https://freemovement.org.uk Updates, commentary, training and advice on immigration and asylum law Tue, 21 Jan 2025 09:13:28 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 https://freemovement.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/cropped-Goose-logo-32x32.png https://freemovement.org.uk 32 32 https://freemovement.org.uk/new-court-of-appeal-guidance-on-the-correct-test-to-be-applied-to-s-403-deprivation-of-citizenship-appeals/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=new-court-of-appeal-guidance-on-the-correct-test-to-be-applied-to-s-403-deprivation-of-citizenship-appeals https://freemovement.org.uk/new-court-of-appeal-guidance-on-the-correct-test-to-be-applied-to-s-403-deprivation-of-citizenship-appeals/#respond Tue, 21 Jan 2025 08:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=218897 In Chaudhry v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2025] EWCA Civ 16, the Court of Appeal has confirmed the correct test to be applied in appeals against decisions of the Secretary of State to deprive a person of citizenship pursuant to section 40(3) of the British Nationality Act 1981 (where citizenship was obtained […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/new-court-of-appeal-guidance-on-the-correct-test-to-be-applied-to-s-403-deprivation-of-citizenship-appeals/feed/ 0 https://freemovement.org.uk/high-court-dismisses-challenge-to-refusal-of-indefinite-leave-under-windrush-scheme/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=high-court-dismisses-challenge-to-refusal-of-indefinite-leave-under-windrush-scheme Wed, 04 Dec 2024 08:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=216882 The High Court has dismissed a judicial review challenging the decision of the Home Secretary to refuse to grant indefinite leave to remain to the claimant, Jeanell Hippolyte, under the Windrush scheme. The case is Hippolyte v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWHC 2968 (Admin). Claimant’s background The claimant was born in […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/but-i-dont-know-any-barristers-the-case-for-scrapping-the-referee-requirement-for-citizenship-applications/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=but-i-dont-know-any-barristers-the-case-for-scrapping-the-referee-requirement-for-citizenship-applications https://freemovement.org.uk/but-i-dont-know-any-barristers-the-case-for-scrapping-the-referee-requirement-for-citizenship-applications/#comments Tue, 26 Nov 2024 08:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=216532 Currently, anyone applying for British citizenship has to find two referees to vouch for their identity and confirm they are unaware of any reason why the applicant does not qualify for citizenship. Those referees can’t be just anyone – there are specific rules for who can be a referee for a citizenship application, which for […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/but-i-dont-know-any-barristers-the-case-for-scrapping-the-referee-requirement-for-citizenship-applications/feed/ 1 https://freemovement.org.uk/when-can-someone-be-refused-a-passport-because-of-their-name/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=when-can-someone-be-refused-a-passport-because-of-their-name https://freemovement.org.uk/when-can-someone-be-refused-a-passport-because-of-their-name/#comments Fri, 11 Oct 2024 07:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=214228 It was recently reported that the passport application for a British child was refused over “copyright infringement”. The child in question’s name was Loki Skywalker Mowbray and he was born on 4 May (also known as Star Wars Day for the uninitiated among you). You will be unsurprised to hear that once the media got […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/when-can-someone-be-refused-a-passport-because-of-their-name/feed/ 2 https://freemovement.org.uk/tribunal-forces-home-office-to-publish-report-on-the-racism-that-underpinned-the-windrush-scandal/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tribunal-forces-home-office-to-publish-report-on-the-racism-that-underpinned-the-windrush-scandal Fri, 27 Sep 2024 07:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=213721 In a decision that forced me to google Pericles (an ancient Greek politician) and Santayana (a Spanish-American philosopher) the First-tier Tribunal (General Regulatory Chamber) has allowed an appeal relating to the Home Office’s refusal to disclose the report on “The Historical Roots of the Windrush Scandal”. This is the second successful freedom of information appeal […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/court-of-appeal-dismisses-appeal-against-deprivation-of-citizenship/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=court-of-appeal-dismisses-appeal-against-deprivation-of-citizenship Wed, 07 Aug 2024 07:43:55 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=211328 The Court of Appeal has upheld a decision by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission to dismiss an appeal against the deprivation of British citizenship of a man who travelled to Syria and fought with a group aligned to Al-Qaeda. The case is B4 v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWCA Civ 900 […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/high-court-finds-passport-office-prevented-from-refusing-passport-to-person-who-may-not-actually-be-british/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=high-court-finds-passport-office-prevented-from-refusing-passport-to-person-who-may-not-actually-be-british https://freemovement.org.uk/high-court-finds-passport-office-prevented-from-refusing-passport-to-person-who-may-not-actually-be-british/#comments Wed, 24 Jul 2024 07:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=210956 In a really interesting case, the High Court has held that issue estoppel prevents His Majesty’s Passport Office from refusing to issue a passport to an applicant, because of a finding made by the First-tier Tribunal that he is, in fact, British, despite the lack of evidence. That case is Islam, R (On the Application […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/high-court-finds-passport-office-prevented-from-refusing-passport-to-person-who-may-not-actually-be-british/feed/ 3 https://freemovement.org.uk/high-court-upholds-refusal-to-register-child-as-a-british-citizen/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=high-court-upholds-refusal-to-register-child-as-a-british-citizen Mon, 22 Jul 2024 08:04:23 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=210717 The High Court has found that a decision to refuse to register a child as a British Citizen was lawful, despite the “barely stated” reasons given. The case is R (OBN (a minor) by his litigation friend ASM) v The Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWHC 1833 (Admin). Background The claimant was […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/theis-case-immigration-nationality-law-adopted-children/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=theis-case-immigration-nationality-law-adopted-children Fri, 28 Jun 2024 07:37:40 +0000 https://env-7121714.mightybox.site/?p=55361 Immigration and nationality law as it relates to international adoption is undoubtedly complex and a topic with which only a few practitioners are familiar. There are numerically very few international adoption cases, after all. The inevitable cross over with family law does not make it any easier. This blog post provides an overview of the […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/failure-to-implement-windrush-recommendations-held-to-be-unlawful-by-high-court/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=failure-to-implement-windrush-recommendations-held-to-be-unlawful-by-high-court Wed, 26 Jun 2024 07:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=210103 The High Court has held that the decision made by Suella Braverman not to implement recommendations made in Wendy Williams’ review into the Windrush scandal was unlawful. The recommendations specifically related to the creation of a Migrants’ Commissioner role and the review of the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration’s role. The case is […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/independent-chief-inspectors-report-on-deprivation-of-citizenship-shows-a-high-number-of-stalled-cases/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=independent-chief-inspectors-report-on-deprivation-of-citizenship-shows-a-high-number-of-stalled-cases Wed, 17 Apr 2024 07:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=207144 The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration’s report ‘An inspection of the use of deprivation of Citizenship by the Status Review Unit’ contains some interesting points around the high number of Albanian decisions, proposed solutions for what happens to a person after deprivation and some fairly troubling use of spreadsheets. Also, at the time […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/roehrig-upheld-by-court-of-appeal-no-changes-for-certain-children-of-eu-citizens-not-entitled-to-british-citizenship/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=roehrig-upheld-by-court-of-appeal-no-changes-for-certain-children-of-eu-citizens-not-entitled-to-british-citizenship Tue, 19 Mar 2024 08:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=206029 In the context of British nationality law, EEA citizens residing in the UK from 2 October 2000 continue to not meet the definition of “settled”, unless they held indefinite leave to remain or had acquired permanent residence. This was confirmed last week by the Court of Appeal in R (on the application of Roehrig) v […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/special-immigration-appeals-commission-has-the-power-to-award-costs-in-reviews/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=special-immigration-appeals-commission-has-the-power-to-award-costs-in-reviews Tue, 05 Mar 2024 08:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=205064 In FGF v Secretary of State for the Home Department, Appeal No: SN/01/2022 the Special Immigration Appeals Commission has concluded that it has the power to award costs in reviews, in certain circumstances. Background FGF applied for naturalisation as a British citizen on 27 January 2020. The Home Secretary refused the application on 16 February […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/court-of-appeal-rejects-shamima-begums-appeal-against-the-deprivation-of-her-british-citizenship/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=court-of-appeal-rejects-shamima-begums-appeal-against-the-deprivation-of-her-british-citizenship Mon, 26 Feb 2024 08:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=204862 The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal from Shamima Begum challenging the Special Immigration Appeals Commission’s decision that the deprivation of her British citizenship was lawful. I recommend reading Colin’s write up of that SIAC decision. This decision is Begum v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] EWCA Civ 152. Background Ms […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/naturalisation-as-a-british-citizen/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=naturalisation-as-a-british-citizen Thu, 08 Feb 2024 08:00:00 +0000 https://env-7121714.mightybox.site/?p=126517 Naturalisation is the legal process by which a non-British adult becomes a British citizen. An application has to be made to the Home Office and if the criteria set out in the British Nationality Act 1981 are met then the application will be granted and the person can attend a ceremony to become a British […]]]> Nationality - Free Movement nonadult https://freemovement.org.uk/court-of-appeal-upholds-deprivation-of-citizenship-decision/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=court-of-appeal-upholds-deprivation-of-citizenship-decision Thu, 12 Oct 2023 08:18:40 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=195180 The Court of Appeal has upheld a decision made the Home Secretary to deprive a person of their British citizenship on the basis that it was obtained by dishonest concealment of a material fact. Namely, that the appellant did not disclose what appeared to be an ongoing relationship between he and his wife in Pakistan […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/tribunal-must-consider-home-office-decisions-in-full-even-when-not-explicitly-relied-on-by-representative/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tribunal-must-consider-home-office-decisions-in-full-even-when-not-explicitly-relied-on-by-representative Mon, 10 Jul 2023 07:00:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=190908 Can a judge ignore part of a Home Office decision if their representative doesn’t mention it in court? No, said the Court of Appeal in Shyti v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] EWCA Civ 770. The case The appellant, Mr Shyti, was challenging a decision to deprive him of his British citizenship. […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/new-law-confirms-british-citizenship-for-children-of-eu-citizens-born-in-uk-before-2-october-2000/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=new-law-confirms-british-citizenship-for-children-of-eu-citizens-born-in-uk-before-2-october-2000 https://freemovement.org.uk/new-law-confirms-british-citizenship-for-children-of-eu-citizens-born-in-uk-before-2-october-2000/#comments Thu, 06 Jul 2023 07:00:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=190817 The British Nationality (Regularisation of Past Practice) Act 2023 came into force on 29 June 2023. It inserts a new section 50B into the British Nationality Act 1981. Section 50B definitively and retrospectively confirms the British nationality status of all children born in the UK between 1 January 1983 and 1 October 2000 to an […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/new-law-confirms-british-citizenship-for-children-of-eu-citizens-born-in-uk-before-2-october-2000/feed/ 1 https://freemovement.org.uk/a-short-guide-to-the-legal-position-and-history-of-the-windrush-generation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-short-guide-to-the-legal-position-and-history-of-the-windrush-generation https://freemovement.org.uk/a-short-guide-to-the-legal-position-and-history-of-the-windrush-generation/#comments Thu, 22 Jun 2023 07:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=190344 Today marks the 75th anniversary of the disembarking of the passengers on board the ship the HMT Empire Windrush at Tilbury docks on 22 June 1948. Even now, five years after the Windrush scandal broke, many well-informed and well-intentioned journalists, writers and policy-makers do not really grasp the true legal position of those who have […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/a-short-guide-to-the-legal-position-and-history-of-the-windrush-generation/feed/ 1 https://freemovement.org.uk/upper-tribunal-provides-guidance-on-correct-approach-in-deprivation-of-citizenship-appeals/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=upper-tribunal-provides-guidance-on-correct-approach-in-deprivation-of-citizenship-appeals https://freemovement.org.uk/upper-tribunal-provides-guidance-on-correct-approach-in-deprivation-of-citizenship-appeals/#comments Mon, 22 May 2023 08:30:00 +0000 https://freemovement.org.uk/?p=189116 The Upper Tribunal has given guidance on the correct approach in deprivation appeals. The headnote to this case, Chimi (deprivation appeals; scope and evidence) Cameroon [2023] UKUT 00115 (IAC), says: Background Ms Chimi was born in September 1977 in Cameroon. In 2000 she moved to France and formed a relationship. In 2006, with the help […]]]> https://freemovement.org.uk/upper-tribunal-provides-guidance-on-correct-approach-in-deprivation-of-citizenship-appeals/feed/ 1