This appeal relates to an application lodged by ICS Legal on behalf of the appellant under the EU Settlement Scheme Appeal, which was then wrongly refused by the Home Office and the First Tier Tribunal agreed with ICS Legal in allowing the immigration appeal.
Full facts of the case and what we did are set out as follows. Please note due to data protection, the appellant's name or any relevant details are not enclosed.
Summary case facts
We applied for the appellant leave to remain under the EU Settlement Scheme, and was refused by the Home Office. In their decision letter, Home Office failed to apply the policy. The appellant maintained that there was a clear and fundamental breach of the sponsor’s EU rights under Regulation 8 of the 2016 Regulations.
Home Office maintained that the applicant and the sponsor had not been living together in a relationship akin to marriage for two years prior to 31st December 2020 and that the Rules required this.
The appeal matter before the First Tier Tribunal
Immigration Tribunal Judge Quinn presided over the matter at the IAC Hatton Cross.
Home Office made the following submissions before Judge "He emphasised that the timing of the application was important as it was nine days before the effect of the Withdrawal Agreement and he said that it should have been dealt with under the EEA Regulations of 2016 and it may have slipped through the net due to the vast number of applications that were made, (he quoted a figure of 3.5 million applications)."
In doing so, the Judge used this to confirm that the Home Office was wrong in applying the rules and that the 2 years test of relationship was a rule of thumb. Paragraph 45 of the judgement, the Judge stated "To prevent her from doing that would in my view be a disproportionate decision and a misinterpretation of the EU law and its intentions." whereby he had found that the decision made by the Home Office was simply wrong.
The Judge allowed the appeal with the closing argument "The Respondent's policy was to ensure stability for EEA citizens resident in the UK and their family members and denying the Appellant the right to live with his wife would infringe her EU rights considerably and would in my view be disproportionate."
Immigration Deportation Order, First Tier Tribunal determination dated 14th January 2013
Appendix FM, family life as a Parent, First Tier Tribunal determination dated 5th Nov 2012
Adult Dependant Relative, Appendix FM Immigration Rules, First Tier Tribunal determination dated 11th Oct 2019
Adult Dependant Relative on Human Rights Grounds, First Tier Tribunal determination dated 11th Sep 2019
Private Life on Human Rights Grounds, First Tier Tribunal determination dated 20th Aug 2019
Appendix FM, family life as a Partner, First Tier Tribunal determination dated 22nd July 2019
Appendix FM, family life as a Partner, Appeal withdrawn prior First Tier appeal hearing 9th May 2019
EEA Family Permit, family life as a Partner, First Tier Tribunal determination dated 15th Dec 2019
EEA Family Permit, Derivative Rights as a Parent, First Tier Tribunal determination dated 31st January 2020
Indefinite Leave to Remain Appendix FM | Continuous Residence
UK Ancestry Visa | Continuous Residence | Break of Residency
Family Visit Visa Refusal | Family Life with British Citizen | Genuine Visitor | False Representation
An appeal related to a human rights application, refused on the grounds that the appellant did not meet the exceptional circumstances and then challenged whereby the appeal was then allowed.
An application as a carer in line with a person's private life & exceptional circumstances.
Adult Dependant Relative - ADR Immigration Appeal is a successful challenge on the decision made by the Home Office. The First Tier Tribunal allowed the appeal.
EU Settlement Scheme - Pre-Settled Status Immigration Appeal where the Home Office was wrong to refuse the application and appeal allowed by First Tier Tribunal Judge
In-country Adult Dependant Relative & Human Rights Claim decision was made by Mr T J Cary Judge of the FtT where the matter went at Taylor House Immigration Tribunal.
Spouse Visa Appeal & Human Rights, where the sponsor could not meet the financial requirements but in the appeal matter, the Judge accepted that the decision should be in favour of the appellant.
EU Settlement Scheme Appeal - EUSS refusal as a spouse of an EEA Citizen, which also considers the specified date of marriage and relationship.
EU Settlement Scheme, Unmarried Partner & Covid where the matter went before the First Tier Tribunal.
Adult Children, Article 8 ECHR [Family & Private Life], an appeal went before the First Tier Tribunal. The appeal was allowed under human rights grounds.
Spouse Visa Appeal, Appendix FM & Article 8 ECHR where the matter related to immigration status, covid and also right to family life.