicted with the purpose of the Child Care Payments Act 2014 and the Child Care Act 2016, calling it a policy or political stance presented as a legal point. Practitioners should note that courts allow the state a broad margin of appreciation when determining how scarce resources are distributed. Challenges to benefit schemes are likely to fail where the state can properly justify different treatment by pointing to the need to restrict certain groups of migrants’ access to public services. The judgment also usefully surveys case law on the PSED and reiterates that the court’s function in this sphere is supervisory rather than interventionist.

What was the background?

The claimants were a mother, a Nigerian national, and her two children born in the UK. The mother worked seven 12-hour shifts as a nurse and was unable to pay for...

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